Unmistakable clues and more mysteries: the tomb of the poet Joachim du Bellay, found 500 years after his death ?

Des fouilles de l'Inrap sous la cathédrale de Notre-Dame de Paris. REUTERS POOL – SARAH MEYSSONNIER/POOL

Archaeological excavations at Notre-Dame de Paris have uncovered a grave that could be that of the poet Joachim du Bellay, who was known to have been buried in the cathedral without knowing the exact location.

During excavations carried out as part of the restoration work on Notre-Dame, archaeologists from the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap) found two anthropomorphic lead sarcophagi at the crossing of the transept in 2022.

Clues about his life

One of the two sarcophagi, which bore an epitaph, was quickly identified as that of Canon Antoine de La Porte (1627-1710). But the identity of the second person, a man in his thirties, has remained a mystery.

The analyses carried out at the forensic institute of the Toulouse University Hospital have allowed us to learn more about this unknown person: the deformation of his coxal bone indicates that he rode a horse, his sawn skull and fractured sternum show that he was autopsied before being embalmed…

Above all, his bones bear the traces of an extremely pathology rare: cervical bone tuberculosis leading to chronic meningitis.

Robot portrait

A “robot portrait” that corresponds to that of the poet Joachim du Bellay, born in Liré, in Anjou, in 1522.

“He was a skilled horseman, he went from Paris to Rome on horseback, which is no small feat when you have tuberculosis like him. He almost died from it,” detailed Eric Cubrézy, doctor and archaeologist, Tuesday during an Inrap press conference.

The poems and correspondence of the great Renaissance poet refer to his deafness and headaches, two signs of chronic meningitis, noted Mr. Cubrézy, who also found traces of his autopsy.

“There are still doubts”

During his short life, Du Bellay spent several years in Rome with his uncle the cardinal, where nostalgia for the "sweetness of Anjou" inspired his most famous sonnet, "Heureux qui comme Ulysse". In 1557, the cardinal, former bishop of Paris, sent him back to the French capital to take care of his affairs. It was there that he died on the night of January 1-2, 1560 at the age of 37.

The family of the author of "Regrets" asked that he be buried in the Saint-Crépin chapel of Notre-Dame. But in 1758, during work, his tomb was not found there.

Its location at the crossing of the transept could be explained by a temporary burial that became permanent, due to quarrels with the chapter of canons of Notre-Dame, or by a transfer of the coffin in 1569 after the publication of his complete works, according to M. Cubrézy.

“There are still doubts” on the identity of the person resting in this sarcophagus, however, Christophe Besnier, one of the people responsible for the excavations at Notre-Dame, has tempered his position, citing in particular "the analysis of isotopes" which "shows that we are dealing with a person who lived in the Paris region or in the Rhône-Alpes region until she was ten years old".

"The fact that her tomb was not found during the excavations at Saint-Crépin does not does not mean that it is not there. I am waiting for the results of all the studies that are underway, in particular one that will allow us to know his age (of the deceased, Editor's note) to the nearest year”, said the archaeologist.

The excavations carried out at Notre-Dame after the fire of April 15, 2019 have led to other discoveries. Archaeologists have notably unearthed numerous elements of the old rood screen, a stone gallery decorated with statues, which formed a sort of barrier and separated the liturgical choir from the nave and the faithful until its destruction in the 18th century.

More than 700 fragments present their original polychromy, whereas until now almost nothing remained of the initial painted decoration of Notre-Dame, which is scheduled to reopen in early December.