Michel Pastoureau (born 17 June 1947) is a French professor of

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

history and an expert in Western

symbology A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise different concepts ...

Biography

Pastoureau was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

on 17 June 1947. He studied at the

École Nationale des Chartes The École Nationale des Chartes (; ) is a French ''grande école'' and a constituent college of Université PSL, specialising in the auxiliary sciences of history, historical sciences. It was founded in 1821, and was located initially at the A ...

, a college for prospective

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

s and librarians. After writing his 1972 thesis about heraldic bestiaries in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, he worked in the coins, medals and antiquities department of the until 1982. Since 1983 he has held the

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

of History of Western

Symbol A symbol is a mark, Sign (semiotics), sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, physical object, object, or wikt:relationship, relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by cr ...

ism (''Chaire d'histoire de la symbolique occidentale'') and is a director of studies at the Sorbonne's ''

École pratique des hautes études The (), abbreviated EPHE, is a French postgraduate top level educational institution, a . EPHE is a constituent college of the Université PSL (together with ENS Ulm, Paris Dauphine or Ecole des Mines). The college is closely linked to É ...

''. He is an academician of the ''

Académie internationale d'héraldique An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the g ...

'' (International Academy of Heraldry) and honorary president of the ''Société française d'héraldique et de sigillographie'' (French Heraldry and Sphragistic Society). When he received an honorary doctorate from the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; ) in Lausanne, Switzerland, was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second-oldest in Switzerland, and one of the oldest universities ...

in 1996, he was described as an eminent scholar who has made a radical contribution to several disciplines. Professor Pastoureau has published widely, including work on the history of colours, animals, symbols, and the

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

s of the

Round Table The Round Table (; ; ; ) is King Arthur's famed table (furniture), table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status, unlike co ...

. He has also written on

emblem An emblem is an abstract art, abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a monarch or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and ''symbol'' ...

s and heraldry, as well as

sigillography Sigillography, also known by its Greek-derived name, sphragistics, is the scholarly discipline that studies the wax, lead, clay, and other seals used to authenticate archival documents. It investigates not only aspects of the artistic design ...

and

numismatics Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...

Works

* ''Vert. Histoire d'une couleur''. Éditions du Seuil, Paris 2013, . * ''L'ours. Histoire d'un roi déchu'', éditions du Seuil, 2007 * ''Les chevaliers de la Table ronde'', éditions du Gui, 2006, * ''Une histoire symbolique du Moyen Âge occidental'', Seuil, La librairie du XXIe siècle, Paris, 2004, (Trad. esp.: ''Una historia simbólica de la Edad Media occidental'', Buenos Aires/Madrid, Katz editores S.A, 2006, ) * ''Traité d'héraldique'' (Col. Grands manuels Picard). Paris: Picard éditeur, 1st. 1979 (2nd. ed. 1993; 3rd, 1997; 4th. 2003, revised and augmented; 5th ed. 2008). The 4th ed. [] added Part IV, entitled "Quinze ans de recherches Héraldiques" where a state-of-the-art is attempted and three case studies are presented. * ''Bleu: Histoire d'une couleur'', éditions du Seuil, 2000 * ''Les animaux célèbres'', Bonneton, 2001 * ''Les emblèmes de la France'', éditions Bonneton, Paris, 1998 * ''Jésus chez le teinturier: couleurs et teintures dans l'Occident médiéval'', Le Léopard d'or, Paris, 1997, * ''Figures de l'héraldique'', collection «

Découvertes Gallimard (, ; in United Kingdom: ''New Horizons'', in United States: ''Abrams Discoveries'') is an Collection (publishing), editorial collection of Book illustration, illustrated monographic books published by the Éditions Gallimard in Pocket edition, ...

» (nº 284), série Traditions. Éditions Gallimard, 1996, ** UK edition – ''Heraldry: Its Origins and Meaning'', '

New Horizons ''New Horizons'' is an Interplanetary spaceflight, interplanetary space probe launched as a part of NASA's New Frontiers program. Engineered by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) and the Southwest Research Institut ...

' series. Thames & Hudson, 1997, ** US edition – ''Heraldry: An Introduction to a Noble Tradition'', "

Abrams Discoveries Abrams may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Abrams (surname), a list of notable people with the surname Places United States * Abrams, Wisconsin, a town * Abrams (community), Wisconsin, an unincorporated community * Abrams Mountain, Colorado * Abr ...

" series. Harry N. Abrams, 1997, * ''Dictionnaire des couleurs de notre temps'', Bonneton, Paris, 1992 * ''L'étoffe du diable: une histoire des rayures et des tissus rayés'', éditions du Seuil, 1991 * ''La vie quotidienne en France et en Angleterre au temps des chevaliers de la Table ronde'', Hachette 1991, * ''L' hermine et le sinople, études d'héraldique médiévale'', Le Léopard d'or, Paris, 1982, * ''Le Cochon : Histoire d'un cousin mal aimé'', collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 545), série Culture et société, 2009,

In English translation

*''White: A History of a Color'' (Princeton 2022), ISBN 978-0-691-24349-8 *''Yellow: A History of a Color'' (Princeton 2019), *''Red: The History of a Color'' (Princeton 2016), *''Green: The History of a Color'' (Princeton 2014), *''The Bear: History of a Fallen King'' (Harvard 2011), *''Black: The History of a Color'' (Princeton 2008), *''Blue: The History of a Color'' (Princeton 2001), *'' The Devil's Cloth: A History of Stripes'' (Columbia 2001), *''The Bible and the Saints'', with Gaston Duchet-Suchaux (Flammarion 1994),

External links

French National Library

École nationale des chartes
*''Translated and adapted from the French Wikipedia article in September 2006'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Pastoureau, Michel Writers from Paris 1947 births Living people University of Lausanne alumni French medievalists French heraldists University of Paris alumni École Nationale des Chartes alumni Academic staff of the École Nationale des Chartes Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Corresponding members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres Academic staff of the University of Paris French art historians Prix Médicis essai winners Winners of the Prix Broquette-Gonin (literature) Sigillographers