The Creation of Adam - wikipedia The Creation of Adam The Creation of Adam Italian : Creazione di Adamo Artist Michelangelo Year c. 1512 Type Fresco 280 cm × 570 cm ( 9 ft 2 in × 18 ft 8 in ) The Creation of Adam is a fresco painting by Michelangelo, which forms part of the Sistine Chapel 's ceiling, painted c. 1508 -- 1512. It illustrates the Biblical creation narrative from the Book of Genesis in which God breathes life into Adam, the first man. The fresco is part of a complex iconographic scheme and is chronologically the fourth in the series of panels depicting episodes from Genesis. The image of the near - touching hands of God and Adam has become iconic of humanity. The painting has been reproduced in countless imitations and parodies. Leonardo da Vinci 's The Last Supper and Michelangelo 's Creation of Adam are the most replicated religious paintings of all time. Contents 1 History 2 Composition 3 Sources 4 Analysis 5 References 6 External links History Main article : Sistine Chapel ceiling Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel ; the work took approximately four years to complete ( 1508 -- 12 ) In 1505, Michelangelo was invited back to Rome by the newly elected Pope Julius II. He was commissioned to build the Pope 's tomb, which was to include forty statues and be finished in five years. Under the patronage of the Pope, Michelangelo experienced constant interruptions to his work on the tomb in order to accomplish numerous other tasks. Although Michelangelo worked on the tomb for 40 years, it was never finished to his satisfaction. It is located in the Church of S. Pietro in Vincoli in Rome and is most famous for his central figure of Moses, completed in 1516. Of the other statues intended for the tomb, two known as the Rebellious Slave and the Dying Slave, are now in the Louvre. During the same period, Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, which took approximately four years to complete ( 1508 -- 1512 ). According to Condivi 's account, Bramante, who was working on the building of St Peter 's Basilica, resented Michelangelo 's commission for the Pope 's tomb and convinced the Pope to commission him in a medium with which he was unfamiliar, in order that he might fail at the task. Michelangelo was originally commissioned to paint the Twelve Apostles on the triangular pendentives that supported the ceiling, and cover the central part of the ceiling with ornament. Michelangelo persuaded Pope Julius to give him a free hand and proposed a different and more complex scheme, representing the Creation, the Fall of Man, the Promise of Salvation through the prophets, and the genealogy of Christ. The work is part of a larger scheme of decoration within the chapel which represents much of the doctrine of the Catholic Church. The composition stretches over 500 square metres of ceiling, and contains over 300 figures. At its centre are nine episodes from the Book of Genesis, divided into three groups : God 's Creation of the Earth ; God 's Creation of Humankind and their fall from God 's grace ; and lastly, the state of Humanity as represented by Noah and his family. On the pendentives supporting the ceiling are painted twelve men and women who prophesied the coming of Jesus ; seven prophets of Israel and five Sibyls, prophetic women of the Classical world. Among the most famous paintings on the ceiling are The Creation of Adam, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the Deluge, the Prophet Jeremiah and the Cumaean Sibyl. Composition God is depicted as an elderly white - bearded man wrapped in a swirling cloak while Adam, on the lower left, is completely nude. God 's right arm is outstretched to impart the spark of life from his own finger into that of Adam, whose left arm is extended in a pose mirroring God 's, a reminder that man is created in the image and likeness of God ( Gen. 1 : 26 ). Another point is that Adam 's finger and God 's finger are not touching. It gives the impression that God, the giver of life, is reaching out to Adam who has yet to receive it ; they are not on `` the same level '' as would be two humans shaking hands, for instance. Many hypotheses have been formulated regarding the identity and meaning of the twelve figures around God. The person protected by God 's left arm might be Eve due to the figure 's feminine appearance and gaze towards Adam, but was also suggested to be Virgin Mary, Sophia goddess of wisdom, the personified human soul, or an angel of feminine build. The Creation of Adam is generally thought to depict the excerpt `` God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him '' ( Gen. 1 : 27 ). The inspiration for Michelangelo 's treatment of the subject may come from a medieval hymn, `` Veni Creator Spiritus '', which asks the ' finger of the paternal right hand ' ( digitus paternae dexterae ) to give the faithful speech. Detail Adam The hands God Sources Michelangelo 's main source of inspiration for his Adam in his Creation of Adam may have been a cameo showing a nude Augustus Caesar riding sidesaddle on a Capricorn. This cameo is now at Alnwick Castle, Northumberland. The cameo used to belong to cardinal Domenico Grimani who lived in Rome while Michelangelo painted the ceiling. Evidence suggests that Michelangelo and Grimani were friends. Some scholars have been dissatisfied with the theory Michelangelo being mainly inspired by Lorenzo Ghiberti 's Adam in his Creation of Adam. This cameo offers an alternative theory. Analysis Several hypotheses have been put forward about the meaning of The Creation of Adam 's highly original composition, many of them taking Michelangelo 's well - documented expertise in human anatomy as their starting point. In 1990, an Anderson, Indiana physician, Frank Meshberger, noted in the Journal of the American Medical Association that the background figures and shapes portrayed behind the figure of God appeared to be an anatomically accurate picture of the human brain. On close examination, borders in the painting correlate with major sulci of the cerebrum in the inner and outer surface of the brain, the brain stem, the frontal lobe, the basilar artery, the pituitary gland and the optic chiasm. Alternatively, it has been observed that the red cloth around God has the shape of a human uterus ( one art historian has called it a `` uterine mantle '' ) and that the scarf hanging out, coloured green, could be a newly cut umbilical cord. Recently a group of Italian researchers published on Mayo Clinic Proceedings an article where the images of the mantle and the postpartum uterus were overlapped. According to Enrico Bruschini ( 2004 ), `` This is an interesting hypothesis that presents the Creation scene as an idealised representation of the physical birth of man ( '' The Creation `` ). It explains the navel that appears on Adam, which is at first perplexing because he was created, not born of a woman. '' References Jump up ^ Gardner, Helen ; Kleiner, Fred S. ( 2009 ). Gardner 's Art Through the Ages. A Concise Global History ( 2nd ed. ). Stamford, Connecticut : Cengage Learning. p. 265. ISBN 978 - 0 - 495 - 50346 - 0. Jump up ^ See also occurrences on Google Books. ^ Jump up to : Katz, Jamie ( 10 April 2009 ). `` The Measure of Genius ''. Smithsonian.com. Retrieved 13 September 2013. Jump up ^ Teixeira, Nuno. `` Pop Culture Art Inspired By Michelangelo 's The Creation Of Adam ''. bitrebels.com. Retrieved 13 September 2013. ^ Jump up to : Goldscheider, pp. 14 -- 16 ^ Jump up to : Bartz and König, p. 134 Jump up ^ Coughlan, p. 112 ^ Jump up to : Goldscheider, pp. 12 -- 14 Jump up ^ Bartz and König, p. 43 Jump up ^ Steinberg, Leo ( December 1992 ). `` Who 's who in Michelangelo 's Creation of Adam : A Chronology of the Picture 's Reluctant Self - Revelation ''. The Art Bulletin. 74 ( 4 ) : 553 -- 554. JSTOR 3045910. Retrieved December 7, 2016. Jump up ^ Veni, Creator Spiritus / Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest. Preces-latinae.org. Jump up ^ Cameo on Google Image. Jump up ^ Sutherland, Bruce ( Winter 2013 ). `` Cameo Appearances on the Sistine Ceiling ''. Source : Notes in the History of Art. Ars Brevis Foundation, Inc. 32 ( 2 ) : 14. JSTOR 23292907. External link in journal = ( help ) Alnwick Castle is in Northumberland, not Northampton, as the captions state. The Duke of Northumberland who owns the cameos discussed in the article has expressed his appreciation in a letter to the author. Jump up ^ Sutherland, Bruce ( Winter 2013 ). pp. 12 -- 18. ^ Jump up to : Meshberger, Frank Lynn ( 10 October 1990 ). `` An Interpretation of Michelangelo 's Creation of Adam Based on Neuroanatomy ''. JAMA. 264 ( 14 ) : 1837 -- 41. PMID 2205727. doi : 10.1001 / jama. 1990.03450140059034. Retrieved 24 September 2012. Pdf. Excerpt on Mental Health & Illness.com. Retrieved 21 September 2010. Jump up ^ Fields, R. Douglas ( 27 May 2010 ). `` Michelangelo 's secret message in the Sistine Chapel : A juxtaposition of God and the human brain ''. Scientific American. Retrieved 9 June 2016. Jump up ^ Stokes, Adrian ( 1955 ). Michelangelo. A study in the nature of art. City University London : Tavistock Publications. p. 89. Jump up ^ Bruschini, Enrico ( 2004 ). Masterpieces of the Vatican. Vatican City : Edizioni Musei Vaticani. ISBN 978 - 88 - 8117 - 088 - 3. p. 112. Jump up ^ Di Bella, Stefano ( 2015 ). `` The `` Delivery '' of Adam : A Medical Interpretation of Michelangelo ``. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 90 ( 4 ) : 505 -- 508. PMID 25841253. doi : 10.1016 / j. mayocp. 2015.02. 007. Jump up ^ Bruschini, Enrico ( 2004 ). p. 112. External links Media related to The Creation of Adam at Wikimedia Commons Models of wax and clay used by Michelangelo in making his sculpture and paintings Decoration of the Sistine Chapel Life of Moses Moses Leaving to Egypt Youth of Moses The Crossing of the Red Sea The Descent from Mount Sinai The Punishment of the Rebels The Testament and Death of Moses Life of Christ The Baptism of Christ The Temptations of Christ The Vocation of the Apostles The Sermon on the Mount The Delivery of the Keys The Last Supper Ceiling ( Gallery ) Scenes from Genesis The Separation of Light from Darkness The Creation of the Sun, Moon and Vegetation The Separation of Land and Water The Creation of Adam The Creation of Eve The Fall of Man and the Expulsion from the Garden of Eden The Sacrifice of Noah The Flood The Drunkenness of Noah Prophets Jonah Jeremiah Ezekiel Joel Zechariah Isaiah Daniel Sibyls Persian Sibyl Erythraean Sibyl Delphic Sibyl Cumaean Sibyl Libyan Sibyl Altar wall The Last Judgment Tapestries The Lives of Saints Peter and Paul Key : Pietro Perugino Sandro Botticelli Cosimo Rosselli Domenico Ghirlandaio Biagio d'Antonio Piero di Cosimo Luca Signorelli Bartolomeo della Gatta Michelangelo Raphael Pope Sixtus IV Art patronage of Julius II Restoration of the Sistine Chapel frescoes Pope portal Vatican City portal Catholicism portal Michelangelo List of works Key : * Attributed, † Lost Sculptures Florence, c. 1488 -- 1492 † Head of a Faun Madonna of the Stairs Battle of the Centaurs Crucifix Bologna, 1494 -- 1495 Additions to the Arca di San Domenico ( St Petronius, St Proclus, Angel ) Rome, 1496 -- 1500 † Sleeping Cupid Bacchus † Standing Cupid Pietà Florence, 1501 -- 1505 David Madonna of Bruges Additions to the Piccolomini Altarpiece ( Saints Peter, Paul, Pius and Gregory ) Pitti Tondo Taddei Tondo St. Matthew * Rothschild Bronzes Tomb of Pope Julius II, 1505 -- 1545 Moses Rebellious Slave Dying Slave Young Slave Bearded Slave Atlas Slave Awakening Slave The Genius of Victory Rachel Leah Florence, 1516 -- 1534 Christ Carrying the Cross Medici Chapel Giuliano de ' Medici Night Day Dusk Dawn Medici Madonna Apollo Crouching Boy Rome, 1534 -- 1564 Brutus Florentine Pietà * Palestrina Pietà Rondanini Pietà Paintings Panel paintings The Torment of Saint Anthony Manchester Madonna The Entombment Doni Tondo † Leda and the Swan Salone dei Cinquecento † Battle of Cascina Sistine Chapel Ceiling Separation of Light from Darkness The Creation of the Sun, Moon and Vegetation The Creation of Adam The Last Judgment Cappella Paolina The Martyrdom of St Peter The Conversion of Saul Architecture Florence New Sacristy and Laurentian Library in the Basilica of San Lorenzo Rome Piazza del Campidoglio Palazzo Farnese St. Peter 's Basilica San Giovanni dei Fiorentini Porta Pia Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri More Works on paper Study of a Kneeling Nude Girl for The Entombment Male Back With a Flag Epifania Milieu Cecchino dei Bracci Tommaso dei Cavalieri Vittoria Colonna Ascanio Condivi Gherardo Perini Sebastiano del Piombo Febo di Poggio Luigi del Riccio Related Art patronage of Julius II Casa Buonarroti Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects Michelangelo and the Medici Replicas of David Replicas of the Pietà Restoration of the Sistine Chapel frescoes Adam and Eve Source Genesis creation narrative in the Book of Genesis Adam Eve Lucifer Offspring Cain and Abel Aclima Seth Awan Azura Television `` Probe 7, Over and Out '' ( 1963 ) Film Mama 's Affair ( 1921 ) Good Morning, Eve ! ( 1934 ) The Broken Jug ( 1937 ) The Original Sin ( 1948 ) The Private Lives of Adam and Eve ( 1960 ) El pecado de Adán y Eva ( 1969 ) La Biblia en pasta ( 1984 ) The Annunciation ( 1984 ) Adipapam ( 1988 ) Adam ( 1992 ) Man 's Best Friend ( 1998 ) Babs ( 2000 ) The Last Eve ( 2005 ) Year One ( 2009 ) The Tragedy of Man ( 2011 ) Adam and Dog ( 2011 ) Tropico ( 2013 ) Plays Le Jeu d'Adam ( 12th century ) The Broken Jug ( 1808 ) The Tragedy of Man ( 1861 ) The Creation of the World and Other Business ( 1972 ) Musicals The Apple Tree ( 1966 ) Dude ( 1972 ) Up from Paradise ( 1973 ) Children of Eden ( 1991 ) Compositions The Creation ( 1798 ) structure La mort d'Adam ( 1809 ) Ève ( 1875 ) Genesis Suite ( 1945 ) Lilith ( 2001 ) Literature Apocalypse of Adam Book of Moses Book of Abraham Books of Adam Book of the Penitence of Adam Cave of Treasures `` El y Ella '' Genesis A and Genesis B Harrowing of Hell Life of Adam and Eve Testament of Adam Testimony of Truth ( 3rd century ) Conflict of Adam and Eve with Satan ( 6th century ) `` Old Saxon Genesis '' ( 9th century ) `` Adam lay ybounden '' ( 15th century ) Paradise Lost ( 1667 ) Le Dernier Homme ( 1805 ) Extracts from Adam 's Diary ( 1904 ) Eve 's Diary ( 1905 ) The Book of Genesis ( 2009 ) Art Bernward Doors ( 1015 ) Tapestry of Creation ( 11th century ) Expulsion from the Garden of Eden ( 1425 ) Vienna Diptych ( 15th century ) The Last Judgment ( 1482 ) The Garden of Earthly Delights ( 1504 ) Adam and Eve ( 1507 ) Paradise and Hell ( 1510 ) The Creation of Adam ( 1512 ) The Haywain Triptych ( 1516 ) Eve, the Serpent and Death ( 1510s or 1520s ) Adam and Eve ( 1528 ) The Fall of Man ( 1550 ) Maps of Ancient Israel The Garden of Eden with the Fall of Man ( 1617 ) The Fall of Man ( 1628 ) The Four Seasons ( 1660s ) The Koren Picture - Bible ( 1692 -- 1696 ) The First Mourning ( 1888 ) Eve ( 1931 ) Adam and Eve ( 1932 ) The Serpent Chooses Adam and Eve ( 1958 ) Adam and Eve ( 1992 ) Songs `` Dese Bones G'wine Rise Again '' `` Adam - ondi - Ahman '' ( 1835 ) `` Forbidden Fruit '' ( 1915 ) `` The Garden of Eden '' ( 1956 ) `` Let 's Give Adam and Eve Another Chance '' ( 1970 ) `` Man Gave Names to All the Animals '' ( 1979 ) Albums The Cainian Chronicle ( 1996 ) Visions of Eden ( 2006 ) Other cultures Adam -- God doctrine Adam and Eve ( LDS Church ) Adam in Islam Adam in rabbinic literature Al - A'raf Book of Moses Endowment Manu ( Hinduism ) Mashya and Mashyana Serpent seed Tree of Jiva and Atman Tree of life ( Quran ) Our Lady of Endor Coven Geography Adam - ondi - Ahman Tomb of Eve Biology Mitochondrial Eve Y - chromosomal Adam The Real Eve Story within a story Doraemon : Nobita 's Diary of the Creation of the World Island of Love The Visitors Games Demon : The Fallen ( 2002 ) Related theology Fall of man Original sin Garden of Eden Tree of the knowledge of good and evil Serpents in the Bible Forbidden fruit Apple Fig leaf Figs in the Bible Adam 's ale Adamic language Rosh Hashanah Camael Shamsiel Tree of life Allegorical interpretations of Genesis Other Pre-Adamite Generations of Adam Cave of the Patriarchs `` In - A-Gadda - Da - Leela '' `` Simpsons Bible Stories '' Second Time Lucky Adam and Eve cylinder seal Timeline of Genesis patriarchs Genealogies of Genesis Carnal knowledge Legend of the Rood Ystorya Adaf Snakes for the Divine Ransom theory of atonement Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Creation_of_Adam&oldid=800643105 '' Categories : Paintings by Michelangelo Sistine Chapel 1512 paintings Paintings depicting Adam and Eve Fresco paintings Painted ceilings Hidden categories : CS1 errors : external links Articles containing Italian - language text Pages using infobox artwork with autolinked artist field All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from July 2017 Commons category with local link different than on Wikidata Talk More Contents About Wikipedia Afrikaans Azərbaycanca Беларуская Български Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Euskara فارسی Français Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Hrvatski Italiano עברית ქართული Lietuvių Македонски മലയാളം Nederlands 日本 語 ਪੰਜਾਬੀ Polski Português Русский Scots Simple English Slovenčina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska தமிழ் ไทย Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt Winaray 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 14 September 2017, at 20 : 25. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: what is the name of the painting with the two fingers touching
Answer: Creation of Adam