When the work arrived in Florence in 1483, it was installed in the Portinari family chapel where it was deeply admired by the Italian artists who saw it, many of whom sought to emulate it.

A good example is the Adoration of the Shepherds (1485) which Domenico Ghirlandaio painted for the Sassetti Chapel in the church of Santa Trinita in Florence.

The hospital of S. Maria Nuova in which the altarpiece was originally held, was built in 1285 by Folco Portinari.

The hospital was built for charitable purposes, but later became part of the Portinari legacy that created honor for the family and its generations to come after Folco.

The exterior of Hugo van der Goes's triptych has decorative depictions of the Annunciation scene.

This tradition came from the Middle Ages, when sculpture was considered the chief medium for devotional art.

In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, some places in Germany continued to see sculpture as superior and that it belonged in the middle of a folding altarpiece like the one by Van der Goes.

Another concept that was popular during the time of Hugo van der Goes was depicting the scene of The Annunciation on the exterior of the triptych while the scene from the life of Christ would be in the interior of the altarpiece once the panels were opened since The Annunciation gave way for the Incarnation of Christ.

[4]Hugo van der Goes's Altarpiece is considered to have some of the most complicated and hidden symbolism in any Nativity scene from the fifteenth century.

In the upper left part of the central panel as well as the lower right corner, are two angels wearing the liturgical cope that is worn traditionally by the archpriest in a first Solemn High Mass.

The liturgical vestments of the angels together with the sheaf of wheat—also found in the central panel, create a symbol for the Eucharist.

The sandal symbolizes the removal of a shoe before entering a holy place or stepping on sacred ground.

[4] A vessel like this was known to be used as an apothecary jar and was used to store and carry herbs, spices, and other organic compounds used for therapeutic reasons.

All the flowers mentioned earlier such as the iris and lily, columbine and carnation and as well as the violet, have medicinal properties.