An incredible lost treasure by Camille Claudel found by the Orléans auctioneer

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A lost major work by Camille Claudel for over a century has just been found as detailed by our colleagues at Auction Magazine.

An exceptional bronze by Camille Claudel, of which historians had lost track since 1908was thus discovered completely by chance during an inventory of a Parisian apartment by the Orléans auctioneer Matthieu Semont of the Philocale house. A discovery revealed during a press conference on December 11, 2024 at the Lacroix-Jeannest expertise firm in Paris. Representative Mature agethis sculpture which was considered by Claudel to be his greatest masterpiece will be unveiled for the first time at auction in February in Orléans.

An exceptional and romantic discovery

“I have carried it in my heart since I discovered it” reports the Auction Magazine, evoking what the Orléans auctioneer felt upon discovering this incredible work.

Matthieu Semont had been mandated by a notary, established in Orléans, to carry out the inheritance inventory of an apartment located at the foot of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

In a few hours on the spot of a real treasure hunt in an apartment plunged into darkness, the auctioneer discovers work of art after work of art, furniture hidden under white sheets…

He comes across a painting by Buffet, a sculpture by Bourdelle… until he lifts a sheet hiding Claudel’s work. He reveals an Implorante who already captivates him, before discovering a whole group… “The three ages of life, youth, maturity and old age united in the same composition” he sums up to our colleagues.

An extremely rare edition by Eugène Blot

After precise research carried out by the Lacroix-Jeannest firm. Matthieu Semont therefore discovered a major work by Camille Claudel (1864-1943): L’Âge mature, sand cast by Eugène Blot, 1907, copy number 1.

“Everyone has been looking for it for over a century,” adds the auctioneer. Traces of this bronze were lost in 1908, the year of its second exhibition at the Eugène Blot gallery in Paris.

“L’Âge mature” is a mature work which conveys the story of Camille Claudel’s life,” explains expert Elodie Jeannest to our colleagues.

In the end, a foundry masterpiece which will be offered for sale in Orléans February 16, 2025 with a dizzying estimate: between 1.5 and 2 million euros. The artist’s record being 6 million euros for a work which perhaps has less symbolic significance than this artistic testament that the sculptor cherished.

Everything seems to come together for a new record and it will undoubtedly be one of the best sales of the year 2025!

A very detailed and complete account of this incredible discovery can be found on the Auction Magazine.

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