MEMLING, Hans St John and Veronica Diptych (reverse of the right wing) c. 1483

Hans Memling (Memlinc), Netherlandish, c. 1430 – 1494

Oil on wood, 31,6 x 24,4 cm, National Gallery of Art, Washington

The gold chalice with a serpent is a symbol of redemption. It is referring to the legend of St John the Evangelist who, ordered to drink a cup of poisoned wine, made the sign of blessing, and the venom was miraculously drawn from the liquid.

Tags: 1400, chalice, diptych, still-life, john, memling, poison, serpent, story, veronica

BLAKE William Temptation of Eve 1808

''her rash hand in evil hour | Forth reaching to the fruit, she plucked, she ate: | Earth felt the wound'

- John Milton's Paradise Lost, Book IX.780

Pen and watercolour on paper. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Tags: blake, temptation, eve, 1800, adam, snake, paradise lost, milton, boston

MICHELANGELO, Buonarroti Brazen serpent (detail), 1511

Tags: afraid, battle, fear, fight, free1000s, michelangelo, snake, struggle