St Hippolyte Triptych

The Saint Hippolytus Triptych, painted in 1468 for Sint-Salvatorskathedraal in Bruges, depicts the martyrdom of the Roman soldier-saint torn apart by horses under Emperor Decius's persecution. Bouts received this major commission from Hippolyte de Berthoz, treasurer of the Flemish court, who appears as the donor kneeling in the wings alongside his wife. The vivid depiction of the saint's execution—horses straining in opposite directions, the body at the point of dismemberment—is among the most graphic martyrdom images in Flemish painting, yet Bouts renders the horror with the same calm technical precision he brought to quieter devotional subjects. The work remains in Bruges Cathedral.

The triptych panels demonstrate Bouts's refined technique and spatial composition, the central martyrdom scene framed by related narrative panels, all rendered with the precise detail and luminous color characteristic of his oil painting.