How far would you go to cover something? The impressively tall fountain of Saint Michel owes its grandeur to the fact that the authorities of the time wanted to hide the building just behind it. The fountain was constructed in 1860, during the Second French Empire, and was dedicated to Archangel Michael. It was commissioned by Baron Haussman, a man of vision who transformed 19th century Paris, to Gabriel Davioud, while its sculptural decoration was created by several artists. Fontaine Saint Michel depicts the archangel, inspired by the figure of Michael in Raphael’s 1518 painting St. Michael vanquishing Satan, surrounded by four female statues representing the four cardinal virtues, Prudence, Temperance, Justice, and Power.