Altarpiece of the Holy Sacrament (1464-67)

The Holy Sacrament Altarpiece was commissioned by the confraternity of the Holy Sacrament for the St Peter in Leuven. The painter was bound by contract to execute the work himself and thereby to follow the directions of two professors of theology. The altarpiece is the masterpiece of Bouts. Work on the altarpiece began in 1464 and the painting was installed in the church four years later. A register of the Confraternity of the Holy Sacrament has survived which contains a receipt for the payment of this work, written in the hand of Bouts himself.