(Antwerp 1593 – circa 1627)
Adam and Eve in Paradise,
oil on panel, 44 x 69 cm, framed

The present panel with its meticulous rendering of verdant foliage and exotic fauna, carefully articulated by subtly contrasting lighting, presents a sparkling vision of earthly paradise, and is a prime example of the paradisiacal compositions of the renowned Savery dynasty of painters. The work of Jacob Savery the Younger, the vibrant rendering of the central serpentine form of the Tree of Knowledge, bisecting the composition, both enlivens this representation of the Garden of Eden, and yet metaphorically divides existence into two, understood by contemporaries as the struggle between virtue and sin. Leading off from the tree trunk to either side are typically Netherlandish double vanishing points. The blues and greens of the background tones model the forms of elephants and giraffes, while in the foreground the vigorous colouring of the cheetah and a lion complete the exotic menagerie. In keeping with biblical tradition, all the animals co-exist in perfect harmony.

The Low Countries’ position at the forefront of global trade is evidenced by the presence beside these big cats of an American Turkey and African Ostrich. Jacob’s uncle Roelant is renowned for his unique rendition of the now extinct Dodo, and indeed, the present format of the Adam and Eve in Paradise draws on earlier Savery family models. The harmonious nature of the landscape in the present panel imbues it with the atmosphere of a now vanished Garden of Eden, and yet, blending in so carefully with the bowers of the tree is the form of the serpent. Its yellow colouring matches the twisting and turning tresses of the hair of Eve, while the forms of the figures themselves recalls pre-Christian classical statuary. The iconographic origin of the overall scheme also has pagan connotations, appearing to derive from Nicolaes de Bruyn‘s engraving of Orpheus Charming the Animals.