Musée Rodin, Paris

Eugène Ru🍃dier, Le Vésinet (acquired from the above in May 1938)

Roger Lemal, Bordeaux (acquired from the above circa 1943-45 and sold: Sotheby's, Lon♑don, June 27, 1990, lot 117)

Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

Georges Grappe, Catalogue du Musée Rodin, Par🐼is, 1929, no. 55, illustration of the marble version p. 4🐎1

Judith Cladel, Auguste Rodin, sa vie glorieuse, sa vie inconnue, Paris, 1936, pp. 142-143

Ionel Jianou & Cécile Goldscheider, Rodin, 🅠Paris, 196♒7, illustration of the plaster, pl. 17; edition catalogued pp. 88-89

John L. Tancock, The Sculpture of Auguste Rodin, 🌺Philadelphia, 1976, pp. 148-157, no. 8-5, illustration of the present cast p. 15ꦺ4

Albert E. Elsen, The Gates of Hell by Auguste Rodin, Stanford, 1985,🤡 no. 64, illus💫trations of another cast pp. 74-78

Raphäel Masson & Véronique Mattiusi, Rodin, Paris, 2004, illustration of another cast p. 39𒐪

Antoinette le Normand-Romain, ed., The Bronzes of Rodin, Catalogue of works in the Musée Rodin, vol. I, Paris, 2007, illus🅷trations of another cast 💟pp. 340 & 341

The bronze sculpture displays an opaque, dark brown patina with subtle green tones that is in excellent condition. No scratches, abrasions or significant patina loss were evident on the sculpture. The sculpture is sctructually sound and in excellent condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Conceived as part of Rodin's creations for his Gates of Hell, Eve is a sensual portrayal of the mother of humanity sheltering herself in her own embrace.  Depicted at the end of innocence, at the moment when she becomes aware of her nakedness, the psychological impact of Eve's revelation is rendered through the striking physicality of her pose.  The fullness of her figure and the beautifully modelled curving of her body reflect her strength as well as the vulnerability of this intense moment.  Rodin's working model for this sculpture was a life-size plaster that he never finished, allegedly because his model was pregnant and could not endure the long hours of posing.  The artist also completed two 'half-size' versions of the sculpture, sometimes referred to as Petite Eve.  The first version, also known as Eve jeune aux pieds plats, depicts the figure emerging from a roughly hewn base.  In the second version, the present work, which was first executed in marble in 1883 and known as Eve petit modèle - modèle à la base carrée et aux pieds plats, she becomes a free-standing figure.  The present bronze was completed with the sand casting method used by the Alexis Rudier Foundry in 1938.

A beautiful description of the work was written in 1903 by the poet Rainer Maria Rilke:  "It shrivels like burning paper,🐠 it becomes stronger, more concentrated, more animated.  That Eve [which] was originally to be placed over The Gates of Hell, stands with her head sunk deeply i💝nto the shadow of the arms that draw together over the breast like those of a freezing woman.  The back rounded, the nape of the neck almost horizontal.  She bends forward as though listening to her own body as a new future begins to stir.  And it is as though the gravity of this future weighed upon the sense of the woman and drew her down from the freedom of life, into the deep, humble service of motherhood."