Diamond brooch abandoned by defeated Napoleon in 1815 to go up for sale
The brooch, left behind after the French emperor fled Waterloo’s battlefield, will be sold to the highest auction bidder on November 12
A diamond brooch owned and abandoned by Napoleon Bonaparte after the Battle of Waterloo will go up for auction for the first time.
The brooch, made of nearly 100 diamonds, was left behind after the emperor fled Waterloo’s battlefield to return to Paris, and was given to the king of Prussia three days later as part of the trophies his armies took back.
The Battle of Waterloo, in 1815, was Napoleon’s final defeat.
The brooch will go under the hammer for the first time in Sotheby’s The Royal and Noble Jewels Sale event in London on November 12, with an estimated sale price of US$150,000 to US$250,000.
The circular diamond brooch consists of a large oval diamond at its centre surrounded by nearly 100 mine-cut diamonds of varying shapes and sizes.
Created for Napoleon in about 1810, the brooch was likely worn on special occasions and represents the end of his dream of maintaining and expanding his empire, while marking a historic power shift in Europe with the ascent of Prussia.