Ulysse, Statue in the gardens of Versailles, France

Ulysse is a white statue of a male figure with a bare torso, standing against a leafy green hedge in the gardens of Versailles. A draped cloth wraps around his waist and falls in folds over a tall, tapering rectangular pedestal that ends in a stepped base, and his left arm is bent, holding a small object near his shoulder, while his right arm crosses his waist.

The original marble statue was carved by Philippe Magnier between 1684 and 1688 as part of the decoration of the gardens of Versailles under Louis XIV. In 2018 the original was moved to safety, and in 2019 a replica made of resin and marble powder was installed at the roundabout, later moved in 2022 to the west of the entrance of the Trois Fontaines grove.

The figure of Ulysses, the hero of the Odyssey, is shown with a laurel crown and holds a poppy flower, a symbol of forgetfulness and sleep. This statue is one of five philosopher figures placed around the roundabout, each representing a thinker from antiquity, and together they create a gathering of wise men in the garden.

The statue stands at the Rond-Point des Philosophes, a crossroads of several paths in the gardens of Versailles, near the North Parterre and the groves of the Bains d'Apollon, the Théâtre d'Eau, and the Trois Fontaines. Visitors can reach it on foot by following the allée de Cérès-et-de-Flore or the path that runs along the west side of the North Parterre, and it is best seen in daylight when the gardens are open.

The statue you see today is a replica made in 2019, not the original marble, which was moved to protect it from weather and pollution. The original was placed in the same spot until 1939, and the replica now stands where the original once did, preserving the historical layout of the garden.