Showing a beardless benefactor of destitute young women in the Netherlands, The Charity of St Nicholas, 15th century, by the Master of the Legend of St Lucy (Grenningemuseum, Bruges), is among a selection of “translations of St Nicholas” illustrating a chapter on festivals in Neil MacGregor’s Living with the Gods: On beliefs and peoples, based on his radio series that won a Sandford St Martin Award (British Museum/BBC Radio 4/Allen Lane, £30 (£27); 978-0-241-30829-5)