Adam and Eve
c. 1460
Medium
woodcut, hand-colored in red lake, green, tan, and ochre
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.451
Art Historical Context
This enchanting woodcut, *Adam and Eve*, created an anonymous German artist around 1460, captures the biblical scene from Genesis in the vibrant tradition of early Northern European printmaking. Housed in the National Gallery of Art'swald Collection, it exemplifies the explosive growth of woodcuts in 15th-century Germany, printing presses began revolutionizing art dissemination. Affordable and reproducible, these prints brought sacred narratives to everyday viewers, bridging the gap between elite manuscripts and popular devotion. The medium—a black-line woodcut meticulously hand-colored with ...
About the Artist
German 15th Century
**German 15th Century** The designation "German 15th Century" encompasses a collective of anonymous artists active in the late medieval and early Renaissance periods in Germany, primarily known through their contributions to early printmaking and panel painting. These creators emerged during a transformative era when woodcuts and engravings began democratizing religious imagery, bridging the Goth...