Édouard Lartet
Encyclopedia
Édouard Lartet was a French
paleontologist.
, France
, where his family had lived for more than five hundred years. He was educated for the law at Auch
and Toulouse
, but having private means elected to devote himself to science. The then recent work of Georges Cuvier
on fossil
mammalia encouraged Lartet in excavations which led in 1834 to his first discovery of fossil remains in the neighborhood of Auch. Thenceforward he devoted his whole time to a systematic examination of the French caves, his first publication on the subject being The Antiquity of Man in Western Europe (1860), followed in 1861 by New Researches on the Coexistence of Man and of the Great Fossil Mammifers characteristic of the Last Geological Period. In this paper he made public the results of his discoveries in the cave of Aurignac
, where evidence existed of the contemporaneous existence of man and extinct mammals.
In his work in the Périgord
district Lartet had the financial and personal help of Henry Christy
. The account of their joint researches appeared in a paper descriptive of the Dordogne
caves and contents, published in Revue archéologique (1864). The important discoveries in the Abri de la Madeleine
and elsewhere were published by Lartet and Christy under the title Reliquiae Aquitanicae, the first part appearing in 1865. Christy died before the completion of the work, but Lartet continued it until his breakdown in health in 1870. His son Louis Lartet
followed in his father's footsteps.
The most modest and one of the most illustrious of the founders of modern palaeontology, Lartet's work had previously been publicly recognized by his nomination as an officer of the Légion d'honneur
; and in 1848 he had had the offer of a political post. In 1857 he had been elected a foreign member of the Geological Society of London
, and a few weeks before his death he had been made professor of palaeontology at the museum of the Jardin des Plantes
. He died at Séissan
.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
paleontologist.
Biography
Lartet was born near Castelnau-Barbarens, of GersGers
The Gers is a department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest of France named after the Gers River.Inhabitants are called les Gersois or Gersoises.-History:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where his family had lived for more than five hundred years. He was educated for the law at Auch
Auch
Auch is a commune in southwestern France. Located in the region of Midi-Pyrénées, it is the capital of the Gers department. Auch is the historical capital of Gascony.-The Ausci:...
and Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
, but having private means elected to devote himself to science. The then recent work of Georges Cuvier
Georges Cuvier
Georges Chrétien Léopold Dagobert Cuvier or Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric Cuvier , known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist...
on fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
mammalia encouraged Lartet in excavations which led in 1834 to his first discovery of fossil remains in the neighborhood of Auch. Thenceforward he devoted his whole time to a systematic examination of the French caves, his first publication on the subject being The Antiquity of Man in Western Europe (1860), followed in 1861 by New Researches on the Coexistence of Man and of the Great Fossil Mammifers characteristic of the Last Geological Period. In this paper he made public the results of his discoveries in the cave of Aurignac
Aurignac
Aurignac is a commune in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France on the edge of the Pyrénées. It is the seat of the canton of Aurignac , which is composed of 19 communes. It is part of the ancient region known as the Comminges....
, where evidence existed of the contemporaneous existence of man and extinct mammals.
In his work in the Périgord
Périgord
The Périgord is a former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne département, now forming the northern part of the Aquitaine région. It is divided into four regions, the Périgord Noir , the Périgord Blanc , the Périgord Vert and the Périgord Pourpre...
district Lartet had the financial and personal help of Henry Christy
Henry Christy
Henry Christy was an English banker and collector who left his substantial collections to the British Museum.-Early life:...
. The account of their joint researches appeared in a paper descriptive of the Dordogne
Dordogne
Dordogne is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great river Dordogne that runs through it...
caves and contents, published in Revue archéologique (1864). The important discoveries in the Abri de la Madeleine
Abri de la Madeleine
The Abri de la Madeleine is a prehistoric shelter under an overhanging cliff situated near Tursac, in the Dordogne département and the Aquitaine Région of South-Western France. The Magdalenian culture of the Upper Paleolithic is named after it, as the type site. Prehistoric finds from the site...
and elsewhere were published by Lartet and Christy under the title Reliquiae Aquitanicae, the first part appearing in 1865. Christy died before the completion of the work, but Lartet continued it until his breakdown in health in 1870. His son Louis Lartet
Louis Lartet
Louis Lartet was a French geologist and paleontologist. He discovered the original Cro-Magnon skeletons.Louis Lartet was born in Castelnau-Magnoac, in Seissan in the département of Gers...
followed in his father's footsteps.
The most modest and one of the most illustrious of the founders of modern palaeontology, Lartet's work had previously been publicly recognized by his nomination as an officer of the Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
; and in 1848 he had had the offer of a political post. In 1857 he had been elected a foreign member of the Geological Society of London
Geological Society of London
The Geological Society of London is a learned society based in the United Kingdom with the aim of "investigating the mineral structure of the Earth"...
, and a few weeks before his death he had been made professor of palaeontology at the museum of the Jardin des Plantes
Jardin des Plantes
The Jardin des Plantes is the main botanical garden in France. It is one of seven departments of the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle. It is situated in the 5ème arrondissement, Paris, on the left bank of the river Seine and covers 28 hectares .- Garden plan :The grounds of the Jardin des...
. He died at Séissan
Seissan
Seissan is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
.