Napoleon’s iconic hat, red folio and throne to hit the auction block —but will Elon Musk buy them?
Elon Musk could become the owner of a host of French conqueror Napoleon Bonaparte’s personal items — if the current seller has his way.
The Tesla billionaire would be perfect to purchase the collection, according to businessman Pierre-Jean Chalençon, because his spirit reminds him of the late 18th century military commander and Emperor.
Speaking of the items coming up for sale, Chalençon told The Post: “They are like my children. And I wish Elon Musk, the new Napoleon, to buy everything, to keep my children all together.”
The collection is “one of the most significant Napoleonic offerings ever to come to market,” according to auctioneer Sotheby’s. It includes more than 100 items such as one of the Napoleon’s iconic bicorne hats, his coronation sword, a folding camp bed, ornate throne and even a sleeve from one of his consular garments, worn when he led the French Republic as First Consul for five years beginning in 1799.
The sale is scheduled for June 25 in Paris, but a special exhibit is opening at Sotheby’s Upper East Side showroom on Thursday. Here are some of the highlights:
Bicorne hat
Ever the trailblazer, Napoleon was known for wearing his bicorne (two cornered) hat side-to-side across his head, rather than the more conventional front to back, with the point at the front, developing his own style.
The hat on sale at Sotheby’s was created by Poupard, Napoleon’s hatmaker, and was a gift from the Emperor to General Georges Mouton, his trusted aide-de-camp.
Napoleon praised Mouton’s important role in the Battle of Essling in May 1809, calling him “a lion.” Napoleon biographer Andrew Roberts told The Post the hat, estimated to sell between $570,000 and $913,0000, will likely fetch significantly more once Napoleon “fanatics with money” start bidding.
There are only 17 such hats that belonged to the French statesman, who died in 1821, in existence today, he said.
Napoleon’s sleeve
The sleeve, which has a pre-auction estimate between $22,000 and $34,000 was kept as a souvenir by Napoleon’s tailor after he had removed it when a servant spilled sauce on it.
“It was kept in the tailor’s family as a treasured heirloom,” according to the Sotheby’s catalogue.
The red folio
Also up for auction is a “monumental” red leather folio that likely contained the certificate of divorce between Napoleon and his beloved wife Josephine de Beauharnai, as well as passionate love letters between the couple.
Napoleon split from his wife in 1809 when she could not provide him a male heir. He then married Marie Louise, daughter of the Emperor of Austria.
However, he was bereft at losing his “lucky star” and continued to correspond with Josephine after their split. A similar red portfolio, which contained official, smaller format documents, is preserved in the National Archives in France, according to Sotheby’s.
The pre-auction estimate is listed as more than $90,000.
Josephine’s dressing table
A mahogany, gilt-bronze dressing table used by Josephine is listed between $228,000 to $456,000. It was commissioned by Napoleon for the Chateau de Saint-Cloud, their summer residence where he was proclaimed Emperor of France on May 18, 1804.
The dressing table was kept in the empress’s bedroom, which was decorated with green and white drapes with gold accents, and a bed that was shaped by a pulpit.
Marriage certificate
Chalençon is also selling the couple’s religious marriage certificate. Executed on December 1, 1804, the certificate formalized their marriage on the eve of Napoleon’s coronation. The document is handwritten, and valued between$23,000 to $57,000.
Chalençon bought the certificate from businessman Malcolm Forbes, and said the insurance alone on the item was $1 million.
Camp bed
The folding “campaign bed” was invented for Napoleon by “Father Desouches,” one of his favorite designers.
Napoleon was so enamored of the bed, which he used on military campaigns, that he gave them away as diplomatic gifts and also bequeathed them to his son, humbly noting that it was a “modest legacy” that would preserve the memory of “a father the universe will forever speak of.” Sotheby’s lists the reserve on the bed as between $45,000 and $68,000.
The throne
Chalençon’s most beloved piece in the auction is Napoleon’s throne from the Stupingi Palace in Turin.
It is the most expensive piece of furniture in the collection, estimated to sell for up to US$455,254. The backrest is embroidered with a large “N” and according to Sotheby’s, the chair was made for Napoleon’s stay at the palace on the way to his crowning as the King of Italy in Milan in 1805.
For Chalencon, 55, who has been collecting Napoleonic artifacts since he was 14 years old, parting with a large part of his collection has been extremely difficult, he told The Post this week. He says he’s selling up to get out of debt and start a new life.
But he is hanging on to a few prized items — Napoleon’s snuff box from his exile on St. Helena (1815) and his coronation gloves.
I worked all my life to create his collection,” he said.”Like Sherlock Holmes, I looked everywhere, and traveled all over the world. I am not from a wealthy family, but I can tell you that I have a great eye.”
