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Two double-sided panels, one depicting scenes from the life of St Agapitus of Praeneste, and another depicting scenes from the life of St Remigius (Remi), bishop of Reims, must originally have formed the folding wings of an altarpiece. The lost altarpiece probably had another pair of folding wings.
St Agapitus is a third-century martyr saint. According to his legend, 15-year-old Agapitus, who may have been a member of the noble Anicia family of Praeneste (modern Palestrina), was condemned to death, under the prefect Antiochus and the emperor Aurelian, for being a Christian. He was thrown to the wild animals in the local arena at Praeneste. The beasts refused to harm him, and he was beheaded.
One side of the Agapitus panel shows the saint seated in a walled enclosure, surrounded by lions and bears. His persecutors observe from the balcony at the upper right. The saint's beheading outside the walls of Praeneste appears on the other side of the panels.
Comparison with other existing panels from workshops in northern Switzerland indicates that the panels were originated in that region.
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