The Museum of the National Bank of Romania invites the public to view the sculpture of Constantin Brâncuşi “The Wisdom of the Earth” in a temporary exhibition dedicated to it, open from 16 June to 28 October 2016.

The display of the sculpture in the Marble Hall of the Old Palace of the National Bank of Romania is part of the national campaign “Brâncuşi is mine”, intended to inform the public about the national subscription for the purchase by the Romanian state of Constantin Brâncuşi’s artwork “The Wisdom of the Earth”.

Between 16 June 2016 and 8 July 2016, the access in the Museum of the National Bank of Romania is free, without prior registration, exclusively for visiting the temporary exhibition dedicated to Brâncuşi’s masterpiece. The entrance is in 25 Lipscani St.

The guided tours in the permanent exhibition of the Museum of the National Bank of Romania will resume from 11 July 2016, according to the museum’s visiting procedure based on confirmed registration (Visiting the Museum).

Between 16 June 2016 and 28 October 2016, for the duration of the temporary exhibition, the museum is open Monday to Friday from 10.00 to 18.00. Admission is free.

“The Wisdom of the Earth” was created by Constantin Brâncuşi in 1907 and it belongs to the national cultural heritage, the “Treasury” category. The sculpture is made from crinoidal limestone in the technique of direct carving followed by polishing, resulting in a unique work of art. Brâncuşi said that he had used a block of stone taken from the old limestone quarries of Paris.

The artwork was exhibited for the first time in Romania in 1910 at the ninth painting and sculpture exhibition of the “Artistic Youth” Society. Brâncuşi’s work generated great controversy at the time: the conservatives denigrated it, whereas the intellectual avant-garde prized it. Alongside “The Kiss and “Prayer”, “Wisdom of the Earth” marks the artist’s most appreciated creation period. The sculpture represents the symbol of “the first modern sculptures in the world”.

“The Wisdom of the Earth was my attempt to touch the bottom of the sea with my index finger. Because I was terrified when I lifted the veil... A woman must never be unveiled... Isis must remain covered in at least one of the seven veils of her beauty, the one of mystery - which renders her precious and immortal.”

[Constantin Brâncuși]