The Creation of Adam is a fresco painted by Michelangelo circa 1511 that appears on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. It illustrates the Biblical story from the Book of Genesis in which God the Father breathes life into Adam, the first man. Chronologically the fourth in the series of panels depicting episodes from Genesis on the Sistine ceiling, it was among the last to be completed.

It is one of the most famous images in the world. God is depicted as an elderly bearded man wrapped in a swirling cloak while Adam, on the lower left, is completely naked. 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 appearance that God, the giver of life, is reaching out to Adam and Adam is receiving. The pink backdrop behind God is in the shape of a brain.

Michelangelo may have used this symbol to show God's plan of creation which had not yet been revealed to the first man. The woman in the crook of God's arm is often depicted as Sophia by the Gnostics. Christian tradition places Eve under God's arm as the next creature that He intends to bring into existence.

The green ribbon that flows from the woman represents the human life that will be borne through the woman.

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