The artist began to develop the idea for this figure in 1918. That year, at the “Mostra del Pincio” held in Rome in June, Selva, according to the testimony of critic Goffredo Bellonci reported in the Giornale d’Italia on June 6, exhibited a drawing of “a woman seated on the ground, with her legs crossed, her torso and head upright,” evoking “an Indian priestess".

The title "Enigma", the hierarchical and frontal positioning of the face, the stylization of the features – derived from Egyptian statuary – and the idol-like posture evoke a sense of mystery and temporal suspension, which seems to prefigure the Magical Realism movement.

Selva was a highly prominent figure in early 20th-century Italian art. After studying in Turin with Leonardo Bistolfi, he won the “Premio di Roma” in Trieste in 1907. He then moved to Rome, living and working at Villa Strohl-Fern, where he immersed himself in the vibrant and cosmopolitan artistic climate that characterized Roman art at the turn of the century.

Two further casts from the 1920s are preserved today: one in the Museo Nazionale Scienza e Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci in Milan; a second cast was sold in auction by Christie’s in London (November 14, 2018, Lot 650). A later cast (1940s) is held at the Galleria Comunale d’Arte Moderna in Anticoli Corrado.