Reverse : -

Diameter : 40 mm or 1,5 inch

Weight : 35 grams

Metal : lead or similar alloy, patinated on obverse

François Rabelais (born between 1483 and 1494; died 1553) was a French writer who has been called the first great French prose author. A humanist of the French Renaissance and Greek scholar, he attracted opposition from both Protestant theologian John Calvin and from the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Though in his day he was best known as a physician, scholar, diplomat, and Catholic priest, later he became better known as a satirist for his depictions of the grotesque, and for his larger-than-life characters.

Living in the religious and political turmoil of the Reformation, Rabelais treated the great questions of his time in his novels. Rabelais admired Erasmus and like him is considered a Christian humanist. He was critical of medieval scholasticism and lampooned the abuses of powerful princes and popes.

Rabelais is widely known for the first two volumes relating the childhoods of the giants Gargantua and Pantagruel written in the style of bildungsroman; his later works—the Third Book (which prefigures the philosophical novel) and the Fourth Book are considerably more erudite in tone. His literary legacy gave rise to the word Rabelaisian, an adjective meaning "marked by gross robust humor, extravagance of caricature, or bold naturalism."

The Galerie métallique des grands hommes français was born in 1816 from the will of Louis Bérard (1783-1859), who was a French politician, engineer, industrialist and senior civil servant. The political context of 1816 was that of the Restoration: after Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo (1815), defeated France returned to a monarchical regime. This political context, but also the personality of Louis Bérard were obviously not without consequences on the nature of the Galerie métal des grands hommes français.

Although his father was guillotined in 1794 for having sided with the king, Louis Bérard was a fervent defender of liberal ideas. He served Napoleon faithfully, which earned him a temporary removal from the Council of State in 1815 before being recalled in 1817 and re-exiting it again in 1820. It should be noted that Bérard was not only a liberal, but also, subsequently, a very resolute opponent of King Charles X. Although his political life was very turbulent, Bérard was always a great servant of the State in the manner of the Ancien Régime as well as a fervent patriot.

In addition to his political commitments, Bérard was a particularly active industrialist and the creation of the series of medals on the great French men shows his dynamism. However, this activity as a "medalist" was for him only an activity of prestige, honor and patriotism. He certainly earned much more income from his Gas Lighting Company or his forges in Alès than from the medals of the great French men. The Galerie Métallique was born in 1816, in the midst of the monarchical restoration. The primary idea that presided over the creation of the GMGH was the patriotic idea. Louis Bérard undoubtedly intended to recall a glorious French past after the crushing of France at Waterloo. He wanted to give a reason to be proud to the defeated French.

But, given the political context of the monarchical restoration, it was out of the question to evoke recent political and military glories and Napoleon is the great absentee from the Galerie Métallique. However, his shadow hangs over this series of medals. It should be noted that the kings of France are also absent from the series, which is intended to be more or less apolitical (neither Bonapartist nor royalist): the GMGH is essentially made up of men of science, men of letters and artists.