For centuries the owners of Les Belles Heures and Les Très Riches Heures were barely familiar with the creators of these masterpieces. Art history as a discipline hardly exists any more, and many sources have never been published, making research difficult. It was only in 1881 that Léopold Delisle identified the Limbourg brothers as the creators of Les Très Riches Heures, through research into the inventory of Jean de Berry's holdings, which was compiled during his life and shortly after his death.

Around 1950, Friedrich Gorissen, the city archivist of Kleve, discovered through research in the Nijmegen archives the relationship between the Maelwaels, the Limbourg brothers and the city of Nijmegen. Gerard Lemmens, the former director of the Nijmegen Museum Commanderie van Saint Jan, now Het Valkhof Museum, lamented the fact that because there is no historical marker commemorating the birthplace of the Limbourg brothers, Nijmegen has repeatedly deprived itself of the opportunity to showcase the city's importance as a cultural centre in centuries past.