Napoleon was many things: general, politician, lover, genius, ego-maniac… and snuff addict. You can own one of the tools of his compulsion in the shape of a snuff box being sold at a British collectibles dealer.
The box is currently listed at Paul Fraser Collectibles, who say it is linked directly to the Emperor’s final exile on St Helena, 1,200 miles off the coast of Africa, the only place the forces who finally defeated him thought was safe.
Away from the imperial splendour of his court, the man who conquered much of Europe turned to small, personal pleasures like gardening, writing, and snuff.
The Little Corporal was a renowned snuff user. Snuff is no longer particularly fashionable. It’s a way of getting the nicotine hit of tobacco by consuming – usually by sniffing up the nose – finely powdered tobacco leaves.
Napoleon was a notorious enough user of snuff that his name and image were used to sell the product in France through the 19th century.
Napoleon couldn’t get enough of it. He was said to leave a trail of it wherever he went; his St Helena companion Emmanuel de Las Cases wrote: “The Emperor, it is well known, was in the habit of taking snuff almost every minute: this was a sort of a mania which seized him chiefly during intervals of abstraction. His snuff-box was speedily emptied; but he still continued to thrust his fingers into it, or to raise it to his nose, particularly when he was himself speaking.”
Paul Fraser, chairman of Paul Fraser Collectibles, explains how the box is linked to the legendary French leader.
“The provenance of this snuff box is remarkable,” he said.
“It has a direct chain of ownership from Napoleon’s death in 1821 to the present day.
“It was personally owned by Napoleon circa 1815 – 1821, during his exile on the island of St Helena, then acquired by the wife of Napoleon’s personal aide immediately after his death in May 1821. She gifted it to a member of the Royal artillery firing party at Napoleon’s funeral, who passed it down through five generations of the same family.”
And now to an online sale.
As you would expect, it’s a high-quality item.
With a black lacquered finish, the lid is decorated with a chequerboard pattern line detail with a gold coloured central cartouche. Inside the lid, a silver plaque tells some of the story of the box, recording its passing to “Lieut. Hayne R.A.”
Lieut. Hayne is Richard Hayne of the Royal Artillery, one of his British guards, who also served in the firing party at Napoleon’s funeral.
Napoleon is extremely current – if he has ever gone out of style.
Just as he obsessed and horrified Europe in his heyday, a dedicated collecting community now drives prices for any and all items relating to him to sky high levels.
A sale dedicated to him realised nearly $10 million earlier this month.
In 2023 one of his bicorn hats made $2.1 million at auction.
Paul Fraser Collectibles’ own survey of the autograph market records a staggering 553% rise in the value of his autograph in the 25 years to 2025.
The Napoleon snuff box is for sale now for £45,000.
