Grave · 1918
Grave of Joséphin Péladan, Cimetière des Batignolles
Address · Cimetière des Batignolles, 8, rue Saint-Just, 75017 Paris (6e division)
Metro · Porte de Clichy (13, RER C) / Brochant (13)
Today · Free access. Municipal cemetery, free access during opening hours.
The story
The Cimetière des Batignolles, opened in 1833 in the northwest of Paris, is now squeezed between the boulevard périphérique and the Épinettes district. Less visited than Père-Lachaise or Montmartre, it nevertheless holds many graves of writers and artists, including Verlaine, André Breton and Édouard Vuillard. It takes its name from the former commune of Batignolles, annexed to Paris in 1860. The entrance is on rue Saint-Just, and a posted map helps you find your way between the divisions.
Joséphin Péladan (1858-1918), born in Lyon, had proclaimed himself “Sâr”, a title of Assyrian origin, and sought to restore an Idealist and Catholic art through his novels, his plays and his Salons. After the Salons ended in 1897, he went on writing, separated from his first wife and lived more quietly. Churton notes that he died at 60 in Neuilly-sur-Seine in 1918, after eating spoiled food. He left a large body of work.
Churton publishes a photograph of his grave among the book's plates. The 6th division is indicated by the cemetery's lists of burials; it is advisable to ask for the map at the entrance. The place offers a sober counterpoint to the splendor of the Salons de la Rose+Croix. It is advisable to check opening hours before visiting. The grave is modest compared with the man's theatrical reputation. The cemetery is quiet.
To be checked · Division given by the list of burials (French Wikipedia); exact location of the grave not verified, marker placed at the center of the cemetery.