QUERCIA, Jacopo della
(b. ca. 1367, Quercia Grossa, d. 1438, Siena)

Left reliefs on the portal: 3. Original Sin

1425-30
Istrian stone, 82 x 68 cm
San Petronio, Bologna

The five scenes on the left lateral support of the main portal of San Petronio are, from top to bottom, the (i) Creation of Adam, (ii) Creation of Eve, (iii) Original Sin, (iv) Expulsion from Paradise and (v) Work of the Ancestors.

The picture shows the relief of Original Sin. This relief is one of the most innovative scenes iconographically as it shows Adam and Eve at equal fault for the Fall. Adam glares angrily at Eve, who has her eyes closed. The two figures are shown on either side of the Tree of Knowledge, whose large central form bisects the relief plane.




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