Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet des Murs (
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 ...
, 18 April 1804 –
Nogent-le-Rotrou
Nogent-le-Rotrou () is a commune in the department of Eure-et-Loir, northern France.
It is a sub-prefecture and is located on the river Huisne, 56 kilometres west of Chartres on the RN23 and 150 kilometres south west of Paris, to which it is l ...
, 25 February 1894), also known as Marc Oeillet des Murs, was a French amateur
ornithologist
Ornithology, from Ancient Greek ὄρνις (''órnis''), meaning "bird", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study", is a branch of zoology dedicated to the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related discip ...
and local politician and historian.
Life
Born to Jacques Philippe Athanase Œillet Des Murs and Marie Henriette Gard,
he entered the magistracy in 1830 and left it in 1838. In 1841 he became a lawyer in the
Court of Cassation
A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case; they only interpret the relevant law. In this, they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In ...
, but in 1846 retired to the department of
Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.[Nogent-le-Rotrou
Nogent-le-Rotrou () is a commune in the department of Eure-et-Loir, northern France.
It is a sub-prefecture and is located on the river Huisne, 56 kilometres west of Chartres on the RN23 and 150 kilometres south west of Paris, to which it is l ...]
and begun extensive restoration work on it.
He was the mayor of Nogent-le-Rotrou from 1860 to 1868.
[ In 1885, having sunk a good deal of his fortune into the restoration of the Château, he sold it. He died in 1894, aged 89.][ He married Caroline Euphrasie Naulot, who survived him.][
]
Ornithology
He published many papers. His major ornithological works include
*''Iconographie Ornithologique'',Frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...
'' Vénus: ''Zoology''), in collaboration with Florent Prévost
Florent Prévost (1794 – 1 February 1870) was a French naturalist and illustrator.
Prévost was assistant naturalist at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle. He was the author of various zoological works, including ''Les Pigeons par Madame ...
(1855), in which they described several new species.
*''Traité général d’oologie ornithologique au point de vue de la classification''Oology
Oology (; also oölogy) is a branch of ornithology studying bird eggs, Bird nest, nests and breeding behaviour. The word is derived from the Greek ''oion'', meaning egg. Oology can also refer to the hobby of collecting wild birds' eggs, sometime ...
from the Point of View of Classification''), 1860. One reviewer praised the author's knowledge of oology but disagreed with his reliance on resemblances of eggs, with too little attention to other information, in the classification of birds.Jules Verreaux
Jules Pierre Verreaux (24 August 1807 – 7 September 1873) was a French botanist and ornithologist and a professional collector of and trader in natural history specimens. He was the brother of Édouard Verreaux and nephew of Pierre Antoine Delal ...
in collaborating with Jean-Charles Chenu
Jean-Charles Chenu (30 August 1808 – 12 November 1879) was a French physician, naturalist and author.
Bibliography
Natural history
*''Illustrations conchyliologiques ou description et figures de toutes les coquilles connues vivantes et fossil ...
.
History
His main historical work is ''Histoire des comtes du Perche de la famille des Rotrou de 943 à 1231'' (''History of the Counts of Perche of the Rotrou Family from 943 to 1231''), 1856.
Surname
"Des Murs" is a known French surname meaning "of the walls". "Œillet" means "carnation
''Dianthus caryophyllus'' ( ), commonly known as carnation or clove pink, is a species of ''Dianthus'' native to the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean region. Its exact natural range is uncertain due to extensive cultivation over the last 2,00 ...
" (or any ''Dianthus
''Dianthus'' ( ) is a genus of about 340 species of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, native mainly to Europe and Asia, with a few species in north Africa and in southern Africa, and one species (''D. repens'') in arctic North Am ...
''), so "Œillet des Murs" could be a rare surname meaning "carnation of the walls". Which of those was his surname seems to have been unclear even during his lifetime. His name appears on the title pages of his books as "M. O. des Murs" and as "O. des Murs" with no other names or titles,[ though he signs a dedication "P. O. des Murs". It also appears as "O. des Murs" in books where the names of his co-authors, Chenu and Verreaux][ and Prévost,][ are given with initials and surnames, suggesting that he thought of "O." as his initial and "Des Murs" as his surname. Likewise his contribution to Chenu's ''Encyclopédie d'histoire naturelle'' is listed as by "M. des Murs". On the other hand, he was cited with the family name "Oeillet des Murs" in his time,][ on his death certificate][ and later,][ and Marc Oeillet des Murs appears as a writer on Normandy.]
References
External links
*
BHL
Digitised ''Traité général d’oologie ornithologique au point de vue de la classification''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oeillet des Murs, Marc Athanase Parfait
French ornithologists
1804 births
1894 deaths
French male non-fiction writers
19th-century French historians
19th-century French male writers
Oologists