The tragic story behind High Museum's Rodin statue

Zoom in: The plane had been chartered by the Atlanta Art Association, the organization that established the High Museum.

Flashback: Passengers, most of whom were association members, were set to return to the states after completing a tour of European art capitals, according to the Atlanta History Center.

• The passengers boarded Air France flight 007 and settled into a Boeing 707 jetliner named Chateau de Sully before taking off at noon from Orly Airport.
• As the plane was taking off, it began to "sway violently" and soon crashed, the history center writes.
• 130 people died in the crash, including Del R. Paige, president of the art association.

In the aftermath, Atlanta's arts community rallied to pay tribute to the victims.

• France gifted Rodin's "The Shade" statue to the High Museum on Oct. 5, 1968.
• The bronze statue can be viewed on the north side of the Woodruff Arts Center's Memorial Arts Building.
• The statute is "a reminder of Atlanta's cultural resilience and a symbol of strength that honors our history and the important people who shaped it," the Woodruff Arts Center says.

The fine print: Atlanta playwright Pearl Cleage wrote a poem in honor of the victims.