Demand for all things Napoleon has often sent prices spiralling well above estimates (AFP) 
 
 A two-cornered military dress hat said to belong to Napoleon and purportedly picked off the battlefield after his defeat at Waterloo will go under the hammer Monday at an auction in France.It is the latest sale looking to capitalise on the seemingly insatiable appetite for items belonging to the former French emperor, who remains a source of fascination nearly two hundred years after his death.Napoleon insisted on wearing the hats sideways -- rather than with points at the front and back -- so he could easily be spotted on the battlefield.During his 15 years in power he reportedly went through about 120 of the black felted beaver fur "bicorne" hats, most of them made by French hatmakers Poupard, though only a handful of confirmed examples still exist."They must correspond in terms of dates, and the size of his head," Etienne De Baecque, the auctioneer leading the sale in the eastern city of Lyon, told AFP.While the hat's provenance cannot be confirmed without a doubt, it has traditionally been attributed to the emperor, with records confirming its ownership since a Dutch captain took it as a war trophy at Waterloo in 1815."There are also other little details: he hated the trimming and always had it removed; he requested reinforcements at certain points where he always held it," De Baecque said."But as always with historical souvenirs, there's an element of fascination as well as doubt."Four years ago a similar bicorne, part of a collection owned by Monaco's royal family, sold at auction for 1.9 million euros ($2.2 million at current rates) to the owner of the South Korean food and agriculture giant Harim.The hat being sold Monday is expected to fetch just 30,000 to 40,000 euros, in part because it has not been as well preserved, with the leather dried out and cracking in several places. Yet demand for all things Napoleon has often sent prices spiralling well above estimates.Last November a fragile gold laurel leaf from the crown made for Napoleon's coronation in 1804, weighing just 10 grams, was sold for 625,000 euros. ||||| Image copyright AFP Image caption Napoleon was well known for his "bicorne" (two-pointed) hats 
 
 A military hat belonging to Napoleon, said to have been salvaged from the battlefield after his 1815 defeat at Waterloo, has been sold at auction for €280,000 (£245,000; $325,000). 
 
 The former French emperor was renowned for his "bicorne" hats, so-called because they had two points. 
 
 Napoleon's battle garb has become a focus for collectors over the years. 
 
 The red cloak he wore at Waterloo belongs to the Queen and has been in the Royal Collection since 1837. 
 
 The ankle-length, embroidered cloak was worn by Napoleon on the night before the French defeat and was looted from his carriage after the victory by Allied troops. 
 
 The De Baecque auction house confirmed Monday's sale in Lyon, 203 years to the day since the battle. The total sum for the hat including fees was just under €350,000, a spokeswoman told the BBC. 
 
 A French collector of historical pieces had bought the hat, the auctioneer told French media. 
 
 A man of many hats 
 
 The hat - which was bought by a private individual in 1986 - had been expected to fetch less than €40,000. 
 
 It is one of 19 of Napoleon's hats thought to still exist - the emperor is said to have worn some 120 similar hats during his career. 
 
 He normally had 12 hats in service, each with a three-year lifespan. They were renewed at a rate of four per year, and were first worn by valets to break them in for the emperor. 
 
 Napoleon wore his sideways, rather than with points at the front and back, so he could be spotted on the battlefield. 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption This hat of Napoleon's was said to have been worn at the Battle of Marengo in Italy in 1800 
 
 A similar hat - part of a collection owned by Monaco's royal family - sold at auction for €1.9m to the owner of the South Korean food and agriculture giant Harim four years ago. 
 
 That hat was apparently donned by Napoleon during the Battle of Marengo in 1800. 
 
 The hat being sold on Monday - not in as good a condition as the one sold in 2014 - is said to have been collected after the battle of Waterloo by a Dutch captain, Baron Arnout Jacques van Zuijlen van Nijevelt. 
 
 "There are also other little details: he hated the trimming and always had it removed; he requested reinforcements at certain points where he always held it," auctioneer Etienne De Baecque told AFP news agency. 
 
 Last November, a gold laurel leaf from the crown made for Napoleon's coronation was sold for €625,000. 
 
 Napoleon declared himself emperor in 1804 and waged war with other European powers, conquering much of the continent, before his final defeat in 1815.
– Napoleon's hats were a big deal. The BBC explains he had a system for breaking in and wearing the "bicorne" military hats that he famously wore sideways so as to be better spotted by his troops: He introduced four new ones each year that were first worn by valets and then put into rotation. With a three-year lifespan, he had 12 "active" hats at a time, and he's thought to have had roughly 120 in total. Nineteen are said to still exist, and what's arguably one of the most famous of those went up for auction in France on Monday: the one he wore during his Waterloo defeat. And while it was expected to fetch less than $50,000, it sold for many times that: roughly $407,000, to an unnamed European private collector, reports the New York Times. AFP reports the provenance of the two-pointed hat isn't rock-solid, but records do date it back to a Dutch captain who died in 1821 and said he retrieved it from the battlefield in 1815. Auctioneer Etienne De Baecque explains other hallmarks that led to the identification of the hat: It's the correct size, had been scrubbed of the trimming that Napoleon "hated," and was reinforced "at certain points where he always held it." A hat worn by Napoleon during the Battle of Marengo in 1800 was sold for 1.9 million euros ($2.2 million in today's dollars) in 2014. As for why this hat fetched far less, it's in worse shape, with cracking and dried leather. The BBC notes the red ankle-length cloak Napoleon wore at Waterloo has been a part of the UK's Royal Collection for more than 180 years. (Here's how a neurosurgeon brought down Napoleon.)