It is accepted that is phrase was first used by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, though is was certainly not invented him. Though his New York Times obituary attributed it to him, the saying also appears to have been a favorite of the art historian Aby Warburg though it is not certain if it originated with him. It has also been linked to Gustave Flaubert as "Le bon Dieu est dans le détail". There has also arisen the saying 'The devil is in the details', a darker corollary to this.