Statue of Louis Ruchonnet, Lausanne, Bronze portrait statue in Lausanne, Switzerland
The Statue of Louis Ruchonnet is a bronze portrait statue in Lausanne, Switzerland. It shows a man with a mustache in a long double-breasted coat, standing on a bronze plinth above a stepped pale stone base, with tall trees and a pointed church tower behind.
The monument was created in 1906 by the sculptor Alfred Lanz, shortly after Ruchonnet's death in 1893. It was first placed on the steps of La Madeleine and later moved to the nearby place Madeleine.
People in Lausanne called Louis Ruchonnet "le grand Louis", a nickname that referred to his height and to his standing as a politician. The statue keeps that memory alive in a public square where locals and visitors pass by every day.
The statue stands on the esplanade of La Madeleine, near the Palais de Rumine, in an open area you can reach on foot. The ground is flat and paved, so it is easy to walk around the base and look at the figure from different sides.
The statue shows Ruchonnet without the lorgnons he wore in portraits of his time, a small detail that makes the likeness less exact. His left hand rests on a draped cloth or document, a gesture that suggests his work as a statesman.
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