This gold mourning ring containing a lock of Napoleon's hair has been added to the collection of the Sir John Soane Museum in Holborn after 172 years.
It was one of his Sir John Soane’s most treasured private possessions, but was not left to the Museum, instead it was willed to the family after his death in 1837 where it passed out of the family’s ownership and was deemed ‘lost’.
The lost ring came up for auction at Christie's in June this year, the first time the Museum had had news of its whereabouts since Soane’s death. They were not successful in buying the ring at the auction, but when the buyer found out the Museum was bidding they decided to give them the option to buy it. Read full ArtDaily.org article here.
