The Prodigal Son - San Diego, CA - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com

This 1905 bronze work by Auguste Rodain depicts a young man, naked, and apparently tormented with hands raised to the sky as if pleading to God.
The figure is based on one of Jesus' parable. Wikipedia (visit link) informs us:

"The Parable of the Prodigal Son (also known as the Lost Son, Running Father, Loving Father, or Lovesick Father) is one of the parables of Jesus. It appears in Luke 15:11-32. Jesus shares it with his disciples, the Pharisees and others. In the story, a father has two sons. The younger son asks for his inheritance before the father dies, and the father agrees. The younger son, after wasting his fortune (the word "prodigal" means "wastefully extravagant"), goes hungry during a famine, and becomes so destitute he longs to eat the same food given to hogs, unclean animals in Jewish culture. He then returns home with the intention of repenting and begging his father to be made one of his hired servants, expecting his relationship with his father is likely severed. Regardless, the father finds him on the road and immediately welcomes him back as his son and holds a feast to celebrate his return, which includes killing a fattened calf usually reserved for special occasions. The older son refuses to participate, stating that in all the time he has worked for the father, he never disobeyed him; yet, he did not even receive a goat to celebrate with his friends. The father reminds the older son that the son has always been with him and everything the father has belongs to the older son (his inheritance). But, they should still celebrate the return of the younger son because he was lost and is now found. It is the third and final part of a cycle on redemption, following the Parable of the Lost Sheep and the Parable of the Lost Coin. In Western Catholic tradition, this parable is usually read on the fourth Sunday of Lent (in Year C), while in the Eastern Orthodox Church it is read on the Sunday of the Prodigal Son."

TITLE: The Prodigal Son ARTIST(S): Auguste Rodin DATE: 1905 MEDIUM: bronze CONTROL NUMBER: IAS 78090058 Direct Link to the Individual Listing in the Smithsonian Art Inventory: [Web Link] PHYSICAL LOCATION: in front of the San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park, San Diego DIFFERENCES NOTED BETWEEN THE INVENTORY LISTING AND YOUR OBSERVATIONS AND RESEARCH: No differences noticed but the listing does not include a description

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