Origin, casting on Saint Helena, and the Antommarchi-type form
This museum-grade replica of Napoleon Bonaparte’s death mask reproduces the historically accepted “Antommarchi-type” likeness, an iconic relic of the Napoleonic era associated with the postmortem casting made on Saint Helena in May 1821.
Accounts from the period identify both the British surgeon Francis Burton and Napoleon’s physician, Dr. Francesco Antommarchi, as involved in the casting and early handling of molds and copies. Regardless of which surviving example descends most directly from a “parent” mold, the Antommarchi form became the best-known version distributed in Europe in the 1830s and remains the most commonly catalogued institutional likeness.
Museum presence and why the mask matters
The Antommarchi death mask is treated as a documentary object: a fixed, three-dimensional record of Napoleon’s final features in the context of exile and death at Longwood House. Institutional examples exist in major collections; for instance, The Metropolitan Museum of Art catalogs a bronze “Death mask of Napoleon I” attributed to Antommarchi (cast in plaster 1821; bronze executed later), and scholarly inventories document related plaster masks associated with Malmaison.
That curatorial context is why replicas proliferate, yet most inexpensive versions are fragile plaster meant to sit untouched. This replica is engineered for frequent handling by students, rotation in a collection, or practical cleaning by curators.
Materials, dimensions, and display tag
Unlike standard plaster casts, this piece is hand-shaped with hard, heat-resistant museum-grade conservation wax over acrylic to reproduce the correct luster and tactile feel. The included museum-style display tag reads: “Impression shortly after death by Francesco Antommarchi.”
Approximate dimensions and weight: 12 in (30 cm) long; ~420 g. (For comparison, a standard 12 oz can of Coke is about 362 g—see the scale photo.) Made in the USA.
Digital reference model credit: HoofiePuppet (Creative Commons; Thingiverse item 7017789).
