The letters are a real rarity in this age of modern communication. Therefore worth more! Dictators are generally known for their power and a folly, rather than the outpouring of loves and romantics. Then imagine the value of a letter written by Napoleon Bonaparte addressed to his first wife Josephine de Beauharnais in 1796. This love letter goes on sale March 4 by the next oldest auction house existing Russian, Gelos.
In his letter, the future French emperor and military genius, then 26, confesses to Josephine, then 32, that glory is a value to him only because it flatters her, and complains that her feelings toward him are nothing but a whim. Someone could tell that the letter is full of passion and reproach.
The love letter of one of the most illustrious couples in history had already been sold for $120,000 in 2006 and for $445,000 at Christie’s art auction two years later. And now, its estimate is $119,000. The starting price for its part, is set at $50,000.
Besides the letter, about 800 art objects have been listed for the Moscow’s Gelos art auction this year. Launched in 1988, Gelos now holds 120 auctions a year, selling more than 50,000 objects. [Gelos]