Jacquard loom
He was born Lazare Marcus Manassé Bernard (he later switched his first name and last name) in Nîmes on 15 June 1865, the eldest of four sons of Jonas Bernard and Douce Noémie Rouget. This bourgeois family had introduced the Jacquard loom to Toulouse, and founded one of the first (and very successful) textile mills, producing draperies and passementeries. The family was Jewish, and although not very religious, still celebrated the traditional holidays.