Page 352 - The Legacy of Abraham Rothstein - text

Portraits: biblical

85 Adam and Eve *
Wood
12” x 2.75”
Inscriptions: Abraham (Hebrew, sideways, on tree)

Me too (English, below goat)

A E S (one letter at each vertex of triangle
with horizontal base, on tree above roots)

In this amazing work, AR combined the biblical story of the
first human couple with his own idiosyncratic humor and
moralistic point of view. The piece is completely carved in the
round, the figures standing out in high relief against the tree of
knowledge, central symbol in the origin myth of Genesis. Many
of the familiar elements of this tale of the “fall of man” are
present here: a smirking serpent looks down upon the woman
he has corrupted—who holds in one hand the forbidden apple
and in the other the hand of Adam, her consort and
companion in imminent exile from the Garden of Eden.

But there the similarities end and AR’s imagination begins. The
snake, whose head is virtually human, is wrapped around the
upper branches and trunk of the tree, above Adam and Eve
and the dusty ground to which he will be condemned for his
partnership in crime. The snake and Eve are smiling, pleased
by their actions; the shame of her nakedness (covered by a fig
leaf) is not apparent, and the punishment she will soon receive
is not weighing on her mind. Adam, however, is sorrowful, his
long beard providing modesty and emphasizing his down-in-
the-mouth expression. He knows what is coming—at least in
AR’s image of the situation—and despite his loyalty to the wife
who caused their downfall (he still holds her hand), he also
perceives himself as a victim: in his other hand he holds the
tether of a goat.

The point of that sacrificial animal, not a character in the Old
Testament scene, is made, cartoon-fashion, by two incised
words: “me too.” AR thus carved his own gloss on the text, in
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