Rising majestically where the Raspail and Montparnasse boulevards cross, this three-metre-tall bronze statue is in homage to writer Honoré de Balzac. While Alexandre Dumas originated the idea, it was mainly Emile Zola’s initiative that brought Rodin to actually sculpt this commemorative work.
Rodin sought to express the force conveyed by the author’s corpulence, in addition to representing the monastic gown Balzac habitually wore for writing. An allegory for creation, when unveiled at the 1898 Champ de Mars Salon many nevertheless interpreted it more trivially