Happy Birthday to Auguste Rodin 🎂 One of Rodin's most famous works is "The Thinker," and we're lucky enough to have our own cast of the bronze sculpture in the Legion's Court of Honor! "The Thinker" was originally intended to be the medieval Italian poet Dante, but over time it came to represent all poets and artists. It has captured the imaginations of many people (and delighted our visitors!) over the years. Some see it as contemplative, others as pensive. Even more crouch beside it, copying

When Rodin embarked on a trip to Italy in 1875 to witness Michelangelo’s “Lorenzo de' Medici, Duke of Urbino,” no one could have predicted that the sculpture would inspire him to create one of history’s most acclaimed masterpieces... Today, Rodin's “The Thinker” exists in many casts and sizes, including this bronze model gifted to the National Gallery in 1942. More than 50 are known in this size—which is the size of Rodin's original handmade clay model. We recognize in Rodin's brooding nude gian