René Dussaud

René Dussaud
Dussaud in c. 1920
Born
Elie Pierre René Dussaud

(1868-12-24)24 December 1868
Died17 March 1958(1958-03-17) (aged 89)
Neuilly-sur-Seine, France
OccupationsUniversity professor (1901–1937), Museum curator (1910–1938), Orientalist, Archaeologist and Epigrapher
Employer(s)Louvre Museum (1910–1938), École du Louvre (1910–1937), Collège de France (1910–1938), Paris School of Anthropology (1901–1910)
Organization(s)Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres (1923–1958),
Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium,
British Academy,
Comité des travaux historiques et scientifiques,
Arab Academy of Damascus
SpouseValérie Guérin de Sauville
Signature

René Dussaud (French pronunciation: [ʁəne dyso]; December 24, 1868 – March 17, 1958) was a French Orientalist, archaeologist, and epigrapher. Among his major works are studies on the religion of the Hittites, the Hurrians, the Phoenicians and the Syriacs. He became curator of the Department of Near Eastern Antiquities at the Louvre Museum and a member of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. One notable student was pioneering Jewish archaeologist Judith Marquet-Krause.

Dussaud is known for his support for the theory of the origin of the Semitic alphabet and for him being the leader of the French excavations in the Middle East and one of the founders of the archaeology journal Syria. He has been described as "a director of archaeological awareness".

Glozel controversy

In the late 1920s and at the time René Dussaud was curator at the Louvre, the Glozel affair was a subject of heated controversy. Claude and Émile Fradin who made the discovery of an underground chamber in March 1924 were accused by Dussaud in December 1927 of forgery, after reports suggested that the site with the exception of some pieces was fake. The Fradins filed lawsuit for defamation against Dussaud in January 1928, and Dussaud was convicted of defamation in a trial in 1932.

Bibliography

Bust of Helios found in Tripoli and donated by Dussaud to the Louvre Museum

René Dussaud's books include:

References

  1. ↑ "René Dussaud 1868–1958" (in French). Musée de Glozel. Retrieved January 17, 2009.
  2. ↑ Callaway, Joseph A.; Power, W. J. A.; Bull, Robert J.; Schoonover, Kermit (1965-04-01). "The 1964 'ai (Et-Tell) Excavations". Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research. 178 (178): 13–40. doi:10.2307/1356277. ISSN 0003-097X. JSTOR 1356277. S2CID 164154455.
  3. ↑ "René Dussaud", in Je m'appelle Byblos, Jean-Pierre Thiollet, H & D, 2005, p. 253.
  4. ↑ Gran-Aymerich E.; Gran-Aymerich J. (1984). "Les grands archéologues: René Dussaud". Archéologia: Préhistoire et Archéologie (in French). 188: 71–75.
  5. ↑ "Tribunal correctionnel de la Seine" (PDF) (in French). Musée de Glozel. Retrieved January 31, 2009.