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From the beginning of the 19th century to the end of the 20th century, the imaginary of the bagnes became anchored in French popular culture. Whether they were port then colonial, « correction » structures for minors or penitentiary establishments for punished soldiers, what is commonly known as « bagnes » touched, in total, hundreds of thousands of French people. This resulted in images and mythologies, traces left by journalists and novelists, songwriters and playwrights. Without forgetting drawing and engraving, photography, and then cinema, all of which contributed to the creation of a rich and complex body of work. A Whole that it's possible today to study, decipher and analyze by rediscovering everything that has contributed to the creation of a long memory with tragic overtones.