Jules Verne’s tomb
Jules Verne’s tomb is one of the most spectacular in La Madeleine Cemetery.
Jules Verne died on 24th March 1905, and was buried on 28th March. His tomb initially featured a simple cement plaque bearing the words “Jules Verne 1905”. The family then commissioned a decorative structure to go on top of it. The sculptor Albert Roze had known Jules Verne since the 1890’s. He had already produced a marble bust of the novelist and, on his death, modelled a medallion, a type of death mask. This is now on display at the House of Jules Verne.
Roze designed a plaster sculpture entitled “Vers l’immortalité et l’éternelle jeunesse” (“Towards Immortality and Eternal Youth”), which depicted the writer lifting his own tombstone, emerging from the grave and stretching his arm skywards. An initial version of this allegory of immortality and literary glory could be seen at the Salon des Artistes Français (Society of French Artists) Exhibition in 1907, before a marble version was made and placed on the novelist’s tomb the same year. The monument, which is reminiscent of temple architecture, with its pediment and columns, was designed by the architect Edmond Douillet.
This tomb has been a listed Historical Monument since 1995.
