Paul-François Foucart (15 March 1836,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

– 19 May 1926) was a French

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

, known for his research involving the

Eleusinian Mysteries The Eleusinian Mysteries ( el, Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια, Eleusínia Mystḗria) were initiations held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Elefsina in ancient Greece. They are the " ...

. He was the father of Egyptologist

Georges Foucart Georges Foucart (11 December 1865, Paris – 1943) was a French historian and Egyptologist. He was the son of archaeologist Paul Foucart (1836–1926), a professor of ancient Greek studies at the Collège de France. From 1898 to 1906, he was a ...

. Beginning in 1855 he studied at the

École Normale Supérieure École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

in Paris, obtaining his

agrégation In France, the ''agrégation'' () is a competitive examination for civil service in the French public education system. Candidates for the examination, or ''agrégatifs'', become ''agrégés'' once they are admitted to the position of ''professe ...

in 1858. Afterwards, he taught classes at the

Lycée Charlemagne The Lycée Charlemagne is located in the Marais quarter of the 4th arrondissement of Paris, the capital city of France. Constructed many centuries before it became a lycée, the building originally served as the home of the Order of the Jesuit ...

(from 1865) and at the

Lycée Bonaparte Lycée Bonaparte is a French international school in Doha, Qatar. It includes levels ''maternelle'' (preschool) through ''lycée'' (senior high school). The École Française de Doha was established in a rented villa in Slata Al Jadida in the 197 ...

(from 1868). In 1874 he became a lecturer at Collège de France, where in 1877 he was appointed professor of

epigraphy Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

and Greek antiquities. In 1878 he was elected a member of the

Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

, replacing

Joseph Naudet Joseph Naudet (8 December 1786 – 13 August 1878) was a French people, French historian who was a native of Paris. He initially worked at the Ecole Normale Supérieure, and was later a teacher of Latin poetry at the Collège de France. In 181 ...

, and during the same year, was named director of the French School at Athens.

Selected works

* ''Mémoire sur les ruines et l'histoire de Delphes'', 1865 – Memoire on the ruins and history of

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle ...

. * ''Des associations religieuses chez les Grecs, thiases, éranes, orgéons'', 1875 – Religious associations among the Greeks. * ''Décret des Athéniens relatif à la ville de Chalcis'', 1877 – Decree of the Athenians on the city of

Chalcis Chalcis ( ; Ancient Greek & Katharevousa: , ) or Chalkida, also spelled Halkida (Modern Greek: , ), is the chief town of the island of Euboea or Evia in Greece, situated on the Euripus Strait at its narrowest point. The name is preserved from ...

. * ''Mélanges d'épigraphie grecque'', 1878 – Melanges of Greek epigraphy. * ''Recherches sur l'origine et la nature des mystères d'Éleusis'', 1895 – Research on the origin and nature of the mysteries of

Eleusis Elefsina ( el, Ελευσίνα ''Elefsina''), or Eleusis (; Ancient Greek: ''Eleusis'') is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in the West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is situated about northwest ...

. * ''Les grands mystères d'Éleusis, personnel--cérémonies'', 1900 – The grand mysteries of Eleusis. * ''La formation de la Province Romaine d'Asie'', 1903 – The formation of the

Roman province of Asia The Asia ( grc, Ἀσία) was a Roman province covering most of western Anatolia, which was created following the Roman Republic's annexation of the Attalid Kingdom in 133 BC. After the establishment of the Roman Empire by Augustus, it was the ...

. * ''Le culte de Dionysos en Attique'', 1904 – The Cult of Dionysus in

Attica Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...

. * ''Étude sur Didymos d'après un papyrus de Berlin'', 1906 – Study of Didymus according to the

papyrus Papyrus ( ) is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface. It was made from the pith of the papyrus plant, '' Cyperus papyrus'', a wetland sedge. ''Papyrus'' (plural: ''papyri'') can also refer to a ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. * ''Les mystères d'Éleusis'', 1914 – The mysteries of Eleusis. * ''Le culte des héros chez les Grecs'', 1918 –

Hero worship Hero worship may refer to: * Hero cult in ancient Greece *Apotheosis, raising a person to the level of a deity *Cult of personality, a political weapon used mainly in dictatorships *''On Heroes, Hero-Worship, & the Heroic in History'', an 1841 book ...

among the Greeks.HathiTrust Digital Library
published works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foucart, Paul 1836 births 1926 deaths Scientists from Paris French archaeologists French epigraphers French hellenists Academic staff of the Collège de France Members of the Ligue de la patrie française Members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres