Porte du Peyrou explained

The Porte du Peyrou is a triumphal arch in Montpellier, in southern France. It is situated at the eastern end of the Jardin de Peyrou, a park near the center of the city.

The arch was designed by François Dorbay, after the model of the Porte Saint-Denis in Paris. Its construction was completed in 1693. Its rusticated surface is crowned by a Doric entablature, suitable to a martial monument. Its later panels in bas-relief and inscriptions glorifying King Louis XIV of France were added in 1715.

These reliefs show four major events from the reign of Louis XIV, rendered as allegories:

• the capture of Namur during the War of the Grand Alliance, in which the figure representing the Dutch Republic kneels before Louis XIV
• Louis in the figure of Hercules being crowned by Victory
• the digging of the Canal du Midi that links the Bay of Biscay with the Mediterranean Sea
• the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes.

Montpellier as seen from the Porte du Peyrou.

External links

• Restoration of the arch