The Fall of Adam and Eve

1525, printed later

Hans Burgkmair

(German, 1473–1531)

Culture

Germany

Medium

woodcut on eight sheets of paper

Measurements

Platemark: 95 x 65.4 cm (37 3/8 x 25 3/4 in.); Sheet: 95.7 x 66.2 cm (37 11/16 x 26 1/16 in.)

Credit Line

John L. Severance Fund 1951.278

Catalogue raisonné

Hollstein V.96.291

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Location

Not on view

Did You Know?

In this second state of the print, Eve's nudity was covered with an olive leaf.

Description

This story of Adam and Eve occurs in a tropical location, placing the Garden of Eden closer to what viewers may have believed to be its true location. Palm trees were also associated with human virtues in devotional literature of the
time. The artist’s version of the Genesis story places the blame for human transgression squarely on Eve, who appears to persuade Adam to partake of the fruit, while a monkey, a symbol of bodily pleasure, mimics the humans by bringing fruit to its mouth. Since they were often hung on walls, like paintings, prints of this size rarely survive.