The Porte Saint-Martin is a heavily
rusticated triumphal arch, 18 meters high, built in
limestone and
marble. Recesses are occupied by
bas-reliefs: • North side right:
La Prise du Limbourg en 1675 (The Capture of Limbourg) by
Pierre Le Gros the Elder, a sitting woman next to a lion • North side left:
La Défaite des Allemands (The Defeat of the Germans) by
Gaspard Marsy, Louis XIV as
Mars carrying the shield of France and pushing back a German eagle to protect a woman and an old man • South side left:
La Rupture de la Triple Alliance (The Breaking of the Triple Alliance) by Étienne le Hongre, Louis XIV as
Hercules, partly nude • South side right:
La prise de Besançon (The Capture of Besançon) by Martin van den Bogaert, Louis XIV dressed as Fame, standing in front of an olive tree and receiving keys from a woman == Access ==