=Panthéon.=--The first notable example is that of the =Panthéon=, originally dedicated to the patron saint of Paris, =S. Geneviève=. Erected (1755-81) during the reign of Louis XV, by J. J. Soufflot, its plan is a Greek cross, four halls surrounding a central one which is surmounted by a dome. The latter is composed of three shells, the exterior presenting a rare blend of grace and dignity, though the peristyle of Corinthian columns which forms the drum is somewhat lacking in force because of the absence of bases to attach the columns to the stylobate. The façades are of monumental simplicity, consisting of solid masonry unbroken by windows and crowned with a chaste but emphatic cornice; the sole departure from the severity of design being a magnificent portico of Corinthian columns. The vaulted halls have been decorated in recent years by some of the foremost painters of France; but most of the work is pictorial rather than mural, and serves to accentuate the superior decorative quality of the panels by Puvis de Chavannes, which commemorate incidents in the life of Ste. Geneviève. =Imperial Period.=--This example of correct classicalism, designed in protest against the rococo of its time, is also by its originality of treatment in marked contrast to the great production of the imperial period--the =Madeleine= (1804). Dedicated to Glory, it is a direct imitation of a Roman Corinthian temple of vast size; the only deviation from the antique model being the vaulting of the interior, which, inclining toward the Byzantine method, consists of three flattish pendentive domes, pierced with large eyes, the sole source of light to the interior. Another imitation of the Roman model is the =Arc de Triomphe= in the Place du Carrousel, commemorating the victories of 1805 and intended as a principal entrance to the Tuileries Palace. On the other hand, the =Arc de l’Etoile=, largest of all triumphal arches, being 162 feet high by 147 feet wide, represents a free translation of the antique into an imposing design, sufficiently modern to form a fitting background to the passionate intensity of François Rude’s sculptured group of the Volunteers of 1792, known as _La Marseillaise_. These, and other classical structures, which were planned by Napoleon, were completed after the restoration of the Bourbons. Between 1830 and 1850 an echo of the Neo-Greek movement was heard in France, but French logic repudiated the direct imitation of Greek forms and strove to reflect the Greek spirit only in a superior refinement of feeling. Its chief exponents were Duc, Duban, and Labrouste, who are represented, respectively, by the remodelling of the =Palais de Justice=, the =Library of the Ecole des Beaux Arts= and the =Library of Ste. Geneviève=.