Chintzy pastel flowers, grandiose feasts painted in the soft lighting style of 80’s glamour shots, and Jesus, so much Jesus! We’ve seen these images a thousand times before, and yet we keep coming back for more. European Golden Age masterpieces have prestige; their reputation precedes them, and they are magnetic to people from all walks of life, but why? Everybody paints boats and flowers, so what makes these old-timers so damn special? With the Golden Age spanning the 17th century, it’s all history, baby. The age of exploration, burgeoning nationalism, bloody religious battles, and pre-revolution was upon us. Health sciences were moving past enemas and blood-letting as the go-to cures…