July Column

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This is the July Column, or Colonne de Juillet, a monument to the revolution of 1830 (yes, another revolution). It stands in the center of the place de la Bastille. The column is engraved in gold with the names of Parisians who died during the revolution. The gold-covered statue at the top is called the Génie de la Liberté (the Spirit of Freedom, approximately) and is interesting in that it also appeared on old French ten-franc coins (no longer in circulation today, since the euro is now the national currency).

You are looking north-northeast in this picture, taken in the early afternoon. Off to the right (but not visible) is the Opera Bastille, and off to the left (also not visible) is the original site of the Bastille fortress after which the intersection on which this monument stands is named.

Click directly on the photo to see a larger version (twice this size). Photographed on July 21, 2000.