Hugo van der Goes painted this large altarpiece in oil on oak panel around 1475 for Tommaso Portinari, an Italian banker who represented the Medici bank in Bruges, for the hospital church of Sant’Egidio at Santa Maria Nuova in Florence. This triptych is a significant work in the artist’s career and represents one of the most important examples of Early Netherlandish painting brought to Italy in the late fifteenth century. The central panel depicts the Adoration of the Shepherds, while the side panels feature donor portraits and saints. The central panel is dominated by the Virgin Mary kneeling in adoration before the Christ Child, who lies on the bare ground.

Surrounding them are angels, shepherds, and animals, with a ruined stable structure above. The left wing shows Tommaso Portinari with his sons, accompanied by saints Anthony Abbot and Thomas, while the right wing depicts Maria Portinari and their daughters with saints Mary Magdalene and Margaret. The composition is notable for its detailed naturalism, vibrant colors, and the symbolic use of flowers in the foreground, which reference the Passion and purity of Christ.

The figures are rendered with individualized expressions and meticulous attention to texture and light. Commissioned by Tommaso Portinari and transported from Flanders to Florence, the triptych was installed in the church of Sant’Egidio at the hospital of Santa Maria Nuova. Its arrival in Florence had a significant impact on Italian Renaissance artists, who were influenced by its realism and use of oil paint. The triptych is now in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, where it is recognized as a pivotal example of artistic exchange between Flanders and Italy.