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Hans Holbein the Younger

The Creation

c. 1526
woodcut

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FROM THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART’S CATALOG

Hans Holbein’s Dance of Death series, a collection of 41 prints, begins with this scene of the sixth day of Creation, when, according to Genesis, humankind was made. Here, a menagerie of animals crowd around in awe as God stoops to pull Eve from Adam’s side. From above, the moon, sun, and winds witness the birth. Eve is figured in this print as a fully formed, adult woman, though, much like the tree limbs behind her, she branches off from her partner, suggesting her origin from Adam’s rib. The pair is unaware of their nakedness, a sign of humanity’s then sinless state.

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More by Hans Holbein the Younger

Lady Lee (Margaret Wyatt, born about 1509)Lady Lee (Margaret Wyatt, born about 1509)Portrait of a Man in Royal LiveryPortrait of a Man in Royal LiveryLady Rich (Elizabeth Jenks, died 1558)Lady Rich (Elizabeth Jenks, died 1558)Hermann von Wedigh III (died 1560)Hermann von Wedigh III (died 1560)Portrait of a Young WomanPortrait of a Young WomanErasmus of RotterdamErasmus of RotterdamBenedikt von Hertenstein (born about 1495, died 1522)Benedikt von Hertenstein (born about 1495, died 1522)Portrait of a Man (Sir Ralph Sadler?)Portrait of a Man (Sir Ralph Sadler?)

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