DEATH MASK, "RUSI" MODEL In plaster,... - Lot 184 - Osenat

Lot 184
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Estimation :
8000 - 10000 EUR
Result with fees
Result : 40 832EUR
DEATH MASK, "RUSI" MODEL In plaster,... - Lot 184 - Osenat
DEATH MASK, "RUSI" MODEL In plaster, marked on the back with a pencil " L'Empereur Napoleone a Saint Helena " (sic) H : 20 cm. L : 16 cm. Small dents, chips and scratches. Presented in a mahogany box with a glass lid. L : 20 x 19 cm. H : 20 cm. Provenance: This mask belonged in 1939 to Charles Adler who is said to have bought it from a man named Louis-Charles de Bourbon, who claimed to have acquired it from the Prince of Essling. -It was kept at the Royal United Service Museum between 1947 and 1972. -It then became part of the Corso collection which was dispersed in 2004. The provenance of this relic before Charles Adler's gift has been questioned by the research of Mr. Albert BENHAMOU, who doubts its imperial provenance. -Sale of the collection of Dr Philip Corso at Christies New York on December 2, 2004 History: In spite of its complex provenance, this mask is an important element in the quarrel between historians and specialists on the thorny question of the death masks of the Emperor Napoleon. After the war, it was Baron Eugène de Veauce who rediscovered it and made it known in France, followed by Georges Rétif. Since then, the mask has continued to fascinate historians and scientists, without it being possible to decide whether or not it is an authentic image of the Emperor's features.
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