Outdoor Architecture at Grant's Tomb

"Let Us Have Peace" Epitaph

"Let Us Have Peace," the slogan that Grant ran under after accpeting the Republican nomination for President in 1868, is featured above the entrance to Grant's tomb. This phrase
accurately summed up the nation's mood after the Civil War and is featured on the mausoleum as an epitaph, defined as a phrase or form of words written in memory of a person who has died, especially as an inscription on a tombstone.

Artist J. Massey Rhind created the two figures featured to the left and right of the epitaph, and the figures are most likely intended to symbolize Victory and Peace. The figure on the left holds a sheath of palm leaves – a symbol of victory and the figure on the right holds a sword wrapped in olive leaves.

The two eagle statues featured at the front of the memorial were donated by the New York City Post Office in the 1930s in an effort to save them from being destroyed during a demolition of the building.

The eagle, along with two fasces on either side, are featured along the outside of the memorial in multiple locations. The fasces symbol, defined as a bound bundle of wooden rods, sometimes including an axe with its blade emerging, is a symbol of strength through number. This symbol accurately depicts the goals that Ulysses S. Grant had of reuniting the nation during his presidency after the Civil War.