Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The arch is adorned with four main sculptures, six panels in relief, and a frieze running be-
neath the top. Each was designed by a different artist. The most famous sculpture is the one
to the right as you approach from the Champs-Élysées:
La Marseillaise
(Departure of the
Volunteers of 1792). Sculpted by François Rude, it depicts soldiers of all ages gathering be-
neath the wings of victory, en route to drive back the invading armies of Prussia and Aus-
tria. The higher panels depict a series of important victories for the Revolutionary and im-
perial French armies, from Egypt to Austerlitz, while the detailed frieze is divided into two
sections: the
Departure of the Armies
and the
Return of the Armies
. Don't miss the
multimedia section beneath the viewing platform, which provides more detail and historical
background for each of the sculptures.
Viewing Platform
Climb the 284 steps to the viewing platform at the top of the 50m-high arch and you'll be
suitably rewarded with magnificent panoramas over western Paris. From here, a dozen
broad avenues - many of them named after Napole
́
onic victories and illustrious generals -
radiate towards every compass point. The Arc de Triomphe is the highest point in the line of
monuments known as the
axe historique
(historic axis, also called the grand axis); it of-
fers views that swoop east down the Champs-Élysées to the gold-tipped obelisk at place de
la Concorde (and beyond to the Louvre's glass pyramid), and west to the skyscraper district
of La Défense, where the colossal Grande Arche marks the
axe
's western terminus.
