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In 1881, Rodin discovered the British Museum with its fragments of the Parthenon, its rich collections of Egyptian and Assyrian art.
In 1889, Rodin exhibited at the Georges Petit gallery a Sphinx and a Sphinx, two related works, known today as Sphinx and Succubus, the latter wearing long hair evoking the Egyptian nemes.
The theme of the sphinx or the sphinx then permeates the symbolist and esoteric iconography of this end of the century.
Rodin will thus nourish his imaginary museum which he completes with his unforgettable visits in 1915 to the Vatican whose incomparable collections he admires.
By caressing the refined shapes of ancient Egypt, Rodin enriched his art.
Spiritual pupil of Phidias and Michelangelo, he walks in the eternal footsteps of the Pharaohs whose silhouette stretches forever between earth and sky in a sacred and immortal art under the solar circle of Amon-Re.
Fragment of a royal statue, torso of Nectanebo I, Egypt, quartzite Rodin museum, Ph. H. Lewandowski.