Who has never dreamed, when visiting an old house, of coming across a hidden treasure, thought lost? A fantasy which has inspired many artists, but which a man, responsible for the inventory of a Parisian apartment on September 17, 2024, lived without wanting to. That day, he discovered by chance a work by a great master that had been thought lost for over a century. A bronze of L’Âge mature by Camille Claudel, a work exhibited and sold in 1908 which is believed to have been cast at the beginning of the 20th century.
Unexpected, the discovery was made by Matthieu Semont, auctioneer in Orléans at the Philocale auction house. He was then accompanied by a notary for “an estate inventory” as he does “every day”, he told AFP. This took place “in an apartment plunged into darkness, closed for around fifteen years, with a lot of dust.” The auctioneer then made an improbable find: “I lifted the linen that covered the sculpture, and I immediately recognized part of the sculpture, the imploring one (a young woman on her knees pleading, editor’s note) , for having worked on this work 25 years ago”. This is a version of L’Âge mature, a decisive work in the history of Camille Claudel since it marks the end of her passion with Auguste Rodin. “A bronze like this, one would have imagined that its owners would have put it in a place where it would be referenced, exhibited. There, it was delivered to us without prior notice,” he continued. (…)
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Art
France
