Oil on canvas, 184cm by 142cm.
The painting was purchased by Brownlow, 2nd Marquess of Exeter (1795-1867), for £300 from a Mr. Walker who won it in a raffle in Stamford.
A note in the marquess’s diary reads: ‘1843…Large full length picture of Adam and Eve & the Serpent painted by Ludovico Caracci, purchased in 1843, now in 3rd George room, Burghley House.’
Little is known about the artist, who despite dying at the age of only thirty, left behind a considerable body of work.
He was active in Antwerp and although there is no evidence that he ever travelled to Italy, like many Flemish painters, he was clearly influenced by the work of Italian Mannerist artists.
