Patria (the Nation) distributing crowns handed to her by Liberty to great men, civil and military, while History inscribes their names.
In the centre is The Nation standing between Liberty and History seated at her feet.
To the left on the side where Liberty is depicted the following men are being presented to The Nation:
Malesherbes, Mirabeau, Monge, Fenelon, Manuel, Carnot, Berthollet, Laplace, David, Cuvier, La Fayette,
Voltaire and Rousseau seated side by side with Bichat expiring amongst the facility students.
To the right, on the side of History, stands General Bonaparte, the Drummer of Arcala, soldiers from each brand of the service,
personifying military valour and, finally, the students of the Ecole Polytechnique.
The inscription translates as A Grateful Nation Honours its Great Men and was placed there in 1791
following the decree which transformed the church of Sainte-Genevieve into the Pantheon.