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St. John the Baptist

original model 1880, cast 1883
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 800
This early bronze betrays the raw physical and emotional intensity that set Rodin’s work apart from conventional sculpture of his era. The saint’s gouged eyes, sunken cheeks, and tousled locks convey the spiritual ferocity with which he announces Christ’s coming. A painted plaster version of the bust (which Rodin derived from his over-life-size, full-length figure Saint John the Baptist Preaching of 1878) was first exhibited as an independent work in the Paris Salon of 1879. Donated to The Met by Samuel P. Avery, a founding trustee, this was the first Rodin sculpture to enter the collection.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: St. John the Baptist
  • Artist: Auguste Rodin (French, Paris 1840–1917 Meudon)
  • Date: original model 1880, cast 1883
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: Bronze
  • Dimensions: Overall (wt. confirmed): 21 3/8 × 15 3/4 × 11 in., 42.5 lb. (54.3 × 40 × 27.9 cm, 19.3 kg)
  • Classification: Sculpture-Bronze
  • Credit Line: Gift of Samuel P. Avery, 1893
  • Object Number: 93.11
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

More Artwork

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The Walking Man (L'homme qui marche), Auguste Rodin French, Bronze, green patina, French
The Walking Man (L'homme qui marche)
Auguste Rodin
Alexis Rudier
modeled before 1900, cast before 1914
Young woman, Auguste Rodin French, Cast plaster, French
Young woman
Auguste Rodin
modeled probably before 1889, cast before 1912
Study of a hand, Auguste Rodin French, Cast plaster, French
Study of a hand
Auguste Rodin
last quarter 19th–early 20th century
Study of a hand, Auguste Rodin French, Cast plaster, French
Study of a hand
Auguste Rodin
20th century
Bust of Bellona, Auguste Rodin French, Drypoint, third state of three, before bevelled plate
Bust of Bellona
Auguste Rodin
1882–85

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