Geoffroy d’Ault du Mesnil (1842-1921) y las colecciones de los museos de Abbeville (Somme, Francia)del nacimiento de la prehistoria a la consolidación de los estudios sobre el Paleolítico

Abstract

The period between the middle of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century witnesses the birth and progressive consolidation of Prehistory as a scientific discipline. In France, the creation of private collections and the integration of prehistoric studies within scientific societies leads to the formation of assemblages that need to be classified, managed and displayed. In this process, the figure of Geoffroy d’Ault du Mesnil (1842-1921), one of the key names to understand the transition from an amateur discipline to a genuine scientific prehistory, seems to have been completely forgotten. In this paper we will focus on one of the fundamental, albeit unknown, aspects of his career: his experience as a museographist and his role in the reorganisation of the collections of Boucher de Perthes and the Abbeville museums. Through this guiding thread, we will discuss his vision of prehistory and how his ideas contributed to shaping the renewed vision of Paleolithic studies that will operate at the beginning of the 20th century.