(Vienna 1889–1951 Cambridge)
Head of a girl, 1925–1928, bust, three-dimensional, fired clay, height 39.5 cm

Provenance:
Collection Margarethe Stonborough-Wittgenstein (1882-1958), Vienna
thence by descent
Private Collection, Carinthia
Collection Austria

The present head of a girl has been listed as a protected historical monument by Austria’s Federal Monuments Authority (Bundesdenkmalamt) and cannot be exported.

5. The Bust of a Girl and its significance as part of Austria‘s cultural heritage
… The bust is the only sculpture created by Wittgenstein, and the only noteworthy work of art ever made by a world-class philosopher. It must not be viewed as a „chance product“ created by a dilettante philosopher; rather, it should be seen as „philosophy made into matter“, an attempt to draw a line connecting ethics and aesthetics. It transforms academic calls for a „true“, „correct“ form into a tangible, sensorially perceivable figure, thereby turning an ideal concept into an object.
Furthermore, to a certain extent the Bust of a Girl also marks the start of linguistic philosophy, a style marked by observation, which formed the core of Wittgenstein‘s later work (cf. N. Malcom, p. 11). Consequently, it represents a key milestone in his scientific development...