A Napoleon Bonaparte bicorne will be the highlight of an online auction at Sotheby's, between September 15 and 22, on the occasion of the bicentenary of the emperor's death.
The starting price is estimated between 400,000 and 600,000 euros, the famous British auction house said in a statement released on Wednesday.
One of Napoleon's hats could fetch € 600,000 at auction https://t.co/czcCoLudOC
- The Guardian (@guardian) July 15, 2021
Worn by the emperor during his victorious campaign of 1807
Only 19 bicorns that belonged to Napoleon Bonaparte have been authenticated in the world.
Experts believe that the one sold by Sotheby's was worn by the emperor during his victorious campaign of 1807 (Prussia and Poland) and during the signing of the Tilsit treaties between Napoleon and the Russian tsar Alexander I.
Acquired in 1814, the year of his abdication, by Sir Michael Shaw Stewart, a Scottish political figure, the cocked hat was until then in the family generation after generation.
The celebration of the bicentennial of Napoleon's death on May 5, 1821 on the island of Saint Helena aroused controversy in France.
Its defenders praise the military strategist and the instigator of a "modern state".
His slavers note the hundreds of thousands of dead from his military campaigns and his decision to reestablish slavery.
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