Adam and Eve Expelled from the GardenFolio from a Falnama (Book of omens), Safavid period, mid 1550s
Adam and Eve Expelled from the GardenFolio from a Falnama (Book of omens), Safavid period, mid 1550s; 60 x 45 cm In this painting, Adam, whom Muslims consider the father of humanity and the first prophet, is depicted riding a serpent; Eve rides a peacock. According to tradition, Iblis, the Islamic counterpart to Satan, was intent on entering the Garden of Eden to foil Adam and Eve. By appealing to his vanity, Iblis enticed the peacock, the gatekeeper of paradise, to allow the serpent, then the most beautiful of all creatures, to enter Eden. Seated between the serpent’s fangs, Iblis entered the garden and seduced Eve into eating the fruit of the forbidden tree. Freer-Sackler Galleries -- source link