Description of the thesis topic

This PhD project explores how the Renaissance—an era of knowledge synthesis and reconfiguration—laid the groundwork for investigating the origins of life and planetary formation. It focuses on the role of graphic media, broadly defined, in shaping these inquiries. This includes the production of images (drawings, engravings, maps) and textual strategies used to structure and communicate knowledge.
The project focuses on the lapidary imaginary, in which stones, during the 15th and 16th centuries, were imbued with cosmogonic and biogenetic meanings, contributing to an in-depth reading of the “Book of Nature.”

At the heart of this investigation is a singular stone: the Ensisheim meteorite, which fell in 1492 in Alsace, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. As the first observed meteorite fall in Europe, it is among the best-documented cases, both textually (pamphlets, diplomatic letters) and visually (engravings, illuminations, paintings). Although its extraterrestrial nature remained incomprehensible at the time, it bears witness to the profoundly interdisciplinary understanding of a celestial phenomenon that fascinated princes, theologians, humanists, publishers, and artists.
This meteorite stands at the crossroads of discourses on stones and the living world, where theology, philosophy, and natural history intersect with magical and alchemical thought, empirical and scientific discourse. Artistic works and images emerge as privileged repositories of these narratives.

Four research axes, each based on a different “facet” of the Ensisheim meteorite, will address the core research questions from multiple perspectives: 1. Stones Fallen from the Sky ; 2. Collecting and Curating the Living ; Mineral Geneses ; 4. A Graphic History of the Earth ;

By tackling aspects that have been overlooked by the history of science and neglected by art history, this PhD dissertation aims to enrich historiography on the Renaissance. On a theoretical level, it will provide new insights into the creative and visual processes involved in the construction of scientific knowledge. On a practical level, it seeks to offer analytical tools for better understanding how graphic representations lie at the heart of these processes.

The PhD candidate will:
● Conduct research in archives, libraries, and museum collections.
● Work on translation and editorial tasks.
● Prepare and submit at least one research article to a peer-reviewed journal and present their work at a minimum of three academic conferences.
● Contribute to the research (iconographic studies, archival work, bibliography), initiatives, and outreach activities (seminars, symposia, lectures, lecture series) of the ARVIGRAPH Chair and the GRAPHORIGINS project.
● Write blog posts for Cosmospectio, the research blog documenting the work conducted within the ARVIGRAPH Chair and the GRAPHORIGINS project.

Work Context

The PhD contract is part of two research projects:
1. The art history research project “Spectacles célestes. Images, savoirs et croyances sur le cosmos à la première modernité” (50% funded), affiliated with the CNRS Junior Professorship ARVIGRAPH, led by Florian Métral, art historian (CNRS/Centre André-Chastel).
2. The interdisciplinary research project “The Graphy of Origins. From the Ensisheim Meteorite (1492) and the Life of Stones in the Renaissance” (50% funded), awarded in 2025 as part of the PEPR 'Origins'. The latter project is also directed by Florian Métral (CNRS/Centre André-Chastel) in collaboration with the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle (MNHN), Paris, represented by Matthieu Gounelle, Professor at the Muséum and curator of the national meteorite collection.

The PhD dissertation will be carried out under a co-supervision agreement between these two institutions: Centre André-Chastel (Ecole doctorale 124) and Muséum national d'histoire naturelle . The PhD candidate will be supervised by Florian Métral, Junior Professor (CNRS/Centre André-Chastel) and Matthieu Gounelle, Professor (Muséum national d'histoire naturelle)

The candidate will primarily work at the Centre André-Chastel (Sorbonne Université-CNRS-MC), which is the largest French research center in art history, with over fifty permanent members and more than one hundred doctoral students, offering a particularly dynamic academic environment. Based at the Galerie Colbert, the Centre André-Chastel also provides opportunities to establish connections with various partner institutions.

Additionally, the candidate will work at the Institute of Mineralogy, Materials Physics, and Cosmo-Chemistry (IMPMC) and within the geology collections of the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle

Constraints and risks

The position requires research in archives, libraries, and museum collections, mainly located in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, and Switzerland.

Additional Information

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