The garden of earthly delights is such an awesome painting! it's one of the first that is so mystical in nature. There are SO many weird things going on-even by todays standards. It reminds me a lot of a Dali painting. One of the most striking images for me is the bird thing consuming a human. I think this part of the painting is meant to represent hell, as it looks like people in the background are being tortured. The bird is eating a human and sitting on a thrown. People are being tormented by strange creatures not known to this earth. This mystic view of heaven/hell is so new and strange but REALLY amazing. The center piece of the tryptic i think shows humans engaging in sexual behaviors, even with animals. It's hard for me to just say "this painting is a warning to humans about sinful temptations" because the colors, content and figures are so beautifully depicted. Maybe it is showing how wonderful and beautiful our earth is--but we still fall under the spell of sin, all the way back to Eden. We are blessed with a magnificent earth, but still can't appreciate what God had given, the ongoing fight between good/evil on this earth. When closed, the panel shows an unfinished earth. I think this painting has a lot to do with a paradise lost--the creation of the new world on the front, and the outcome once the piece is opened. I just love this painting, I think it is extreme and monumental and introduces a new, mystic way of painting.
