Never posted the pictures of Bernadotte’s Marshal uniform I took in the Swedish Royal Armory a few months ago didn’t I
Yeah I was excited about marshals at the time but I wasn’t expecting to see this there despite the current Swedish Royal family being, you know, The House of Bernadotte
Closeups under the cut as well as bonus other napoleonic stuff and a terrible picture of a marshal’s baton
The oakleaf embroidery has little acorns/pinecones on it!
Also presuming the holes in the first pictures are where the medals/awards went
I also 3D scanned the uniform I should really extract that and do something with it at some point
Also there was a very cute/twee “historical twitter” exhibit
From what I know of Bernadotte and Napoleon’s relationship, this seems a little inaccurate
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Napoleon's Marshals and their Birthstones Part 2
This is part 2 of my series where I list all 26 marshal's birthstones, I'll also be adding two non-marshals to the list ;). In this post I'll go over months May through August, the format will be the same as the last post. If you want to review the terms used in the post I'll put the link to the first part here .
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Emerald (May)
Marshals- Davout, Kellermann, Massena, Perignon, and Poniatowski
Type: Mineral
Group: Beryl (Be₃Al₂(SiO₃)₆)
Color: Green or bluish-green
Cleavage: Indistinct to none
Fracture: Conchoidal
Mohs Scale: 7.5-8
Luster: Vitreous
Streak: White
Fun Fact: Emerald is one of the four cardinal (most valuable) gemstones, along with diamond, ruby, and sapphire. Its value is due to the limited amount of beryllium (an element in beryl minerals) found in one location on the surface of the Earth, making it rare to find. An even rarer type of emerald is a trapiche emerald, which has the shape of a wheel, with each piece of emerald separated by the inclusion of black shale; the shale becomes less present as time passes. Its green color is due to the presence of chromium or vanadium in its chemical composition. Traces of iron make the color turn into a bluish or yellowish tint.
Pearl (June)
Marshals- N/A (Honorable mention: Joséphine de Beauharnais)
Type: Mineral
Group: Carbonate (CaCo₃)
Color: White, pink, silver, cream, iridescent, blue, gold
Cleavage: None
Fracture: Uneven
Mohs Scale: 2.5-4.5
Luster: Pearly
Streak: White
Fun Facts: Pearls are made either naturally or synthetically. Natural pearls are formed inside the soft tissue of various mollusk species like oysters and mussels when an irritant such as sand gets inside the mollusk. As a defense mechanism, the mollusk covers the object with a substance called nacre, a combination of aragonite and conchiolin. These layers build up over time until they create a pearl. Man-made or cultured pearls are formed when a small piece of a mussel shell is inserted into the mollusk's tissue, causing the mollusk to secrete nacre onto the shell piece. Under a controlled environment, pearls form a perfectly shaped sphere, rather than forming in irregular shapes like organic pearls form.
Ruby (July)
Marshals- Moncey, and Marmont
Type: Mineral
Group: Oxide (Al₂O₃)
Color: Blood red, orange red, pink, or purple red
Cleavage: Indistinct
Fracture: Conchoidal or splintery
Mohs Scale: 9
Luster: Vitreous
Streak: White
Fun Fact: Rubies have the same chemical composition as sapphires, making them the same type of mineral (corundum), the only difference being that rubies are red due to chromium in their crystal lattice, while sapphires are blue, but it does come in different colors [1]. Rubies are not only known for their use in expensive jewelry but also for having major cultural significance ranging from ancient to modern times. In ancient Greece, rubies were thought to preserve mental and physical strength. Many Greek warriors wore talismans with rubies as protection when heading into battles [2].
Peridot (August)
Marshals- Bessières (Honorable mention: Napoleon Bonaparte)
Type: Mineral
Group: Silicate ((Mg,Fe)₂SiO₄)
Color: Green, yellowish-green, olive-green
Cleavage: Poor
Fracture: Conchoidal
Mohs Scale: 6.5-7
Luster: Vitreous or greasy
Streak: Colorless
Fun Fact: Peridot can be dissolved in hydrochloric acid, creating a gelatinous silica form. It was first discovered on the volcanic island of Zabargad in the Red Sea (located near Egypt) 3,500 years ago. The largest known peridot was also discovered in Egypt, weighing approximately 319 carats. The Egyptians were very fond of peridot and believed it to be the gemstone of the sun god Ra, giving it the name the 'evening emerald.' When determining the value of a peridot, its color plays an important role. Peridots with a pure green hue are more desirable than those with a yellowish tint (high iron levels are present). Peridot is also the gemstone with the most inclusions visibly present, which can affect its value, but it is often attributed to it being part of its natural structure.
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Sources:
Emerald: King, H. M. (n.d.). Emerald. geology. https://geology.com/gemstones/emerald/
Pearl: MAT, M. (2023, August 26). Pearl: Mineral, gemstone: Properties, formation, occurrence. Geology Science. https://geologyscience.com/minerals/organic-minerals/pearl/?amp
Ruby: [1] King, H. M. (n.d.). Ruby and Sapphire. geology. https://geology.com/gemstones/ruby-and-sapphire/
[2] MAT, M. (2023, April 25). Ruby: Properties, formation, occurrence " Geology science. Geology Science. https://geologyscience.com/gemstone/ruby/?amp
Peridot: MAT, M. (2023, August 29). Peridot : Gemstone, properties, occurrence and uses " geology science. Geology Science. https://geologyscience.com/gemstone/peridot/?amp
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