Private collectors race next week to buy a DNA sample of the late French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, in a blood-stained cloth that was placed on his body during his autopsy, and this piece is offered for sale in an auction held to mark the bicentenary of his death.
Napoleon Bonaparte died on May 5, 1821, at the age of 51, on the island of Saint Helena in the south of the Atlantic Ocean. The British exiled him there after his defeat in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo.
Ozena auctions are offering about 360 items for sale on May 5, along with other major items including a lock of Napoleon’s hair, a pair of silk socks that belonged to him, and a long-sleeved shirt embroidered with the letter (N) with red strings.
The blood-stained piece of cloth is estimated to sell for up to 15,000 euros ($ 18,000), according to Reuters.