Adoration of the Magi (Filippino Lippi) of its inspiration was clearly derived from Botticelli's "Adoration of the Magi", also in the Uffizi: this is evident in the disposition of the characters on the two sides, with the Holy Family portrayed in the centre under. Similarly to Botticelli's work, Filippino also portrayed numerous members of the Medici cadet line, who had adhered to the Savonarolian Republic in the period in which the work was executed. On the left, kneeling and holding with a quadrant, is Pierfrancesco de' Medici, who had died 20 years before. Behind him, standing, are his two sons Giovanni, holding a goblet, and Lorenzo,
Adoration of the Magi from various Mediterranean and ancient Near Eastern cultures going back many centuries. The earliest are from catacomb paintings and sarcophagus reliefs of the 4th century. Crowns are first seen in the 10th century, mostly in the West, where their dress had by that time lost any Oriental flavour in most cases. The standard Byzantine depiction of the Nativity included the journey or arrival of the mounted Magi in the background, but not them presenting their gifts, until the post-Byzantine period, when the western depiction was often adapted to an icon style. Later Byzantine images often show small pill-box like hats,