Anglais

(Moulding - the original in white marble is kept in the collection of the Museum of Béziers)

This Roman statue is still shrouded in mystery: we still don't know who it represents, especially as the original has no head! (Note that the one added to it does not have the right proportions...)

The classical posture and the toga suggest an imperial representation; it could therefore be Octavian Augustus, founder of the Roman colony of Béziers in 36 BC.

The statue is mentioned in 1348 under the name of P. Pézuc, which could come from a Roman inscription that has now disappeared.

The name of the valiant captain Montpézuc, who prevented the army of the Black Prince from entering the town during the Hundred Years' War, is also mentioned.

He became the embodiment of courage and resistance to the invader, and was adulated by the crowd during the Caritats festivals in the 17th century.

But Pépézuc could simply be a nickname linked to the Occitan expression pè pesuc (heavy foot) which designates a lame person, since poor Pépézuc is missing half a leg!