Napoleon’s ornate pistols sell in France for €1.69m
Two pistols owned by French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, with which he once intended to kill himself, have sold at auction for €1.69 million.
The guns were sold at French auction house Osenat in Fontainebleau, just outside Paris, and had been expected to fetch between €1.2m and €1.5m.
The Gossard pistols' sale comes after France's culture ministry recently classified them as national treasures and banned their export, meaning that the French government has 30 months to make a purchase offer to the new anonymous owner - who has the right to refuse.
Napoleon was said to have wanted to use the pistols to kill himself on the night of 12 April 1814 after the defeat of his army by foreign forces.
His grand squire Armand de Caulaincourt removed the powder from the guns, so Napoleon tried poison instead. He survived, abdicated, and was exiled to Elba, the island off the Italian coast.
Napoleon gave the pistols to Caulaincourt, who in turn passed them to his descendants.
"The emperor offered the two pistols with a sword to Caulaincourt as a memento of his loyalty in those dark days. They have since remained in his family, who decided to part with them," stated expert Jean-Pierre Osenat.
The richly decorated pistols - which feature the engraved image of Napoleon in full imperial pomp - were sold in a Burr walnut box with an ebony inlay, alongside various accessories including a powder horn and powder tamping rods.
Auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat said that the "image of Napoleon at his lowest point" was being sold alongside the objects.
Memorabilia of the emperor is extremely sought after among collectors. For instance, one of his famous “bicorne” black hats sold for €1.9m in November.
