Jane Dieulafoy

Jane Dieulafoy (29 June 1851 – 25 May 1916) was a French archaeologist, explorer, novelist, feminist and journalist. She was the wife of Marcel-Auguste Dieulafoy. She and her husband excavated the Ancient Persian city of Susa and made various discoveries some of which are displayed in the Louvre museum.

Career Jane Dieulafoy was born Jeanne Henriette Magre to a wealthy family of bourgeoisie merchants in Toulouse, France. She studied at the Couvent de l’Assomption d’Auteuil in a suburb of Paris from 1862 to 1870. She married Marcel Dieulafoy in May 1870, at the age of 19. That same year, the Franco-Prussian War began. Marcel volunteered, and was sent to the front. Jane accompanied him, wearing a soldier's uniform and fighting by his side.

With the end of the war, Marcel was employed by the Midi railways, but during the next ten years the Dieulafoys would travel in Egypt and Morocco for archaeological and exploration work. Jane did not keep a record of these journeys. Marcel became increasingly interested in the relationship between Oriental and Western architecture, and in 1879, decided to devote himself to archaeology.

The Dieulafoys first visited Qajar Iran in 1881–1882, and would return twice after that (the last time in 1884). that were published in the travelogue La Perse, la Chaldee, la Susiane, containing 336 lithographs, including fifty portraits of women.

At Susa, the couple found numerous artifacts and friezes, several of which were shipped back to France. One such find is the famous Lion Frieze on display at the Louvre. Two rooms in the museum contain artefacts brought back by the Dieulafoy missions. For her contributions, the French government conferred upon her the title of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1886. The transfer of the found objects to France caused considerable damage to the findings of Iranian archaeological excavations. Jane Dieulafoy says in her memoir about the Apadana Palace in Susa:

After their journeys in Iran, Dieulafoy and her husband spent time traveling in Spain and Morocco between 1888 and 1914. She also wrote two novels: Her first was Parysatis, in 1890, set in ancient Susa. It was later adapted into an opera by Camille Saint-Saëns. Her second, Déchéance, was published in 1897. Marcel volunteered to go to Rabat, Morocco, during World War I, and Jane accompanied him.

While in Morocco, her health began to decline. She contracted amoebic dysentery and was forced to return to France where she died in Pompertuzat in 1916. The childless couple left their home at 12, rue Chardin in Paris to the French Red Cross who continue to operate an office from the building to this day.

Cross-dressing

During her travels abroad, Jane Dieulafoy preferred to dress in men's clothing and to wear her hair short, because it was otherwise difficult for a woman to travel freely in a Muslim country. She had also dressed as a man when she fought alongside Marcel Dieulafoy during the Franco-Prussian War, and she continued to dress in men's clothing when she returned to France. This was against the law in France at the time, but when she returned from the Middle East she received special "permission de travestissement" (English: "permission to crossdress") from the prefect of police. Sweet Boy Dear Wife: Jane Dieulafoy in Persia 1881-1886, Wakefield Press,