It is repeatedly noted that the extremely rich late medieval art of Franconia, aside from figures like Albrecht Dürer, Veit Stoss, or Tilman Riemenschneider, has not been adequately explored. This is particularly true for the period of the beautiful style under the rule of the House of Luxembourg in the first half of the 15th century. The present study is based on years of field research and largely uncovers new material that significantly enriches our understanding of the high-ranking art of the Franconian dioceses of Bamberg, Würzburg, and Eichstätt, as well as their close relationships with the trade and craft metropolis of Nuremberg. Notably, it reveals a departure from the beautiful, idealizing creations of the beginning of the century and a shift towards a new realism in the representation of figures.