Pieter Bruegel the Elder's 'The Harvesters' (1565) hangs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The painting shows a typical Flemish, rural scene, but the work traversed almost the whole of Europe. Thomas discovers that Bruegel's masterpiece in Antwerp once served as collateral for a tax debt. A coincidence that would determine the entire further history of the work.

"Diana and Her Nymphs Leaving for the Hunt" (1615) by Peter Paul Rubens hangs in The Cleveland Museum of Art. It may not be the best-known canvas by the Antwerp master, but the story behind the painting reads like a true crime novel.

'Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and his Wife' (1434) by Jan Van Eyck hangs in the National Gallery in London. It is without doubt one of the most mysterious and imaginative works in art history. That this masterpiece after all his wanderings can still be admired today in London is a small miracle.