Zacharie Le Rouzic

Zacharie Le Rouzic (born 24 December 1864, Carnac; died 15 December 1939, Carnac) was a French archaeologist and prehistorian, who devoted himself mainly to the study and preservation of megalithic sites in Morbihan, Brittany; he was also a writer on the folklore of the Carnac district.

Childhood

The last child in a family of nine whose father was a rag merchant, Zacharie Le Rouzic, despite his humble origins, attended the convent school in Carnac until the age of 10. Carnac having become a famous seaside town, he met foreign holidaymakers there as a child, such as the painter Théodore Valerio, whose artistic equipment he carried during his walks, and the archaeologist James Miln, who came to study the numerous megalithic sites of Carnac. Noting Le Rouzic's interest in his work, Miln taught him how to collect and classify the discovered pottery and Le Rouzic thus became his main collaborator, assisting in all his excavations.

Career

After Miln's death in 1881 Le Rouzic became at the age of eighteen the caretaker of the , founded in 1882 by Robert Miln to present his brother James's collections to the public. After completing his military service in the Navy, he returned to his position at the museum, where he led tours during the tourist season, an activity he continued until his death. From 1887 to 1895, he enriched the museum's collections by buying finds from farmers in their fields and he began to systematically record the megalithic sites in the surrounding area, but without undertaking any excavations because he did not have the necessary financial means. His activity was encouraged by , president of the and excavator of several Morbihan sites (Carnac, Locmariaquer). In 1889, Closmadeuc entrusted him with the counting of the menhirs of the Carnac alignments. The municipal council then added his name to the museum's name. From 1927 onwards Le Rouzic, being ill, undertook no major excavation projects but only restorations of monuments.

In 1933, he was appointed correspondent and then member of the historical monuments commission for Morbihan. Between 1911 and 1938 he contributed to the registration and classification in the supplementary inventory of historical monuments of around 120 dolmens and menhirs, and to the excavation and restoration of around 130 monuments. In 1935 he secured the return to Carnac of part of the collections of Paul du Châtellier which had been bought by the National Archaeological Museum, including objects from the excavations of , Arthur Martin and Louis Le Pontois. Many of his re-erections of the fallen stones in the Carnac alignments are now considered to have been wrongly placed. In 1937–1938, his restoration of the , at the request of the commission headed by Abbé Breuil with whom he had an excellent relationship, caused a very significant controversy, first local and then national.

In 1919, he became involved in politics, declaring himself "republican, democrat, secular and anticlerical" and contributed to the creation of the secular school and various secular social works in Carnac. He served as deputy mayor under his cousin Joseph Le Rouzic, and remained in that post until his death in 1939.

Zacharie Le Rouzic published numerous articles in the Bulletin de la Société polymathique du Morbihan and in archaeological journals such as the Bulletin de la Société préhistorique française, the Revue des musées, the Revue pour l'avancement des Sciences, and the Revue archéologique.

Honours

Le Rouzic was created a Chevalier du Légion d'Honneur, an Officier de l'Instruction Publique, and an Officier du Mérite Agricole. He was granted the bronze medal of the , the silver medal of the , and the vermeil medal of the Institute Finisterien des recherches archéologiques. For his war service he was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Médaille Militaire.