On the Avenue des Champs-Elysées side, the sculpted decoration of the Arc de Triomphe consists of two monumental stone statuary groups. On the right pillar, “Le Départ des volontaires en 1792”, sculpted by François Rude (1784-1855), is also called “La Marseillaise”. Commissioned by King Louis-Philippe, the 13-metre high work exalts the courage of the volunteers of all ages recruited by the revolutionary armies under attack by foreign armies. To depict the allegory of Liberty with outstretched wings pointing the way with an avenging arm armed with a sword, François Rude, as usual, had his wife Sophie pose.