Couple on a Duck by Bosch

8.5cm
 
On the left of the central panel of the Garden of Earthly Delights an unsuspecting man is seduced by a black woman. In the Middle Ages negroes were viewed as evil. The sin takes place on a duck, the symbol of stupidity and alcoholism, and is observed by a large, colourful kingfisher.
 
THE GARDEN OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS
Hiëronymus Bosch shows us how we mortal souls, arisen from earthly paradise, are on our way to the atrocious ordeals of hell via our unchaste lives on earth.