Émile Louis PICAULT (1833-1915), The Genius of Man (Le Genie Humain)

Patinated bronze, marble; height 70.5 cm.
France, 19th/20th century.
Figure of a naked, winged young man, symbolizing human genius liberating itself from its shackles. Left hand raised in the air, in the right hand a book with the inscription: "AD IGNOTUM" [To the unknown]. At his feet - a palm branch. At the bottom of the sculpture from the front the inscription: "LE GÉNIE HUMAIN". On the back the signature: "E. PICAULT". The base of red marble, with a brass plate, on which the inscription: "ESCLAVE SUR LE SOL OU L'ÉTREINT LA MATIERE / SON ESPRIT DANS LA NUIT VA CHERCHER LA LUMIERE" (loosely translated: "Earth's slave in the fetters of matter; his Spirit floats in the darkness in search of the Light").