This wax model or maquette, height 36 cms, probably representing Minerva, dates from after Dalou's return to Paris from London in 1879. On its original timber base, the piece is a working studio model, and was therefore never made to last the test of time. Such maquettes, often also made from plaster or clay, are vulnerable to damage but are important because they illuminate the sculptor's working method, techniques and thought processes.

This model required cleaning and a few minor repairs to superficial cracks in the surface of the wax.