The BNF (French National Library), near our hotels, holds the archives of the venerable Société de géographie, and to celebrate its 200-year anniversary they are showing nearly 200 exhibits from these archives (together with some loaned pieces) for an exhibition all about exploration in the 19th century, a time full of discovery and adventure…

Founded in Paris in December 1821, the Société de géographie has supported many voyages of discovery, aiding research and publishing the results.

These trips have resulted in numerous sketchbooks, photos and maps, as well as a lot of objects and specimens collected on-site. The new exhibition at the BNF puts them on show and spotlights the women and men that explored or worked as guides or interpreters in order to make these voyages a success.

It’s difficult for us to realise now, but exploration in the 19th century was a real exploit – often, explorers had no idea of what awaited them, and there was no map. Explorers were the superheroes of the day, dedicating their lives to expanding humanity’s knowledge through their bravery in dangerous terrain (a subject that soon became a staple of literature and film).

The exhibition attempts to show the reality of these voyages through immersive reconstitutions. You’ll be able to se a Parisian geographer in his office, an explorer camp in the middle of the Sahara and even witness a conference and film showing as a member of the Société de géographie!

For the exhibition, the BNF has organised guided visits (in French, 3€ in addition to the entrance price), conferences, film showings, a manuscript reading… All the info can be found here.

A catalogue of the exhibition is also available (240 pages, 120 illustrations, 29€ here at amazon.fr.

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The Visages de l’exploration au 19ème siècle – du mythe à l’histoire (The Face of Exploration in the 19th Century – myth and reality) is at the BnF (here) from 10th May-21st August 2022

Open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-7pm and 1-7pm Sundays

Admission: 9€ / 7€

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Une publication partagée par Bibliothèque nationale France (@labnf)