In Draguignan, the forecourt of the Museum of Fine Arts has been renamed Octave Tessier

Octave-Tessier, this is now how the forecourt of the Museum of Fine Arts in Draguignan will be named, after the historian born in Marseille in 1825 and who died in Draguignan in 1904).

But who was he? Often overlooked, historians and curators nonetheless actively contribute to the construction of collective memory. As such, the decision to honor Octave Teissier was welcomed before the unveiling of the plaque bearing his name.

"We should welcome the decision to honor this former curator of the museum and library from 1888 until his death in 1904," said Yohan Rimaud, the current curator of the museum, to the public. According to him, Octave Teissier left a lasting mark on the city's cultural history.

During his sixteen years of management, the two institutions, recently moved into new premises after leaving rue Mireur, have experienced real growth.

Under his leadership: reorganization and rigorous classification of the collections, inauguration in 1891 of a new natural history cabinet, acquisitions of works of art, first exhibitions of the museum, and publication of the only exhaustive catalogs of the collections ever produced to date.

An archivist, historian, and journalist originally from Marseille, Teissier never stopped writing. In Draguignan, he made numerous contributions on the city, the department, and its key figures. He is notably responsible for two major studies on the Count of Valbelle and the summer palace of Bishop du Bellay, which remain references to this day.

Engaged citizen

Involved in local life, president of the Society for Scientific and Literary Studies, he also became involved in municipal circles and married a woman from Dracénoise, Mrs. Latil. He could count on the decisive support of Mayor Félicien Clapier and his deputy Mr. Vassal.

Thanks to their support and his own high standards, he gained the trust of the state and private collectors. Among them was Baron Rothschild, who alone made 22 donations to the museum.

Octave Teissier bequeathed several works, engravings and books to the city, perpetuating a tradition of generosity that his descendants would continue.

The figures bear witness to this: between 1,200 and 1,800 visitors per year at the end of the 19th century, in a town of fewer than 10,000 inhabitants. His work was nevertheless continued after his death in 1904 by Edmond Poupé, who in turn became a curator and street neighbor... since one of the adjoining streets bears his name.