Search giant Google on Monday doodled 'The Thinker', one of the most famous works of French sculptor Auguste Rodin on his 172nd birthday. The doodle, in dark colours of blue and black, has 'The Thinker' replace the second 'O' of Google.

The Thinker is one of Rodin's most popular sculptures. The first cast, made in 1902, is now in the Musée Rodin in Paris. The popular depiction is that of a man in a sober postition battling with a powerful internal struggle.

According to statue.com, The Thinker was part of a commission by the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris to sculpt a monumental door based on The Divine Comedy of Dante. The statue was initially named The Poet and was intended to represent Dante himself at the top of the door reflecting on the scene below.

Auguste Rodin, known as the progenitor of modern sculpture, was born on November 12, 1840. He was, however, never accepted into Paris's foremost school of art.