Immortality Overtaking Time, Copper quadriga sculpture on the Grand Palais, 8th arrondissement of Paris, France

Immortality Overtaking Time is a green-patina copper quadriga by Georges Récipon on the roof of the Grand Palais, on the Champs-Élysées side. A standing female figure raises a wreath above four rearing horses, and beneath them a fallen male figure reclines with an outstretched arm. The group weighs 12 tonnes and rests on a pale stone base above the building cornice.

Georges Récipon created this monumental work for the 1900 Paris Universal Exhibition, marking the inauguration of the newly constructed Grand Palais. It emerged during a period when France sought to express its cultural strength through major architectural and artistic projects.

The charioteer is La Renommée (Fame), a laurel-crowned messenger of the gods who carries a trumpet and a tablet listing the heroes she proclaims. The rearing horses drive Chronos, god of Time and Destiny, over the edge. Its counterpart on the Seine side, L'Harmonie triomphant de la Discorde, shows Apollo overturning Eris.

The work stands high on the facade and is best viewed from street level, where you can see it from various angles as you walk or pause. The nearby Metro station at Champs-Élysées-Clemenceau provides convenient access to the Grand Palais for visitors wishing to observe the sculpture from different positions.

Each of the two quadrigas weighs 12 tonnes, built on a metal frame clad in repoussé copper leaves. Ceramic elements are worked into the group: the spokes of the chariot wheels and griffins at the rear. The ensemble was fully restored between 2001 and 2004 along with the Grand Palais.