King Henry II (1519-1559) had grandiose dreams about this piece of land. The old monks' cemetery would become a vibrant marketplace, and elegant buildings would adorn the area. His plants did not work quite so well, but the public square survived through the vicissitudes of time and human endeavour to the present day. As with many other squares in Lyon, Place des Jacobins witnessed its fair share of executions and fires. In 1878, the municipal authorities decided to endow this public space with a fountain. It was designed by Gaspard André (who also built the nearby Théâtre des Célestins) and was called “Art”. The four statues depict influential Lyonnais artists: Jean-Hippolyte Flandrin (a 19th-century painter), Gérard Audran (a 17th-century engraver), Guillaume Coustou (a 18th-century sculptor) and Philibert de l'Orme (a 16th-century architect and writer). The monument was inaugurated in 1885.