Modern · Art Institute of Chicago · 719
A Burgher of Calais (Jean d'Aire)
Auguste Rodin, Modeled 1889
Art Institute of Chicago · Gift of Mrs. Addie M. Hall Ellis · Public domain
- Artist
- Auguste Rodin
- Date
- Modeled 1889
- Medium
- Plaster
- Dimensions
- 208.3 × 66 cm (82 × 26 in.)
- Era
- Modern
Why it matters
This statue is a part of the famous sculptural group The Burghers of Calais , made by Auguste Rodin to commemorate a tragic episode from the 14th century, during the Hundred Years’ War between France and England. Rodin depicted the moment when six courageous men offered them-selves as hostages to Edward III, the king of England, in exchange for the liberation of the city of Calais from a siege that had been starving inhabitants for nearly a year. This plaster statue (painted to simulate bronze) was exhibited in the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago, and entered the Art Institute’s collection that year.