L'Illustration, No. 0059, 13 Avril 1844

A modest Icelandic family sets sail for Copenhagen, hoping for a better future, and their son Albert discovers a pair of scissors that become his first tools. Quickly he assists his father carving wooden figures for Danish ships, catching the eye of his teachers at the free arts school. By his late teens he earns silver and gold medals, drawing the attention of the painter Abildgaard, whose private lessons push his talent toward the extraordinary.

When a coveted Rome scholarship finally arrives, Thorvaldsen endures a long, arduous sea voyage before reaching the Eternal City. In his cramped studio he obsessively compares his work to the classical masters, even shattering his own early pieces out of frustration. Just as his stipend expires and a return home looms, an affluent English patron discovers a clay statue of Jason and commissions a marble version, providing the financial security Thorvaldsen needs. That generous act transforms his path, allowing him to settle in Rome and begin the ascent that will make his name synonymous with neoclassical sculpture.