A Napoleonic ruby red velvet robe applied with gold-thread embroidered bees, 19th century

Acquired by the grandfather and thence by descent to the present owners; This item is mentioned on the Gut Umschoss inventory made up in 1959 by a Mr. Berger, nr. 15. Roter Samt Tischdecke mit aufgestickten goldenen Bienen, Französ. Arbeit aus der napoleonischen Zeit um 1810.

The bee has a long history as one of the chosen symbols of the sovereigns of France. Napoleon would choose the bee as one of his primary emblems because of its associations with resurrection, power, tenacity, and hard work. The symbolic use of the bee appears to stretch far further back, though, to the ancient Merovingian origins of the French royal family: three hundred golden bees were found in Tournai in 1653 within the tomb of Childeric I, who ruled from 457 to 481 and whose son Clovis founded the Merovingian dynasty. Napoleon selected the bee as a key symbol of the new French Empire and was reserved for the Emperor and his family, excluding even high-ranking officials from bearing the emblem. The bee would appear on much of the furniture, textiles and decorative art in the imperial residence. In the portrait of Napoleon by the workshop of François Gérard, now held in the Rijksmuseum (SK-C-1120), the bee can be observed not only on the red velvet of the Emperor’s robes, but also on the on the teal-coloured carpet. Certainly, the clothing of the emperor and empress also were adorned with the golden bee.