Terms and conditions of use
Adam and Eve
1504
Medium
engraving
Measurements
25.0 × 19.3 cm (image and sheet)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Felton Bequest, 1956
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
In many ways, this print is the culmination of Dürer’s exploration of classical ideals in human proportion. The figure of Adam is based on the classical sculpture of Apollo Belvedere and Eve on the Medici Venus. The result is his most idealised rendering of the human form. The engraving depicts the moment of equilibrium that precedes the expulsion from Paradise. The emblematic animals represent the medieval doctrine of the four temperaments (or humours) that were said to govern humanity after The Fall: the rabbit (sanguine), the bull (phlegmatic), the cat (choleric) and the elk (melancholic). The juxtaposed cat and mouse suggest the outburst of antagonism that will follow Adam and Eve’s banishment. The parrot, which was used to represent wisdom and benevolence, also symbolised the Virgin birth, while the goat in the right distance was recognised as a symbol of unbelieving. Adam and Eve is the only print that Dürer signed and dated in full, proclaiming his place of residence on the prominently displayed sign.
Artwork Details
Catalogue/s Raisonné
Bartsch 1
Edition
4th of 5 states
Inscription
incised (in image) u.l.: ALBERT9 / DVRER / NORICVS / FACIEBAT / AD (monogram) 1504
Accession Number
3433A-4
Departments
International Prints / International Prints and Drawings
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of the Joe White Bequest
Watermarks
Watermark Form
Bull's Head with Flower and Triangle
Meder 62, Briquet 14875 (found in documents dated 1509 in Peschiera del Garda in Italy, 1510 in Hungary, 1513 in Konstanz, Germany, 1518-19 in Grubenhagen, Germany, 1520-33 in Eichstatt, Germany, 1526 in Wittenberg, Germany and 1544 in Nuremberg, Germany
Completeness
partial
Chain Line Interval
31-32 mm
Laid Line Frequency
12 per cm
Placement and spacing of wires
? X 2 [29 I 29] x2
Wire Side
recto
Radiograph taken from
recto