Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of Art
AT-00000280The Age of Bronze
About the Artwork
Rodin’s earliest surviving life-size sculpture, The Age of Bronze is an enigmatic and provocative image of a man awakening to new consciousness. The figure originally held a spear in one hand; by removing the weapon, Rodin stripped the sculpture of narrative symbols and focused on the sensuality and psychological power of the male nude. Contemporaries found the figure so realistic they falsely accused Rodin of making a cast from a living person. Museum trustee Ralph King commissioned this cast from the artist in 1916 with the intention of donating it to the museum. Rodin personally supervised the exceptionally fine casting and finished it with his favorite patina, a deep reddish tone he called “crushed grape.”
Inscriptions
inscribed top of base to right: Rodin; inscribed back of base: A. RUDIER Fondeur Paris.
Provenance
1918: Mr. and Mrs. Ralph King, Cleveland, Ohio, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1918-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941). Art, A Means to World Understanding. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 16-April 10, 1949). Art: The International Language. The Cleveland Museum of Art (October 2-November 4, 1956). Creativity in Art and Science, 1860-1960. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 16-November 8, 1987). Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991). Rodin: A Magnificent Obsession - Selections from the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation. Akron Art Museum, Akron, OH (organizer) (January 25-May 18, 2003). Monet to Dalí: Modern Masters from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Beijing World Art Museum (May 26-August 27, 2006); Mori Art Center (September 16-November 26, 2006); Seoul Art Center, South Korea (December 22, 2006-March 28, 2007); Seoul Olympic Museum of Art, South Korea (April 7-May 20, 2007); Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, Canada (June 9-September 16, 2007); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 2007-January 13, 2008); Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN (February 15-June 1, 2008); Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Salt Lake City, UT (June 22-September 21, 2008); The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (October 12, 2008-January 18, 2009). Rodin-100 Years. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 1, 2017-May 13, 2018). Rodin—100 Years. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 1, 2017-May 13, 2018).
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 7, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Auguste Rodin (French, 1840–1917)
- Date
- 1875–76
- Medium
- bronze
- Dimensions
- with base: 182.2 x 66.4 x 47 cm (71 3/4 x 26 1/8 x 18 1/2 in.)
- Type
- Sculpture
- Classification
- Sculpture
- Department
- Modern European Painting and Sculpture
- Credit line
- Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Ralph King
- Accession no.
- 1918.328
More by Auguste Rodin in museum collections
Open-access museum record · AT-00000280
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