The Palais de la Légion d'honneur in Paris stands gutted by fire in this albumen print from the Société Photoglyptique's 1871 series documenting the Paris Commune. The palace was set ablaze on May 23, 1871, in the final days of the fighting, along with the Tuileries, the Hôtel de Ville, and other government buildings. The photographer is unidentified, and examples from the same series are held by the Musée Carnavalet.

The neoclassical rotunda, with Corinthian columns and portrait busts set in roundels, survives with its window openings blackened and empty. Rooftop statues lean askew beside rigging, rubble is heaped along the balustrade, and an overturned wooden booth lies near the gate. A timber palisade and gas lamps frame the deserted street.

Nearly 50,000 members of the order funded the reconstruction, which kept the exterior walls and redesigned the interiors. Built for the Prince of Salm-Kyrbourg, the building had housed the administration of the order since 1804.

Mounted on the original blue-gray card printed in red "Guerre Civile (Paris), 18 Mars 1871, 28 Mai 1871" (Civil War, Paris, March 18, 1871 to May 28, 1871), with the title label "Légion d'Honneur, No. 36" and the Société Photoglyptique imprint for Paris and Nanterre. Print approximately 8 3/8 x 10 3/4 inches; mount approximately 13 1/4 x 16 1/2 inches.