Coatroom

This room houses the very first gallery of portraits of professors. These 59 paintings, most of which were created in the^17th century, depict distinguished chancellors, deans, professors, and surgeons. Some of the figures, likely painted after the fact, date back to the University’s earliest days. The physicians wear their dark red academic gowns (which lacked ermine trim prior to the^18th century), while the barber-surgeons are distinguished by their black gowns.

Here we will look for the famous medieval physicians, Arnaud de Villeneuve and Gui de Chauliac, after whom hospitals in Montpellier are named. The former introduced the Arab still to Europe and was the first physician to propose the use of alcohol for medical purposes to treat wounds. The latter synthesized all the surgical knowledge of the time, including Arab innovations, and produced a surgical textbook that served as a reference until the^17th century. This *Grande Chirurgie* by Gui de Chauliac, or *Guidon*, was translated into several languages, including Occitan, a version of which is preserved in the Faculty library. It features one of the very first graphic depictions of a human dissection. In 1340, the Faculty of Montpellier became the first known institution to date to legally formalize dissections in an academic setting, with the approval of the bishop.

While one might also look for well-known Renaissance physicians, such as Rabelais and Rondelet (immortalized as the physician Rondibilis in the Adventures of Panurge and Pantagruel), Nostradamus cannot be found. Yet he enrolled at the Faculty in 1529. Two enrollment records are archived at the Faculty, one month apart, the first of which was crossed out by Rondelet, the student leader. The reason was that Nostradamus had allegedly spoken ill of the town’s doctors and had previously received training as an apothecary, which was prohibited at the time for those wishing to become physicians… While there are documents today proving that Nostradamus did indeed practice medicine, particularly in the region, we have nevertheless not yet been able to formally locate his diploma (lost archives or unfinished studies?).

All of these student enrollment records are preserved in the Faculty’s archives. They bear witness to a part of human history that spans more than 800 years. Since December¹, 2025, these archives, along with other documents related to medical education in Montpellier dating back to the^12th century, have been officially nominated forinclusion in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register. This nomination is supported by the French government and led by the Faculty of Medicine and the University of Montpellier, the City and Metropolitan Area of Montpellier, the Departmental Archives, and the Department of Hérault.

Even today, new doctors come to this room to fill out and sign the thesis register after their defense, thereby continuing the tradition of archiving the work of Montpellier’s medical community.