Ridinger, Johann Elias: (ulm 1698-1767 Augsburg) Paradise Or The Creation And Fall Of The Father

Johann Elias Ridinger (Ulm 1698 – Augsburg 1767) "Paradise or The Creation and Fall of the First Human Couple" – Sheet 1 of 12 Etching with engraving on copper · Circa 1746 · Thienemann/Schwarz 807–816

Sheet 1 — the opening plate — of the complete series Das Paradies (Paradise), the acknowledged masterwork of Johann Elias Ridinger. This first sheet introduces the Creation: the first man giving thanks to his Creator, surrounded by an abundance of wildlife — monkeys, exotic birds and animals of every kind filling the Garden of Eden. The series of 12 large-format plates depicts the Creation and Fall of the first human couple, rendered with anatomical precision unmatched in 18th-century German printmaking.

Each plate carries biblical inscriptions in German, French and Latin. Ridinger himself kept his preparatory drawings framed under glass — a testament to the singular importance he attached to this series. Upon his death in 1767, the Augsburger Zeitung described Das Paradies as his most remarkable work, calling it unrepeatable in its draughtsmanship.

Works by Ridinger are held in the permanent collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., and the British Museum in London.

Five further sheets from the same series (sheets 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6) are available in our gallery — a rare opportunity to acquire a coherent group from this prestigious series.

• Sheet: 1 of 12
• Print dimensions: approx. 38.5 × 53.5 cm
• Framed dimensions: 65 × 51 cm
• Technique: etching with engraving on copper
• Catalogue: Thienemann/Schwarz 807–816
• Period: circa 1746
• Condition: framed under glass

Seen in museums — available to you.

Available for viewing by appointment at our Düsseldorf gallery.

Keywords integrated: Johann Elias Ridinger, German Baroque etching, Das Paradies, 18th century engraving, Thienemann, animal engraving, Augsburg 1746, Old Master print, Adam and Eve engraving, Paradise series complete