A sculptor of allegorical figures, he worked for the Tuileries and the Hôtel de Ville, which the Commune swept away: part of his work burned with them. Three of his sculptures left for the Chicago exhibition in 1893, the year of his death; he did not see them there.
The story
Born in Paris on 8 May 1831, Augustin Jean Moreau — who would sign himself Moreau-Vauthier — entered the École des beaux-arts in 1850, in the studio of Armand Toussaint. He made his Salon debut in 1857 and specialised in the allegorical and mythological figure, the genre then most in demand from the public commissions of the Second Empire.
His work was that of a decorator of monuments: he carved for the churches of Saint-Bernard and Saint-Joseph, for the palais des Tuileries and for the Hôtel de Ville of Paris. The Tuileries would burn in 1871, and the Hôtel de Ville with them: part of his work disappeared with the Commune, as did that of many sculptors of his generation.
In 1893 three of his sculptures were shown at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago — the great world showcase of official art. He did not see them there: he died in Paris on 17 January of that same year.
The grave in Division 14 is a family one, and it is also a dynasty of artists. His two sons lie in it: Louis Victor Charles Moreau-Vauthier (1857-1924), painter and writer, and Gabriel Moreau-Vauthier (1871-1936), sculptor — the only one of the three to whom the stone gives a title, “statuaire”.
The inscriptions cover close to a century and a half, from Jean Charles Vauthier (1798-1868) to Geneviève Moreau-Vauthier, who died in 1986. One of them is a double date that speaks two wars: “À la mémoire de Jean Paul MOREAU-VAUTHIER, mort pour la France, 9 juin 1917, 9 juin 1942” — two men of the same family fallen on the same June day, twenty-five years apart.
The grave
A family grave under the heading “Famille MOREAU-VAUTHIER”, whose inscriptions span nearly a century and a half, from Jean Charles Vauthier (1798-1868) to Geneviève Moreau-Vauthier (1915-1986). Three artists rest there: the sculptor Augustin, his son Louis Victor Charles (1857-1924), painter and writer, and his son Gabriel (1871-1936), the only one given a title — “statuaire”, statuary. One line tells of two wars: “À la mémoire de Jean Paul MOREAU-VAUTHIER, mort pour la France, 9 juin 1917, 9 juin 1942” — to the memory of Jean Paul Moreau-Vauthier, died for France, 9 June 1917, 9 June 1942.
On site, do not miss
The inscription “mort pour la France, 9 juin 1917, 9 juin 1942” — died for France, 9 June 1917, 9 June 1942: two dates twenty-five years apart, to the day. And the word “statuaire”, statuary, which the stone grants to the son Gabriel — but not to the father.
Visitors' questions
Where is Augustin Moreau-Vauthier's grave?
In Division 14, carrefour du Grand Rond, first row, under a family grave marked “Famille MOREAU-VAUTHIER”. His two sons, the painter Louis Victor Charles and the sculptor Gabriel, lie there as well.
Claude DelvincourtWhat did Augustin Moreau-Vauthier carve?
Allegorical and mythological figures, for the churches of Saint-Bernard and Saint-Joseph, for the palace of the Tuileries and for the Hôtel de Ville of Paris. The last two buildings burned in 1871, and part of his work went with them.
Albert BartholoméWere his works shown abroad?
They were: three of his sculptures were at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893, the great American world's fair. He died on 17 January that year, and never saw them displayed.
Alexandre FalguièreWhat is the most striking inscription on the grave?
A double date: “À la mémoire de Jean Paul MOREAU-VAUTHIER, mort pour la France, 9 juin 1917, 9 juin 1942”, died for France. Two deaths in action in the same family, twenty-five years apart, to the day — 1917, then 1942.
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