This is one of a series of what appear to be near contemporary drawings illustrating Marochetti's second project for the tomb of Napoleon, tried out in the Dôme des Invalides in August 1840. In this project, the equestrian statue of the Emperor is mounted on a solid pedestal, rather than the open tabernacle-like structure of the first project. On the lower section of this pedestal are seated  allegorical figures of pensive, hooded old men, contemplating emblems of Empire. This in turn was mounted on a a monumental basement, containing the effigy of the Emperor. The drawings appear to be accurate factual records of Marochetti's models, and this one, showing the equestrian portrait group, indicates that this was a powerful, compact and simplified group, very far indeed from the naturalism which Marochetti, around this time, was bringing to other equestrian statue commissions, such as the Wellington for Glasgow, or the Duke of Orleans for Paris and Algiers, as also from his other statuettes of Napoleon on horseback, either in imperial robes or modern costume. As illustrated in L'Artiste (2nd series, 1840, vol.vi, no.17., p.263) , where the equestrian figure is represented front on, it looks somewhat static, and too small in relation to the allegorical figures and eagles below. This drawing shows that, at the right scale, this might have been an impressive work, though perhaps unusually glyptic in conception for its time.