‘Wonders. Strangers have come from the land of Egypt’: The Arrival of the ‘Gypsies’ in the Low Countries (1419-35)

In 1419, Romani, then called Egyptians, visited the Burgundian Low Countries for the first time. Based on unexploited sources, mainly municipal accounts, this article charts the first period of this migration, which ended in 1435. It thus seeks to offer new insights into the chronology, reception and perception of these foreigners in a highly urbanised and prosperous region, with a particular focus on the county of Flanders. It also examines the correlation between the attraction of the Low Countries to the Egyptians and the politics of the Burgundian Duke Philip the Good. Finally, this paper explores the impact the acquaintance with ‘the other’ had on Netherlandish society and how this was reflected in the visual arts.