Napoleon’s sword to be sold at auction in Paris

A combination of photos from Giquello auction firm shows a sword that belonged to Napoleon.

PARIS -- A sword that belonged to Napoleon and was specially ordered for the personal use of the French emperor is to be auctioned in Paris next month, the auction house said.

Napoleon ordered the sabre in 1802 and kept it throughout his reign.

The Giquello auction firm said on Friday it expected the sword to reach 700,000 to one million euros (C$1.1 million to 1.6 million) when it goes under the hammer in Paris on May 22.

Napoleon passed the sabre on to his close ally Emmanuel de Grouchy, who the French emperor named his last marshal of the empire.

The sword has been in Grouchy’s family since 1815, the year of Napoleon’s last defeat at the Battle of Waterloo.

A second copy, identical to this one and also commissioned by Napoleon, is kept at the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

Napoleon memorabilia regularly comes up for sale at auction in France in a flourishing trade marked by intense interest from collectors.

Two pistols that he once intended to use to kill himself were sold in France last July for 1.7 million euros, while one of his trademark “bicorne” hats set a record price for his possessions when it was acquired for 1.9 million euros in November 2023.

A hand-written letter from Napoleon denying his role in the kidnapping of Pope Pius VII in 1809 is to go under the hammer this weekend outside Paris and is expected to reach 12,000 to 15,000 euros.

AFP