Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index


  • Title: Expulsion from Eden
  • Creator: Masaccio, painter
  • Description: The figures of Adam and Eve strongly recall classical sculptureā€”both are nude rather than clothed in leaves, and Eve is modeled on the Venus Pudica. Their dynamism imbues the scene with heightened emotion. James Clifton argues that both figures express shame along strict gendered lines. Eve's sexuality brings dishonor, and Adam shields his face as a result of her shameful transgression.
  • Source: Wikimedia Commons
  • Rights: Public domain
  • Subject (See Also): Adam (Biblical Figure) Angels Classical Influences Eve (Biblical Figure) Fall of Humankind Nude Shame
  • Geographic Area: Italy
  • Century:
  • Date: ca. 1425-1427 (restored 1980s)
  • Related Work: Brancacci Chapel
  • Current Location: Florence, Santa Maria del Carmine, Brancacci Chapel, left pilaster
  • Original Location: Florence, Santa Maria del Carmine, Brancacci Chapel, left pilaster
  • Artistic Type (Category): Digital images; Paintings
  • Artistic Type (Material/Technique): Frescoes
  • Donor: Layman; Felice Brancacci, Florentine silk merchant
  • Height/Width/Length(cm): 214 cm/90 cm/
  • Inscription:
  • Related Resources: James Clifton, Gender and Shame in Masaccio's "Expulsion from the Garden of Eden" Art History 22, 5 (December 1999): 637-655.