2. Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel

Directly in the courtyard of the Louvre is the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel that was commissioned by Napoleon to commemorate his military victories (along with the “other” Arc de Triomphe on the Champs Elysées).

Initially, on top of the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel were placed the Horses of Saint Mark. They had adorned the Basilica of San Marco in Venice since the sack of Constantinople in 1204 and had been brought to Paris where they were placed atop Napoleon’s Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel.

After Napoleon Bonaparte’s defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, many of the countries he had previously conquered asked for their artwork back. The Horses of Saint Mark were returned to Italy and today there is a copy on top instead.

https://snippetsofparis.com/axe-historique-of-paris/

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel on the historical axis of Paris © French Moments

After the destruction of the Tuileries Palace, the Arc du Carrousel has become the oldest monument aligned with the Historical Axis (besides the ancient obelisk on place de la Concorde).

This is a triumphal arch built by Napoleon from 1807 to 1808 to celebrate the victory of the French imperial army in Austerlitz.

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel © French Moments

However, originally the view of the Great Perspective from Arc du Carrousel was blocked westwards by the Tuileries Palace.

https://frenchmoments.eu/historical-axis-of-paris-la-voie-triomphale/

Historical Axis Map © French Moments

The Historical Axis runs through some of Paris’ most celebrated monuments and squares:

The Louvre: the Glass Pyramid, the equestrian statue of Louis XIV portrayed as ‘Alexander the Great’ in the Cour Napoléon, and the Inverted Pyramid.
The Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel
Les Jardin des Tuileries and the former Tuileries Palace
Place de la Concorde and the Luxor obelisk
Avenue des Champs-Élysées
The Arc de Triomphe, standing in the centre of the wide Place de l’Etoile
Avenue de la Grande Armée leading to Porte Maillot
Porte Maillot
Avenue Charles de Gaulle in Neuilly-sur-Seine
Pont de Neuilly
Esplanade de La Défense
The Grande Arche de la Fraternité in La Défense
The Seine-Arche project endeavours to push the axis beyond La Défense, to the Seine.

Let’s move along the Historical Axis of Paris, from East to West, starting from the Louvre.

HD photos of the Horses of Saint Mark statues on the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel in Paris - Page 207

While we were visiting the Tuileries gardens in the 1st Arrondissement of Paris, we took these high definition photographs showing the bronze quadriga statues by Baron Francois Joseph Bosio that are found on top of the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel.

Paris Statues

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Horses of Saint Mark on Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel

This first close up photo shows the quadriga that are on top of the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, which are often referred to as the Horses of Saint Mark, or Horses of San Marco, and this bronze statue group you can see in these images are a copy of the originals, which were produced by the artist Baron Francois Joseph Bosio in 1828 commemorating the Restoration.

Horses of Saint Mark by Baron Francois Joseph Bosio

Now, it was Napoleon Bonaparte that commissioned the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel to be constructed, and the original chariot with the four horses was actually taken from the Saint Mark Cathedral in Venice in one of his battles, but these were returned when the Empire fell in 1815, so the quadriga you can see today are copies of those Horses of Saint Mark, with the addition of the two allegorical gilded statues each side.

Back of the Horses of Saint Mark quadriga statues

This is a photo we took showing the back of the statue group, or quadriga as it is known, and in this view you can only see two horses, yet it provides a good view of the chariot and the golden allegorical statues with their wings standing each side of the four horses, and these additional golden allegories were sculpted to represent Peace and Victory.

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and quadriga statues on top

With this photo you can see a front view of the whole Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel with the Horses of Saint Mark on top, and this is located between the Louvre Museum and the Tuileries Gardens in the 1st Arrondissement of Paris, and this triumphal arch with its statues are on the historical axis with Place de la Concorde and the Champs Elysees, which is the way we were looking when we took this photo.

Baron Bosio Horses of San Marco statues in Paris

We took this particular photo while standing way back in the Louvre museum main courtyard, to try and give more of a level view of this statue group on top of the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, and in fact, the bronze allegorical statue standing inside the chariot you can see today should have originally been a statue of Napoleon I, which was before his fall from power.

https://www.eutouring.com/images_paris_statues_207.html

Triumphal Quadriga

The Triumphal Quadriga is the group of bronze four horses at St. Mark's Basilica. They were originally outside on the façade, but they have been replaced with replicas and moved inside for protection.
It is unclear when they were made, but it seems that they were brought to Constantinople and placed on the starting gates at the Hippodrome. It is possible that they originally had a chariot with a driver as part of the sculpture. However everything before its relocation to Venice is uncertain. It is clear that the Venetians brought the horses and later placed them on San Marco's façade after the Crusaders sacked Constantinople in 1204. While most of the bronze sculptures in Constantinople were melted down by the Crusaders, this piece is fortunately one of the few to survive. When Napoleon captured Venice, he brought them to Paris and placed it on the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, which is now topped with another quadriga. The Triumphal Quadriga have influenced many other quadriga as well.

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Copy of the Horses on the Façade of San Marco

Triumphal Quadriga on the Arc de Triomph

Copy of the Horses on Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel in Paris commissioned in 1806

Briefly location of the San Marco horses

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