PEIRESC, NICHOLAS CLAUDE FABRI DE (158o 1637), French archaeologist, naturalist, scholar and promoter of learning, was born on Dec. 1, 158o, at Beaugensier, Provence. In tended by his father for the law he early showed a preference for the study of antiquities, and from 1599 to 16o2 travelled in Italy visiting the museums and galleries, meeting and debating with the learned men of the universities—among them Galileo—and study ing for his legal degree, which he took at Aix in 1604. In the fol lowing year he succeeded his uncle as senator for Provence, and shortly after visited England, having interviews with King James I., Camden, Selden, William Harvey, and John Barclay (qq.v.).
Apart from his very voluminous private correspondence no writ ings of Peiresc's are known; but, owing both to his great erudition and his liberality in lending scholars books and in allowing them access to his collections of coins, medals and other antiquities, his influence on the humanism and learning of the early 17th century was very great. It was largely due to him that Barclay's Argenis (see BARCLAY, JOHN) was published in Paris (1621) shortly after its author's death : he assisted in editing Duchesne's Historiae Nor mannorum scriptores antiqui (1619), and was mainly responsible for the publication of Nicholas Bergier's L'Histoire des grands chemins de l'Empire Romain (1622). The astronomers Pierre Gas sendi, Grotius, Thomas Campanella, Maria Mersenne and William Camden, were all indebted in various ways to him.
Peiresc was made abbe of the monastery of Guistres in 1618, and as senator was a judge of the parlement of Aix, the highest court for Provence. He was one of the earliest scholars to realize the importance of numismatics to historical research, and as evidence of his wide interests it may be mentioned that he seems to have introduced the Angora cat to Europe, and eider-down quilts and many exotic plants—including tulips—into France, and was the first to verify by experiment Harvey's discovery of the circulation of the blood. He died at Aix on June 24, BismooRAPnY.—Pierre Gassendi's N. C. Fabricii de Peiresc vita (Paris, 1641) was translated into English by W. Rand and published as The Mirrour of true nobility and gentility, etc. (1657) ; Peiresc's cor respondence with Rubens has been edited by M. Rooses (6 vols., Ant werp, 1887-1909) and his general correspondence by Ph. Tamizey de Larroque (7 vols. ; Collection de Documents inedits sur l'histoire de France, ze serie, 1888-98). See also Ph. Tamizey de Larroque and A. Moultet, Autour de Peiresc (Aix-en-Provence, 1898) ; L. V. Delisle, Un grand amateur francais (Toulouse, 1889) ; and C. T. Hagberg Wright, Nicholas Fabri de Peiresc (Roxburghe club, 1926, bibl.).