P. L. Jacob

Born in Paris on February 27, 1806, Paul Lacroix became best known by the pseudonym P. L. Jacob or Bibliophile Jacob. He was a French author and journalist with a deep fascination for libraries, rare books, and the literary past.

Lacroix wrote widely on French history, manners, costume, and everyday life, especially in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. He also edited older French writers and built a reputation as a learned, energetic popularizer who could make scholarly subjects feel colorful and readable.

In 1855, he became connected with the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal in Paris, where he served as a librarian and continued his literary work. He died in Paris on October 16, 1884, leaving behind a large body of historical and bibliographical writing that still shapes how many readers first encounter the world he loved.