But where you can still see this stone arch, also known as an abutment, with the four sculptures in high relief of Science and Labour by Jules-Felix Coutan, and Electricity and Commerce by Jean Antoine Injalbert, there is also an equestrian statue in front of this on the island.
This particular statue was sculpted by the Danish artist Holger Wenderkinch in the 1930s and was originally meant to represent Joan of Arc, which was given as a gift to the city of Paris, yet this was not put in place until 1956 and only inaugurated two years later in the presence of the Ambassador of Denmark. However, it was decided that the original representation of this equestrian statue was not appropriate and it was named La France Renaissante instead.
And in addition to these points, you can also still discover the cast iron statue groups that were produced by the French sculptor Gustave Michel from when the bridge was constructed, which are aligned with the piers at the arch springs, and one these groups is known as the ironsmith riveters, whereas the other was designed to represent boatmen.
Yet when you look back at the history of the Pont de Bir-Hakeim, you will discover that this bridge over the River Seine did not have this name originally, as it was first of all known as the Passy Viaduct. However, it was renamed in recognition of the Battle of Bir-Hakeim, which is where Free French forces went into battle against the enemy in 1942 and General Koenig had his victory.
And today there is now a plaque located on the bridge commemorating this victory, which translated from French to English that generally reads, To Bir-Hakeim from 27 May to 11 June 1942 the first brigade of the Free French Forces pushes the furious assaults of two enemy divisions and affirms to the world that France has never stop fighting.