Agde: an incredible investigation around the portrait of Emmanuel Laurens

The portrait of Emmanuel Laurens was found in the archives of a former servant. CAMON COLLECTION

C’est en 2016 que l’on a eu la confirmation que la photographie qui illustrait depuis des années les publications concernant Emmanuel Laurens était erronée. FONDS PIERRE LATTES

Après trente ans de recherches, d’erreurs, de tâtonnements, on a enfin retrouvé une photo authentifiée du bâtisseur du château. Bérengère Bonnaud, archiviste, revient sur cette découverte.

Everything has been said and written about Emmanuel Laurens. His fabulous heritage, his escapades, his castle built at the beginning of the 20th century, his sad end too, with only around ten people, including five employees of the estate, who attended his funeral in 1959, when he was not ;rsquo;had no descendants.

Three photos authenticated when he was old

A strange fate, well documented, with one exception: for decades, no one had in their possession a photo of Emmanuel Laurens in the prime of his life . "We know of three that were taken when he was old, including one with his partner Louise Blot in 1950, but younger, nothing", explains Bérengère Bonnaud, from the municipal archives of Agde.

The mistake with Eugène Dufour

Well, nothing, that’s not entirely accurate. Because for years, a photo from the personal archives of Pierre Lattes, a leading authority on local history, was used to illustrate the rare articles on Emmanuel Laurens, whom he himself had known. "Until the day, in 2016, we heard that Emmanuel Laurens was not the man in the photo, but rather Eugène Dufour, the decorator of the château’ quot;, continues Bérengère Bonnaud. "This is where we really entered into a historical investigation. We looked at all the photos again and every time we thought Emmanuel Laurens was in them, there was always a shadow, an arm, hiding his face. Impossible to find irrefutable proof that it is indeed him."

Other fine connoisseurs of the file, such as Laurent Félix and Hélène Palouzié, authors in particular of the excellent work "Château Laurens, la splendor rediscovered", also got their hands on travel photos of Emmanuel Laurens, but he was not in them, we think. So what face did he really have ?

Proximity with former mayor Jean Bedos

In 2019, archives submitted by the family of Jean Bedos, former mayor of Agde from 1900 to 1919 and close friend of Emmanuel Laurens, were also studied. "We imagine very well that the two men are together in several photos, but no annotation, inscription, confirms this, even if there were a bunch of matching clues&quot ;, continues Bérengère Bonnaud, who was already studying the subject thirty years ago, in 1994, the year of the purchase of Château Laurens by the city of Agde, while she was still a student. This is how historical research goes, when it is carried out seriously: it sometimes turns into a real enigma.

The archives of a castle servant

It’s a helping hand from destiny that enlightens the researchers. While the Agathois Historical Research Group and the municipal archives service were preparing the day of conferences on Château Laurens last October, the great-grandson of Élodie Granier, a servant d’Emmanuel Laurens, who lives in Tarbes, leaves at the reception of the castle a pile of documents which have passed down through the generations. Postcards, some vintage photos. "But this gentleman left us neither his address nor his telephone number. We managed to find her through her bridge club!" Luckily, our man has a second home in Hérault. "So we went to see him last spring with Christine Delpous-Darnige (history teacher at the Agde high school, Editor's note)", retraces Bérengère Bonnaud. "He showed us several photo albums and at the turn of a page, our eye wandered ;rsquo;is illuminated: we were certain that it was Emmanuel Laurens." But once again, despite clear progress in the investigation, there is nothing to incontestably prove it. Patience.

Gerschel, the photographer to the stars

"One week after the study day on Château Laurens (last October 20, Editor's note), M.Camon contacts us again and tells us that while searching his family home, he found new photos. So we went back." And not for nothing.

The owner presents them with a print signed by the hand of one of the greatest photographers of the time, Charles Gerschel, who had notably immortalized Verlaine, Colette and Sarah Bernhardt. "We were certain that it was Emmanuel Laurens but in addition, on the back of the photo, we could read: “Mr. Laurent (with a t), from the Château d’Agde”, with the same handwriting as the photographer's signature." The epilogue of a long investigation.

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