Farmers harvest grapes in the foreground, while an imposing castle (Château de Saumur) sits enthroned on a hill. Horses pull a cart laden with baskets of grapes. The sky is clear blue: early autumn. This is one of the most naturalistic landscapes from the Middle Ages. Depth is created by hills, roads and perspective reduction. The contrast between working farmers and aristocratic architecture reflects the social order. Yet everything is harmoniously incorporated into the cycle of the year. The Limburg brothers were pioneers in landscape representation; this work already heralds the spatiality of the Renaissance.
