A French academic is under investigation after allegedly inventing a Nobel-style prize in philology and awarding it to himself, according to reports. Florent Montaclair, from Besançon in eastern France, received the Gold Medal of Philology in 2016 at a ceremony in Paris attended by ministers and Nobel laureates.
Investigators, however, claim that the prize and its awarding body, the so-called International Society of Philology, were entirely fictional creations aimed at boosting Montaclair's academic standing. Philology is the study of language through historical texts.
Montaclair, who taught at the University of Besançon for 20 years, has been suspended indefinitely while prosecutors examine whether any laws were broken. The prosecutor leading the enquiry, Paul-Edouard Lallois, described the case as an unlikely tale that could be from a film.
Timeline of the Fictional Award
The deception unfolded over several months. In 2015, a local newspaper reported that Montaclair had been shortlisted for a Nobel Prize. By December 2015, reports claimed he had won. In June 2016, a ceremony was held in Paris where Montaclair awarded himself the medal. Later that year, he presented an honorary medal to US philosopher Noam Chomsky in Brussels.
The International Society's website listed laureates dating back to 1967, including Umberto Eco, but its amateur design raised suspicions.
Fake Credentials and Fabricated University
Montaclair also claimed a doctorate from the University of Philology and Education in Lewes, Delaware, an institution that does not exist. Lallois stated that the gold medal for philology was a pure creation of Montaclair, who awarded it to himself via the society and university, which only exists on a website.
The fraud began to unravel when Montaclair named Romanian philologist Eugen Simion as the next recipient. Romanian journalists investigated and exposed the fraud in 2019, though it went unnoticed in France until last year. The scandal resurfaced when Montaclair was due to chair a debate on fake news, and colleagues recalled the Romanian reports.
Police Investigation
When police searched his home in February, Montaclair reportedly said, "I suppose it's about the medal." He admitted ordering it from a jeweller for €250. He defended himself, saying it was not a con but an attempt to set up a new distinction in academia that failed.
The prosecutor's office must now decide whether inventing the honours artificially boosted Montaclair's career. If not, proving criminal wrongdoing may be difficult. Montaclair maintains that creating a worthless award is not against the law and insists that local media wrongly described it as a Nobel.
