Rare bicorne hat worn by Napoleon Bonaparte before his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo sells for £1.7m at auction in Paris
- The historic hat was auctioned alongside more of his personal artefacts
One of the rare iconic bicorne hats worn by Napoleon Bonaparte before his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo has sold for £1.7million at an auction in Paris.
The black felt hat, valued between 600,000 and 800,000 euros (£525,000 and £700,000) went up for auction today.
The historic item was auctioned alongside more of his personal artefacts in Fontainebleau, outside Paris, from a collection of memorabilia.
Other history-laden items in the sale of industrialist Jean-Louis Noisiez's collection of Napoleonic items include a silver plate looted from Napoleon's carriage after his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
It also includes a wooden vanity case he owned, with razors, a silver toothbrush, scissors and other personal belongings.
One of the rare iconic bicorne hats worn by Napoleon Bonaparte before his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo has sold for £1.7million at an auction in Paris
The black felt hat was valued between 600,000 and 800,000 euros (£525,000 and £700,000)
The historic hat was auctioned alongside more of his personal artefacts in Fontainebleau
But the faded black felt hat is the star piece. While other officers customarily wore their hats with the wings facing front to back, Napoleon wore his with the ends pointing toward his shoulders.
That style – known as 'en bataille,' in battle, in French – made it easier for his troops to spot the military general and statesman in combat.
He owned about 120 bicorne hats over the years, but only 20 are known to remain.
Jean-Pierre Osenat, head of the Osenat auction house, said: 'For people who are into Napoleonic souvenirs, it's the holy grail to have a hat.
'There's about 20 left that are authentic and about 15 of them are kept in museums, so there's about four or five that are in collectors' hands.'
The hat on sale was first recovered by Col. Pierre Baillon, a quartermaster under Napoleon and one of his comrades in arms in many battles, including Waterloo, according to the auctioneers.
The hat made it easier for his troops to spot the military general and statesman in combat. Pictured: Digitally restored vector painting of Napoleon Bonaparte on his horse
The hat then passed through many hands before Noisiez acquired it. The entrepreneur spent more than half a century assembling his collection of Napoleonic memorabilia, firearms, swords and coins before his death in 2022.
An engraving on a circular silver plate valued at 20,000 to 30,000 euros (£17,500 to £26,300) says it was taken from Napoleon's carriage at Waterloo.
The auctioneers say it was part of a haul of 400 pounds of silverware that was looted during the French retreat and shared among soldiers on the winning side.
Knife and fork used by Napoleon sold for 11,000 pounds. The cutlery was made by silversmith Martin-Guillaume Biennais in Paris in 1810
The cutlery is emblazoned with the General's initial 'N' in a laurel wreath
A mahogany vanity case bearing Napoleon's imperial coat of arms contains tools he would have needed to keep up appearances while campaigning, including a mirror, combs, tweezers, a shaving brush and other items.
Its estimated sale price is 40,000 to 60,000 euros (£35,000 to £53,584).
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12767773/napoleon-bonaparte-signature-bicorne-hat-sell-paris-auction.html
Napoleon Bonaparte, later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a Corsican-born French military commander and political leader
Marie Antoinette was executed in 1793 after a trial in which she was accused of incest with her son. Later Napoleon came to power.
Napoleon
Napoleon was responsible for thousands of executions
Napoleon Bonaparte at the Moscow Kremlin, Russia, watching the great fire of Moscow
When the Russians refused to surrender, Napoleon and his starving men were forced to retreat West amidst the country's fierce winter
It was one of the greatest military catastrophes in history. Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812 cost France more than 500,000 men and left the French emperor facing the beginning of the end of his reign. Above: A depiction of Napoleon at the head of the French army as it retreats from Moscow
Napoleon was defeated by the Duke of Wellington at Waterloo in 1815
Men dressed as soldiers fight in a recreation of the battle of Waterloo
A portrait of Arthur Wellesley, the First Duke of Wellington, in military uniform. He served as Prime Minister twice, was a skilled horseman, spoke at least three languages and read avidly
More than two centuries after his death, the French still worship Napoleon. Parisian streets and stations are still named after his battles, while the Arc de Triomphe (pictured), built to celebrate his victory at Austerlitz, remains one of the great symbols of French patriotism.
Napoleon Bonaparte died on May 5, 1821 on the remote Atlantic island of Saint Helena, where he had been in exile for six years following his surrender to the British navy
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