Kiss and sell: rare Rodin on market after years in French flat

Auguste Rodin's sensual portrayal of tragic lovers caught in an embrace before being killed by a jealous husband is one of the world's most recognised works of art.

- Kim Willsher

The French artist had the idea for The Kiss (Le Baiser) in 1882, and the larger-than-lifesize marble artwork emerged a decade later. By then, Rodin was the most influential international sculptor of the age.

Dozens of versions of The Kiss were made before Rodin's death aged 77 in 1917 and dozens more official reproductions and copies emerged after, making it one of the most replicated pieces of art in the world.

Now, a rare bronze of The Kiss produced during Rodin's lifetime, signed by the artist and which has been in private hands for most of the past century, will be auctioned this month.

The bronze, measuring 60cm high, was one of the first three cast in this size and has retained the artist's original detail. It was commissioned in 1904 by the Argentine Jockey Club to be presented as a marriage gift to Lucien Mérignac, the French fencing world and Olympic champion.