Statue of Louis XIV, Bronze monument in Place Saint-Sauveur, Caen, France.
The bronze statue of Louis XIV by Louis Petitot stands on Place Saint-Sauveur. The king wears a plumed helmet, a decorated cuirass, a cloak over his left shoulder, a skirt of leather strips and sandals. His right hand rests on a downward-pointing sword, his left holds a short baton; a helmet sits beside his left leg on a rectangular stone pedestal.
Sculptor Louis Petitot created this bronze work in 1828 to replace an earlier monument destroyed during the French Revolution in 1791. The new sculpture represented a shift toward reexamining royal history in the post-revolutionary period.
The sculpture presents Louis XIV in a Roman imperial pose, reflecting early 19th century artistic ideals about representing royal authority. Visitors can observe how the artist used classical forms and symbols to express power through this bronze figure.
The monument sits at 24 Place Saint-Sauveur in central Caen and is easily reached on foot from most downtown areas. It received official protection status in 2006 and is visible from the street at any time.
The statue was removed from the list of bronze works to be sacrificed under Vichy's non-ferrous metal mobilisation, so the 1827 bronze cast by Charles Crozatier's workshop survived. It was moved to Place Saint-Sauveur on 2 December 1961, replacing a stone statue of François de Malherbe installed there after the Liberation.
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