Heilwich van der Rullen and Her Daughters with Saint Mary Magdalen (outer face); Hendrixke van Langhel and Her Deceased Child with Saint Catherine (inner face)

This devotional diptych, painted by Hieronymus Bosch around 1498, offers a fascinating glimpse into the artist's early period, before his most famous fantastical works like "The Garden of Earthly Delights." While Bosch is renowned for his nightmarish depictions of hell and intricate moral allegories, here we see a more conventional, yet still deeply personal, commission. On the outer face, Heilwich van der Rullen and her daughters are presented with Saint Mary Magdalen, a figure of repentance and devotion. The inner face reveals Hendrixke van Langhel and her deceased child with Saint Catherine, a patron saint often associated with learning and protection. These portraits of donors, often accompanied by their patron saints, were common in Early Netherlandish painting. Bosch, a Dutch painter from Brabant, spent most of his life in 's-Hertogenbosch and was a member of the prestigious Brotherhood of Our Lady, a devotional confraternity. This painting, likely executed on an oak panel with oil, would have served as a private devotional object, intended for contemplation and prayer within the family's home.