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| Photo from Sotheby's |
An Important Imperial Gift
Created by celebrated gunsmith Jean Lepage, the exquisitely wrought pistols, encrusted and inlaid with gold, are emblazoned with Napoleonic symbolism, such as the capitalised N and the Imperial eagle, marking them as an important Imperial gift.
Impeccable Provenance
During the Siege of Paris which followed Napoleon I’s fall, the pistols were acquired in 1816 by an ambitious English souvenir collector named William Bullock. Bullock was an entrepreneur who captivated Regency London with his epic exhibitions of Napoleonic memorabilia and natural history in his famous Egyptian Hall at 22 Piccadilly. This
A Brief History of Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) conquered Europe to become 1st Emperor of the French. Born in Corsica, he rose through the ranks of the French army in the wake of the Revolution which had overthrown King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, conquering Egypt by 1798, and launching a coup d’état in France in 1799, becoming first consul. By 1804 he had been proclaimed Emperor in a lavish ceremony at the cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris. Napoleon is today a polarising figure, a tyrant to some, but to others an enlightened reformer who swept aside feudal systems of law and government throughout Europe, replacing them with his Code Napoleon, which established the principles of meritocracy, justice and freedom of religion; he also abolished slavery. Napoleon’s forces swept Europe, defeating the Austrians at Marengo (1800) and Austerlitz (1805), and annexing Italy, Spain, Holland, Belgium and large swathes of modern day Germany. His downfall began with his disastrous conquest of Russia, which eventually led to retreat from Moscow and the invasion of France by his enemies, Britain, Austria and Prussia. Napoleon abdicated in April 1814, was forced into exile on the island of Elba, but returned triumphantly only to be decisively defeated at the Battle of Waterloo by the Duke of Wellington on 18 June 1815. He was exiled to the Atlantic island of St Helena, where he died in 1821. His defeat led to the ascendancy of Britain as the leading force in world affairs through the 19th century.
適逢滑鐵盧戰役 200 週年,蘇富比將於 2015 年 7 月 8 日(星期三)於倫敦舉行之 「稀世瑰寶」拍賣,隆重呈獻兒童尺寸短槍一對,相信為拿破崙於 1814 年贈予其出生伊始便冊封為「羅馬 王」的愛子之餞別禮。這對短槍紀年 1814,乃拿破崙戰敗並流亡到厄爾巴島前最後一次見到幼子,標誌着這 位法國皇帝波瀾起伏的人生中痛徹心扉的一刻。
皇家親贈之重禮
短槍由著名槍匠讓•勒帕熱(Jean Lepage)鍛造,金飾鑲嵌,工藝精巧玲瓏,大草字母 N 及皇家鷹徽等槍上 裝飾具拿破崙象徵式意義,反映短槍作為皇家重禮之非凡。
來源顯赫,流傳有緒
拿破崙被扳倒後巴黎淪陷,這對短槍於 1816 年由一名別具野心的英國收藏家威廉•布拉克(William Bullock) 購藏。布拉克是一位企業家,乃位於皮卡迪利廣場 22 號遐邇聞名的「埃及廳」主人。「埃及廳」這個時尚場 所吸引了各方人士匯聚一堂,從攝政王、英女王及其它到訪的歐洲皇親國戚,至簡•奧斯汀(Jane Austen)、拜倫勳爵(Lord Byron)及華特•司各特(Walter Scott)等;而他常設於該廳的拿破崙紀念品及自然歷史經典 收藏展覽,更讓整個攝政時期的倫敦為之矚目震撼。1819 年,短槍於布拉克舉行的「埃及廳」珍藏拍賣中拍 出,其後成為英美名媛斯特拉福德伯爵夫人科拉(Cora)之收藏,亦曾為著名古董槍械鑑賞家威廉•基思•尼 爾(William Keith Neal)之收藏品。
拿破崙簡史
拿破崙•波拿巴(Napoleon Bonaparte;1769-1821 年)稱霸歐洲,成為史上首位法國皇帝。他於科西嘉島出 生,隨著路易十六及皇后瑪麗•安托瓦內特(Queen Marie Antoinette)在法國大革命時期被推翻,他在法國軍 隊的地位節節攀升,於 1798 年領軍征服埃及,1799 年在法國發動政變,成為第一執政。他在 1804 年於巴黎聖 母院大教堂盛大的加冕儀式上正式稱帝。今人對拿破崙的評價毀譽參半,一些人認為他是專制暴君,亦有不少 人視他為啟蒙的改革者,推翻了歐洲法律及政府一貫的封建體制,以其《拿破崙法典》建立能人統治、司法公 正及宗教自由的國度,並廢除奴隸制。拿破崙的軍隊橫掃歐洲,分別在馬倫哥(1800 年)及奧斯特里茨(1805 年)戰役中擊敗奧利地軍隊,並佔據意大利、西班牙、荷蘭、比利時以及現今德國的大片領地。他在俄國征戰 大敗後開始失勢,其軍隊最終撤離莫斯科,而法國亦被敵方英國、奧地利及普魯士入侵。拿破崙於 1814 年 4 月退位,被流放至厄爾巴小島,其後一度成功歸國,卻在 1815 年 6 月 18 日之滑鐵盧戰役中遭英國威靈頓公爵 重擊。他最後被流放到大西洋聖赫勒拿島,於 1821 年在島上去世。英國打敗拿破崙後逐漸崛起,在十九世紀 成為世界主導力量。
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