"I have come to thank you for having your name included on the committee that presented The Thinker to the city of Paris; it remains in the Pantheon permanently, everything is finished."
Sold
Auguste Rodin (1840.1917)
Autograph letter signed to Marcellin Berthelot.
A page in-8° on paper at his address on rue de l'Université.
[Paris] January 14, 1905.
Beautiful letter from Rodin rejoicing that his masterpiece The Thinker had been given to the city of Paris.
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"My dear Master, I am writing to thank you for having your name included on the committee that presented The Thinker to the city of Paris. It remains in the Pantheon permanently; all is now settled. You were deeply saddened, and I shared your grief. Please accept and convey to Madame Berthelot the expression of my highest consideration and profound respect. Auguste Rodin."
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Created in 1880 as part of The Gates of Hell, Rodin's sculpture was transformed into an independent monumental work in 1888. The first bronze cast was completed in 1902 and exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1904. A bronze casting by the City of Paris was financed by a public subscription organized by Rodin's admirers. The work was installed at the foot of the Panthéon before being moved to the garden of the Rodin Museum in 1922.