BOISSIER, MARIE-LOUIS-GASTON. - French historian, born at Nîmes on 15 Aug. 1823 and died at Viroflay on 10 June 1908. A keen investigator of classical antiquity, he left learned works which, though not rich in novelties, are noteworthy for their liveliness, elegance, and balance, never weighed down by erudition.
Among his many historical-literary studies, particularly well known are the vivid and clear portraits in Cicero et ses amis (1865), Horace et Virgile (1866), Tacite (1903), and La conjuration de Catilina (1905); while among his historical-religious studies, the fine volumes on La religion romaine d'Anguste aux Antonius (1874) and La fin du paganisme (1891) cannot be forgotten. To archaeology he devoted, among other works, the Promenades archéologiques and the Nouvelles promenades archéologiques, as well as the substantial volume on l'Afrique romaine (1895). Also notable for their psychological insight are his essays on Madame de Sévigné (1887) and Saint-Simon (1892).