This portrait of William Balcombe comes from a private collection and was lent to the Napoleonmuseum Thurgau for the temporary exhibition 1821. The end of Napoleon. St Helena, Arenenberg and the birth of a legend (in 2021). On the back, a water stain has unfortunately erased part of the name of the person represented, but the letters “Ba” are still legible: “M. Ba… l’ami de Napoléon, propriétaire des “Briars” à Jamestown en l’isle de Sainte-Hélène – Paris 1824″. [“Mr. Ba… the friend of Napoleon, owner of the “Briars” at Jamestown [sic] on the isle of St Helena – Paris 1824”]. The signature is illegible. This is the second known portrait of William Balcombe.
Text provided by Christina Egli (curator of the Napoleonmuseum) October 2021 [Translation by Rebecca Young]