(Credits: Beyond My Ken)
A sculpture initially thought to be a copy of the work of the French artist Auguste Rodin has transpired to be the real thing, almost 120 years after it first disappeared.
The small marble statue, Despair, depicts a woman hugging her knees while holding her foot. It was created by the sculptor in 1862 and sold at auction in 1906, after which it disappeared.
However, after a family came forward with what they believed to be a fake replica of Despair, a six-week investigation launched by the Comité Rodin revealed that it was actually the real original piece.
Subsequently, the sculpture was put up for auction and sold in France on June 9th, according to BBC, for €860,000 – equivalent to almost $1 million.
Described as an “extremely rare” discovery by auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac, the piece had belonged to a family for years, who sat it on top of their piano. They eventually brought it to Rouillac’s attention, who alongside his team spent months tracing its origins, before bringing it to the research group Comité Rodin, who confirmed its authenticity.
“We have rediscovered it,” Rouillac told AFP, marking a significant moment in unearthing a critical piece of French art history.
Rodin had initially created Despair in the 1800s as part of what would eventually become his esteemed The Gates of Hell work. It depicts more than 180 sculptural figures as they try to free themselves from their fate in the underworld. The original plaster model of that piece currently resides in the Musée D’Orsay in Paris.
According to Rodin’s own bespoke museum, the 11-inch sculpture of Despair is a manifestation of sorrow, and the confusion arising from the thought that it was a replica was born out of the fact that the artist created various other copies after it was positively received.
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