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RAPAPORT... The Osenat auction house in Fontainebleau, France sold the engagement ring Napoleon Bonaparte gave Josephine de Beauharnais for approximately $1.2 million, including buyer's premium, against a presale estimate of $13,000 to $20,000 (EUR 10,000 to EUR 15,000). 
The gold ring (pictured) garnered fierce and active bidding during the sale and features a pear-shaped sapphire and a diamond, set in the form of a toi et moi, that reportedly weigh just under a carat each. The auction house defined the ring as part of a collection from the Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie. Bonaparte gave the ring to de Beauharnais on February 24, 1796 from the collection of gems of the Imperial House. The couple married March 9, shortly before Bonaparte departed to carry out plans to invade Italy. Osenat held the sale on March 24 to mark de Beauharnais' 250 birthday.
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