Peiresc ou l’âge d’or du cabinet de curiosités en Provence – Conférence

A visionary humanist, passionate scholar, and tireless correspondent, Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc remains one of the leading figures of 17th-century European culture. This lecture explores the central role Peiresc played at the heart of what might be called the golden age of the cabinet of curiosities in Provence. A true “prince of the Republic of Letters,” Peiresc wove a vast network of correspondence, bringing together scholars, artists, antiquarians, and collectors throughout Europe, the Mediterranean basin, and beyond. By providing historical context and exploring the scholarly networks of his time, the lecture aims to demonstrate how Provence was then at the center of a vibrant intellectual exchange, where literature, antiquities, exotic objects, scientific observations, and artistic masterpieces intersected. This event offers a deep dive into the world of cabinets of curiosities—those scholarly microcosms where knowledge and perceptions of the world were constantly reinvented—and highlights Peiresc’s decisive contribution to the birth of what is known as the “modern” spirit.
Carte blanche to Olivier Morand, historian
A lecture by the Friends of the Réattu