A hat belonging to Napoleon Bonaparte when he ruled the French empire in the 19th Century has been sold for €1.9m ($2.1m; £1.7m) at auction in Paris.
The bicorne black beaver felt hat was
valued between €600,000 and €800,000 (£525,850-£701,131).
The person who bought the hat has not
made themselves known.
Historians say the hat was part of his
brand. Wearing it sideways made him recognisable in battle. He owned about 120
bicorne hats over the years.
However only 20 are thought to remain -
many in private collections.
The hat is being sold along with other
Napoleonic memorabilia assembled by an industrialist who died last year.
But the auctioneers said for
specialists, the hat is the true holy grail.
The emperor wore his hat with the corns
parallel to shoulders - known as "en bataille" - whereas most of his
officers wore their hats perpendicular to the shoulders.
Auctioneer
Jean Pierre Osenat said: "People recognised this hat everywhere. When they
saw it on the battlefields, they knew Napoleon was there.
"And when
in private, he always had it on his head or he had it in his hand, and
sometimes he threw it on the ground. That was the image - the symbol of the emperor."
The
auctioneers said this hat comes with impeccable provenance, remaining
throughout the 19th Century in the family of Napoleon's palace quartermaster.
The hat being
auctioned by Osenat auction house in Fontainebleau has a cockade that Napoleon
fixed to his hat in 1815, during the crossing of the Mediterranean from his
exile in Elba to Antibes, where he led a brief return to power.
Other items
being sold include a silver plate looted from Napoleon's carriage after his
1815 defeat at Waterloo and a wooden vanity case he owned, with razors, a
silver toothbrush, scissors and other belongings.
By Emily McGarvey & Vicky Wong
BBC News
Source: Napoleon Bonaparte’s hat sells for €1.9m at Paris auction - BBC News
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