Designed by the artist in the summer of 1922 for his Norman holiday home, the Villa Les Cloches in Vattetot-sur-Mer, this imposing patinated plaster fireplace narrowly escaped destruction after the Second World War. It was ultimately preserved thanks to the intervention of the town’s mayor following the sale of the property.

Fully sculpted in high relief on the theme of the Last Judgment, the mantelpiece is composed of an entablature supported by two jambs and crowned by a large decorative panel. The upper section depicts Paradise: the righteous stand on either side of the Creator in a frieze-like composition animated by harmony and fraternity. With his left hand, God gestures toward the damned below, who writhe around the hearth within the entablature and jambs, driven into the flames by the Devil, assisted by two dragons.

This singular work—without equivalent in the artist’s oeuvre—marks a pivotal moment in his artistic development. Still deeply influenced by his master, Auguste Rodin, for whom he had worked as a highly regarded practitioner, the sculpture nonetheless signals a shift toward a more restrained and modern language.

The very structure of the mantel recalls Rodin’s Gates of Hell, with its flanking uprights framing a central field surmounted by an entablature. As in Rodin’s great portal, the sculptural composition adapts to its architectural framework while seeking to integrate expressive figural groups into a coherent decorative scheme. The entablature unfolds in a sinuous rhythm—shaped by the Devil’s posture, the sweep of his arms, the curved necks of the monsters, and the coiling of their tails—into which the damned are drawn. This movement intensifies the sensation of downward plunge created by the vertical cascade of bodies along the jambs, in contrast to the upper panel where figures stand, embrace, and join in a serene, almost dance-like procession.

Rodin’s expressive vocabulary is evident in the treatment of the bodies, where fleshy volumes alternate with taut musculature, in the eloquence of gestures, and in the frequent use of contrapposto. Yet the forms here are fuller and the overall style more composed. The figures occupy the entire surface without reliance on added ornament, recalling the continuous frieze compositions of antique sarcophagi. Likewise, the paired roundels framing the entablature subtly evoke classical models.

Although the artist employs plaster—Rodin’s favored material—the patina is intentionally left raw and somewhat uneven, underscoring the work’s material presence.

Through this remarkable fireplace, the artist affirms his transition toward modern sculpture, of which he would soon become one of the leading figures.