Adam and Eve (Cranach, Prague)

Adam and Eve is a c. 1538 oil on limewood painting by Lucas Cranach the Elder,[1][2][3] acquired in 1949 from the Cistercian monastery in Osek near Duchcov, now in the National Gallery Prague.

In line with Reformation theology, the active role of Eve is emphasized, who tempts Adam to sin (everything bad is the fault of the woman - "Weibermacht").

[3] The later version of Adam and Eve, created by the successor of Lucas Cranach the Elder, Anton Heusler, around 1550 (National Gallery Prague), changes the theme compositionally and depicts both characters completely naked.

In Cranach's earlier depictions of the biblical story (1508–10, Besançon, 1510, Munich,[5] 1512, Coburg[6]), the two figures stand under the centrally placed Tree of Knowledge and do not touch.

One later composition by Lucas Cranach shows an active Adam embracing Eve and offering her an apple (1537, Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna).