Painting technique

The basic colours were painted on first; next came all the outlines in black; and finally, patches of dark glazes were applied to accentuate the black lines, thereby enhancing the shapes. This is a variant of the typical layer-by-layer painting technique, the most commonly used technique in the Middle Ages. As regards this particular frontal, wet-into-wet painting was used to create the red and green wavy borders, and to smooth the small circle segments of the painted frames between the scenes.

Above: Painting the frame.

Above, to the right: Painting of green (Verdigris) and yellow colour (orpiment). The wooden stick which supports the painter's hand was a common remedy for painters in medieval times.

To tre right: Olav's Dream when filled in with the basic colours. Note that the green pigment verdigris in the wavy borders appears cooler than the same colour in the scene, where it was painted a few days earlier. The green in the wavy borders will also change and become warm green within a few days after it has been painted.