A historic sale of the private collection of HRH Prince Louis II of Monaco, the great grandfather of HRH Prince Albert of Monaco, was held in Fontainebleau on 16th November this year.

The items presented for auction had all been owned by the Emperor Napoleon I, whose direct descendants include Jérôme de Witt, founder of the DeWitt watch company in Geneva.

At the sale, Viviane de Witt, CEO of the DeWitt company, acquired two lots containing strands of the Emperor’s hair, with the intention of enclosing them in DeWitt watches so that admirers of the Emperor can carry his DNA on their wrists.

Glorious Knight Chronograph with Napoléon’s DNA

The hairs were certified on 25 November at the Meyrin Geneva Manufacture by the President of the Judicial Officers of Geneva, Maître Gérard Reymond. Half a millimetre of hair has been ‘attached’ to an effigy of the Emperor under the glass of the watch face, covered in a special varnish and sealed in a furnace.

Glorious Knight HMS with Napoléon’s DNA

In total the brand plans to produce around 400 watches from its two steel collections Glorious Knight and Academia Steel, with prices starting at 10,700 Swiss francs (including VAT). The timepieces are already available at the Meyrin Geneva Manufacture.