Constructed around a sinuous line, her contrapposto incomplete, Meditationoriginated in a figure on the tympanum of The Gates of Hell, inspired by Michelangelo. She was then reworked into the Monument to Victor Hugo, before being enlarged under the name The Inner Voice. She represented one of the muses who inspired the poet. In order to include her in the monument, Rodin had to remove her arms and amputate part of her legs. Outside of this context, the figure was exhibited in the same state in Dresden and Stockholm in 1897, but because of its unfinished appearance, the public found it hard to understand.

Rodin, however, was extremely fond of this work, which Rilke described as follows: “The arms are surprisingly absent. Rodin felt them in this instance… to be something extraneous to the body which sought to envelop itself without any external aid… The same is true of Rodin’s armless statues; nothing vital is missing. One stands before them as if before a completed whole that brooks no complement,” (Rilke, 1928).

This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open source, community effort, if you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help.