The statue of Lyon
The metropolis where the Rhône meets the Saône — Roman Lugdunum, capital of silk and of gastronomy.
Among the eight monumental statues that crown the corners of Place de la Concorde, each representing a great French city as a seated woman wearing a mural crown, Lyon was carved between 1836 and 1840 for the redesign of the square under King Louis-Philippe, led by the architect Jacques-Ignace Hittorff.
History & sculptor
Lyon sits on the southern side of the square, at the confluence of two rivers in spirit if not in stone. The work of Pierre Petitot, she recalls Roman Lugdunum, capital of the Gauls, and the silk-weaving, gastronomic metropolis of the Rhône valley.
A woman for a city
Like her seven sisters, Lyon is a woman: the allegory of the city as a protective, sovereign figure. The mural crown she wears — a diadem shaped like city walls and towers — has symbolised a fortified city since Antiquity. She was placed on the south side of the square, turned toward her own region of France.
- 🏛️City representedLyon
- ⛏SculptorPierre Petitot (1794–1862)
- 📅Period1836–1840 · reign of Louis-Philippe
- 📍LocationSouth side of Place de la Concorde, 75008 Paris
- 👑AttributeMural crown — emblem of a fortified city
- 🌐Part of
The eight statues on Place de la Concorde
The map is centred on the Luxor Obelisk so you can take in all eight city statues at once — the one you are viewing, Lyon, is marked in red.