In 1491 Joris van Halewijn, pander to the Burgundian nobility, hiding his visual identity, commissions the Dutch painter Bosch to paint a triptych of the Temptations of St Anthony. Bosch's assistant Clem, and Bosch's wife Aleyt warn him of the danger of the commission, but Bosch, fearless, curious, and well paid, starts to paint... Here there is a mixture of historical figures - Bosch, his wife Aleyt, Joris van Halewijn, Ferdinand I of Aragon, Isabella of Castile, Mad Joan and Christopher Columbus, with a series of fictional figures taken from the paintings. The characters roll and intermix together, to create a triptych of their own.