Record auction: a brooch that Napoleon lost at Waterloo sold for more than 4 million dollars

When he escaped from Waterloo, the battle that sealed his downfall, Napoleon Bonaparte He left behind his years as Emperor of the French. An ornate diamond brooch that belonged to him was also left in that corner of Belgium and could be recovered by the Prussian army. More than two centuries later, that brooch was auctioned by a record number in Geneva: they paid about US$ 4.39 million (3.79 million euros) in Geneva.

The sale price of that historical gem greatly exceeded expectations from the traditional auction house, which had estimated it at between US$150,700 and US$255,000 (130,000 and 220,000 euros).

The brooch was part of the personal effects that the emperor had to leave in his flight across the plain of Waterloonear Brussels, in front of British and Prussian soldiers, after the famous battle that sealed their fall in June 1815.

The circular jewel, about 45 mm in diameter, has a large diamond of 13.04 carats, surrounded by almost a hundred antique diamonds cut in the mine, of various shapes and sizes, arranged in two concentric rows.

The unique piece was created for Napoleon around 1810.«probably to decorate his bicorn hat on special occasions,» the auction house said.

A Sotheby’s employee displays a diamond brooch that belonged to Emperor Napoleon. AP Photo

It was then ruled to the king of Prussia, Frederick William III, as war trophy on June 21, 1815, three days after the Battle of Waterloo.

It then fell into the hands of generations of the former Hohenzollern royal family, after a succession dispute between that dynasty and the German Republic.

The history of the brooch

Waterloo was the beginning of the end for Napoleon: as he escaped the combined attack of the British army, led by the Duke of Wellingtonand the Prussian, under the command of Marshal Gebhard von Blücherseveral French carriages were left stranded in the mud of Genappea town near the battlefield.

Napoleon Bonaparte, in his time as Emperor of France.

During the retreat, the Prussian army captured and looted at least two carriages carrying the emperor’s personal belongings: medals, weapons, silverware, a hat and a jewelry box with 22 solitaires and 121 small diamonds.

As was customary at the time, jewelry and personal items were spoils of war for the victorious. According to Sotheby’s, Von Blücher recorded that he sent Napoleon’s hat and sword to Prussian King Frederick William III, who belonged to the Hohenzollern family. Another soldier who participated in the looting, Lieutenant von Pless, gave him the diamond brooch at Hanau on June 21, 1815, just three days after the Battle of Waterloo.

Napoleon Bonaparte on his deathbed.

The relationship between the object and the Prussian royal family is highly symbolic, since the end of the Napoleonic Wars allowed Prussia to rise to the group of major European powers – such as Great Britain, Russia and the Austrian Empire – due to its key role in stopping the French emperor.

In 1819, the Jourdan brothers, jewelers to the Prussian royal court, described the jewels as «a hat decoration consisting of a button with a large solitaire set in a frame«. Two years later, Napoleon died on Saint Helena, where he had been exiled.

A stature of King Frederick William III of Prussia. AFP Photo

The jewels were also recorded and photographed in an annual publication made by the Prussian royal family. There they appeared as part of a set of jewelry related to the diamonds found in Napoleon’s abandoned carriage in Genappe: a bow-shaped brooch, some earrings, and a necklace.

The German monarchies were abolished in 1919, but it was not until 1926 that Hohenzollern and the German Republic reached an agreement over the property and jewels being considered. private property and, as such, they passed from Emperor William II to his son, Crown Prince William, and his grandson, Prince Louis Ferdinand, the auction house said.