Arc de triomphe du Carrousel, Triumphal arch on Place du Carrousel in Paris, France
The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel is a neoclassical monument in Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois in Paris between the Louvre and the Tuileries Garden. Eight Corinthian marble columns stand in pairs at the sides and support an entablature with reliefs.
Percier and Fontaine built this structure between 1806 and 1808 for Napoleon after his successes against Austria. The relief shows events such as the surrender at Ulm and the Battle of Austerlitz.
The name recalls the Grand Carrousel, an equestrian display Louis XIV staged here on 5 and 6 June 1662 for the birth of the dauphin. The eight marble soldiers on the columns reproduce the uniforms of Napoleon's army corps: cuirassier, dragoon, mounted chasseur and carabinier on the east side, grenadier, line carabinier, cannonier and sapper on the west. The sapper depicts a real soldier, Dominique Gaye Mariolle, over two metres tall, who once presented a cannon instead of a rifle at a review.
Access runs through the Louvre courtyard and the Tuileries Garden, with both sides offering equally good views. Visitors move freely around the entire base to see details and inscriptions.
Until 1815, four bronze horses from Venice decorated the top of the monument. After their return to Italy, they were replaced by a new quadriga with a female figure.
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