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Eve and Adam stand before us in the Garden of Eden in the moments following humankind's original sin. Having both eaten from the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge, they now each clutch the apple and, out of shame, hold fig leaves over their genitals. They are naked and vulnerable in their new-found awareness of sexuality and sin. Their curly hair and rosy cheeks suggest youth and vitality. There is also an echo of the antique nude in the representation of Eve's rounded breasts and Adam's lean torso. The inscription in Greek above their heads reminds viewers of their transgression in Genesis: "And they ate and they realized they were naked."
Earlier Christian theological traditions in the Greek world, as represented by the Life of Adam and Eve, viewed Eve in conflicting roles. She was openly sexual and undermined male authority but at the same time was religiously devout and a caring mother. Arbel suggests that Eve embodied both the "good woman" and "bad woman" paradigms for pastoral purposes. In determining where fault should be assigned for humankind's fall, some Greek theologians saw Adam as more culpable than Eve either because of his greater responsibility, or in the case of Pseudo-Anastasius, because Eve resisted the blandishments of the Serpent far more than Adam who blindly followed his wife's lead without question.
It is believed that this mosaic comes from a church in northern Syria and was part of a larger decorated pavement that represented the Garden of Eden. The Cleveland Museum of Art has three other fragments that belong to the work: Grape harvester with peacock; Ibex near a tree; and Ram near a tree (see below for links to the images). Liz James has characterized mosaics at this time as an artwork that conveyed prestige and wealth. Patrons and ecclesiastical officials were eager to install them in churches even in smaller towns. Furthermore, mosaics had become deeply connected to the Christian faith and to the Roman empire, conveying a universal message which joined together peoples from Visigoths in the West to Greeks in the East.