Following on from the recent story about rare films being discovered in the NZ Film Archives another important discovery has been made by Art + Object at a recent charity Roadshow. At the end of the month they are to auction 40 items that have come through the family of Captain Denzil Ibbetson (1788-1857), who accompanied Napoleon to exile on St Helena in 1815 and stayed with him until the emperor's death in 1821. The items include a lock of hair (pictured) estimated at $12,000 - $15,000 and a lithograph of Napoleon on his deathbed. A+O described the archive "being in effect an artistic and documentary record of Napoleon's final days this offering constitutes one of the most important collections of artwork and objects associated with a major historic figure ever to be found in Australasia". The auction takes place at 6pm on June 29th and it is on view from the 20th. There is also a Wellington viewing by appointment on Saturday 12th of June. This exciting find will surely have much international interest.
