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This medal has been minted in 1983 commemorate the French writer
and the journalist in
This medal has been designed by the famous French medalist, G. REVOL.
Lucien
Bodard
(1914–1998) was a French reporter and writer on events in Asia.
av. The
portrait of Lucien Bodard
rv. The symbolic motives of his works
size
– 68 mm (2⅜ “)
weight
– 193.70 gr, (6.83 oz)
metal – bronze, mint patina
Bodard was born on
January 9, 1914 in Chongqing (central China) to the French consul Albert Bodard, who was
stationed several years in China, i.e. in Chongking, Chengdu, Kunming and Shanghai. He grew up with the Chinese
language
and spoke Mandarin fluently as a child. Later
on, he moved to Kunming and Shanghai after his father was
positioned there. Before he reached adolescence, his mother decided to send
Bodard back to
His experience and
knowledge of Asian cultures, mostly Chinese and Vietnamese, gave him a unique
perspective on events that shook the Asian world during the first half of the
twentieth century. In 1944, he began his career as journalist and was sent to the Far East to cover various topics such
as the south-east Asian war and the rise of communist China, First
Indochina war.
He progressively became one of the most famous French war correspondents for
his work during the first French
As he grew older, in
the 1970s, he started writing novels which were essentially based on his
knowledge of Asia, starting with his souvenirs when he was a child in
He has been often
compared to two other famous 20th century French journalists and novelists, Albert
Londres
and Joseph Kessel.