But the monument's chief component is a statue of a lion, which stands atop the pedestal. With his front paws he tramples upon the barrel of a cannon (upon which sits a "Pickelhaube"); a flag flows downward. The lion symbolises the endurance, daring and bravery shown by Romanian troops between 1916 and 1918, especially at the dramatic battles during the summer of 1917 — Mărăşti, Oituz and Mărăşeşti.