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Why did Fra Angelico include Adam and Eve in The Annunciation at Cortona?

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Fra Angelico: Madonna of Humility — Fra Angelico *Madonna of Humility*, tempera on panel by Fra Angelico, c. 1440; in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

In The Annunciation at Cortona, Fra Angelico includes a miniature depiction of the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden as the colonnade recedes into the background.1

While the primary scene features the Archangel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary within a Renaissance-style portico, the inclusion of the expulsion serves to contrast the fall of humanity with the promise of salvation represented by the Annunciation. The figures of Adam and Eve are shown being driven out by an angel, yet they remain under the influence of the radiant messenger and the pure maiden portrayed in the foreground. This juxtaposition highlights the theological significance of the event, framing the moment of the Incarnation as the beginning of the reversal of the original sin committed by Adam and Eve.21