Statue de Daubenton

The statue commemorates Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton, a pioneering French naturalist who served as the first director of the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle. He spent his career transforming the royal cabinet of curiosities into a rigorous scientific institution. Beyond his work in anatomy and mineralogy, he is remembered for his practical contributions to French agriculture, specifically his successful efforts to introduce merino sheep to the country. He dedicated his life to the systematic study of nature, earning him the nickname of the nestor of naturalists among his peers. You are standing near the site where he was laid to rest, within the grounds of the garden he helped shape.