A masterpiece of historiography, to which contemporary cultural and mental history owes significant impulses. The overall portrait of Northern Late Gothic is among the most important works of cultural history writing, comparable in scientific rank, brilliance of presentation, and breadth of perspective only to the classical works of Jacob Burckhardt. In captivating vividness, Huizinga depicts humanity and society, spirit and life, art and literature, piety and faith of the Burgundian-Flemish-Dutch world of the 14th and 15th centuries. The highly suggestive portrayal of the tension between ascetic world renunciation and the thirst for life, the escape into beautiful illusion that characterized the late Middle Ages from the aristocracy to the lower classes, continues to shape our perception of the Late Middle Ages to this day. In its 12th edition, the work is presented anew.