A bronze cast of Auguste Rodin's The Kiss has sold for $2.4m at Drouot in Paris.

In doing so it beat its estimate of $2.2m by 9% in a February 16 auction.

The sculpture, which dates to 1927, depicts the figures of Francesca and Paolo from Dante's Divine Comedy and is one of Rodin's most celebrated works.

The Kiss is considered one of Rodin's greatest masterpieces

The lot sets a new record for a work produced after Rodin's death.  

This is the first time a version of The Kiss has been offered for sale in around 100 years, meaning bidders were especially keen to get their hands on it.

Originally made as part of Rodin's highly ambitious Gates of Hell, the work was considered controversial when it was first exhibited in the 1880s due to its intense eroticism.

While today it's often described as Rodin's masterpiece, he never saw it that way - once calling it "a large sculpted knick-knack following the usual formula."

The piece was sold alongside a collection of four other bronze casts from the artist's studio.

Among them was a version of L'eternal Printemps, which sold for $780,000.

Another cast of the work sold for $1.5m at Bonhams earlier this month.

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