Marie Alexandre Lenoir (27 December 1761 – 11 June 1839) was a French archaeologist. Self-taught, he devoted himself to saving France's historic monuments, sculptures and tombs from the ravages of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

, notably those of Saint-Denis and Sainte-Geneviève.

Life

The ravages of the Revolution caused the birth of the Musée des monuments français. Thanks to support from

Jean Sylvain Bailly Jean Sylvain Bailly (; 15 September 1736 – 12 November 1793) was a French astronomer, mathematician, freemason, and political leader of the early part of the French Revolution. He presided over the Tennis Court Oath, served as the mayor of Pa ...

, Alexandre Lenoir successfully demanded that all art objects from state properties be gathered together in this museum. These objects were confiscated at different religious houses and stored in a single place to avoid their dispersal and destruction. Mandated by the National Constituent Assembly in 1791, he brought together the various objects he sought to conserve in the Couvent des Petits Augustins, a building which later was converted to become the

École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts The Beaux-Arts de Paris is a French ''grande école'' whose primary mission is to provide high-level arts education and training. This is classical and historical School of Fine Arts in France. The art school, which is part of the Paris Scienc ...

. On 1 August 1793, the

National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year Nationa ...

decreed that the tombs of "former kings" should be destroyed. Alexandre Lenoir witnessed the destruction of the royal tombs, with the bones thrown into a ditch. He struggled against revolutionary vandalism and managed to save statues and loot which he stored at the couvent des Petits-Augustins. In 1795, he opened the Musée des monuments français to the public — he was its administrator for 30 years. In October 1796, Lenoir was among a number of artists who signed a petition supporting plans to seize works of art from Rome, in response to an early artists' petition orchestrated by Quatremère de Quincy that remonstrated against these plans. In 1816, under the Bourbon Restoration, he had to return the majority of his collections to their former public and private owners. His wife, Adélaïde Binart (1771–1832), exhibited at the Salons under the name Adélaïde Lenoir. Lenoir died on 11 June 1839 and is buried in Montparnasse Cemetery.

Portraits

* By Marie-Geneviève Bouliard, exhibited at the 1796 salon, bought by the

musée Carnavalet The Musée Carnavalet in Paris is dedicated to the history of the city. The museum occupies two neighboring mansions: the Hôtel Carnavalet and the former Hôtel Le Peletier de Saint Fargeau. On the advice of Baron Haussmann, the civil servant wh ...

in 1899 * By Pierre-Maximilien Delafontaine, dated 1799, given by Alexandre's grandson Alfred Lenoir to the musée national du château de Versailles * By Jacques-Louis David - begun in France and completed in 1817 in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, acquired in 1921 by the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

Gallery

Image:Alexandre Lenoir by Marie Bouliard.jpg, Alexandre Lenoir by Marie-Geneviève Bouliard
1796. Image:Alexandre Lenoir - Vue du tombeau d'Abélard à Saint-Marcel.jpg, View of the tomb of

Abelard Peter Abelard (; french: link=no, Pierre Abélard; la, Petrus Abaelardus or ''Abailardus''; 21 April 1142) was a Middle Ages, medieval French Scholasticism, scholastic philosopher, leading logician, theologian, poet, composer and musician. This ...

at Saint-Marcel near Chalon-sur-Saône.
Engraving after a drawing by Alexandre Lenoir. Image:Alexandre Lenoir avec Napoléon et Joséphine au Musée des monuments français.jpg,

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

and Joséphine visiting the Musée des monuments français with Alexandre Lenoir. Image:Alexandre Lenoir by Pierre-Maximilien Delafontaine.jpg, Alexandre Lenoir by Pierre-Maximilien Delafontaine.
Alexandre Lenoir holding the urn containing the ashes of

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and worl ...

in front of the tomb of

Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...

on show at the Musée.

Bibliography

* *Louis Courajod, ''Alexandre Lenoir, son journal et le Musée des monuments français'', H. Champion, Paris, 3 vol., 1878–1887 * *

External links

Biography on insecula.com

The Musée des monuments français on the Réunion des musées français site

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lenoir 1761 births 1839 deaths French medievalists French Roman Catholics French archaeologists French curators Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery French male non-fiction writers