A gold leaf from the crown of Napoleon Bonaparte fetched a whopping sum of $740,000 at an auction in Paris recently. The gold laurel leaf formed a part of the conqueror’s crown that he wore during his coronation. One of six laurel leaves with gold carving, it was detached from the crown before the coronation because the monarch had considered it too heavy. However, the gold leaf was later sold in the 1980s for 80,000 francs. Sold for 625,000 euros ($740,000) the leaf smashed all estimates which had pegged it between 100,000 and 150,000 euros. About 400 items went under the hammer at Paris auction house Osenat, including a decorated box engraved with gold flowers ($178,000 approximately).
