Lot 5
5
A BRONZE DEATH MASK OF NAPOLEON FROM THE ANTOMMARCHI CAST
A BRONZE DEATH MASK OF NAPOLEON FROM THE ANTOMMARCHI CAST
A BRONZE DEATH MASK OF NAPOLEON FROM THE ANTOMMARCHI CAST
A BRONZE DEATH MASK OF NAPOLEON FROM THE ANTOMMARCHI CAST
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A BRONZE DEATH MASK OF NAPOLEON FROM THE ANTOMMARCHI CAST

CIRCA 1833

Details
A BRONZE DEATH MASK OF NAPOLEON FROM THE ANTOMMARCHI CAST
CIRCA 1833
Modelled on a tassled pillow, with cast signature 'Dr F ANTOMMARCHI' to the left, to the right a foundry signature FONDU PAR L RICHARD ET QUESNEL A PARIS, with a fitted walnut box lined in silk with a bee motif, a copy of the Antommarchi family tree and related paperwork are also included
The case -- 10 in. (25.5 cm.) high; 17 in. (43 cm.) wide
Provenance
Dr. F Antommarchi (b. 1750) and thus by descent.
Purchased by Gordon Watson on the Channel Four television programme 'Four Rooms'.

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Lot Essay

Francesco Antommarchi (d. 1838) was Napoleon's physician on St. Helena and is one of the few who had access and is reported to have taken an impression of the late Emperor's face. Much debate lingers about the authenticity of the many versions of Napoleon's death mask that have circulated since his death in 1821. The present lot has been in the Antommarchi family since by descent. It is most likely to be one of the few original castings that Antommarchi commissioned as a subscription edition as he travelled around North and South America and which were gifted to various institutions and influential persons. A similar example to this is in the New Orleans museum and in Longwood, St. Helena. They all have the grand tassled cushion that fits the mask with the stamp dating '1833'.

The mask was presented last year on the television show 'Four Rooms' on Channel Four where a descendant of Dr. Antommarchi, Eric Azemar, offered it for sale.

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