The Thinker

Behold, the iconic Thinker statue by Rodin, the famous French sculptor. Chances are you’ve seen it before! This bronze sculpture, installed in the Plaza del Congreso, was brought to Buenos Aires in 1908 . It has recently been refurbished and placed on a higher pedestal for better viewing. The original was meant for a giant doorway at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris, inspired by Dante’s Divine Comedy. The Thinker was supposed to be Dante himself, lost in thought before the gates of hell he himself had envisioned. In 1904, Rodin made eight more Thinkers from the same mold, leaving his signature in each and every one of them. They’ve all traveled far and wide, now gracing prominent locations around the world. The one before you was purchased by the then director of the Buenos Aires Museum of Fine Arts. Fun fact: not far from here you’ll find the kilometer zero marker, which basically marks the starting point for measuring distances to all the other Argentinian cities. This square is the scene of most political protests, often serving as a starting point for demonstrations making their way to the Plaza de Mayo.