A KENDAL-based historian has stumbled across a relic of one of history's greatest figures.

Historian and author Geoffrey Abbott discovered a 6lb bronze death mask of Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France and one of history's greatest military leaders, lying unnoticed on a bric-a-brac stall at an antique fair in Wetherby, North Yorkshire, writes Justin Hawkins.

Mr Abbott, an RAF veteran and a former Yeoman Warder (Beefeater) at the Tower of London, explained: "I go to antique fairs to look for Tower of London things and anything historically interesting."

It was during one of his regular antique-hunting trips at Wetherby Race Course, that Mr Abbott noticed the bronze mask on a stall.

"They did not know who it was and wanted significantly less than £100 for it," he said

Even though Mr Abbott did not realise it was the death mask of Napoleon Bonaparte, he bought it anyway because he knew whoever the face belonged to, they must have been either important or infamous to have had such a mask made.

He sent photographs of the mask to the National Portrait Gallery, in London, to see if it could identify the dead man.

The gallery replied that experts thought it could be Napoleon Bonaparte, but he should send more photographs to the biomedical sciences faculty at Edinburgh University, where there are records of every known image of the French conqueror, who died in 1821.

"The next thing I knew," said Mr Abbott, "I had a very excited telephone call from Professor Kaufman saying he thought it was Napoleon."

The university even turned up evidence that the death mask was made by a man called Dr Antommarchi, on the island of Saint Helena, in the Atlantic Ocean, where Napoleon was imprisoned by the British after his defeat by the Duke of Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.

The historical connection for Mr Abbot is that The Duke of Wellington later became Constable of the Tower of London and was in charge of the Yeoman Warders.

Photographs of the mask will be used to illustrate 19th century death masks in Mr Abbott's new book about William Calcraft, executioner at the Tower of London for 45 years and executions record holder.

The Napoleon death mask is due to be sold at Dominic Winter's, a specialist auction house in Swindon, on July 25.

Mr Abbott said the money it could fetch at auction did not really matter to him.

"I'm happy if I cover my expenses," he said.

Two years ago, a similar Napoleon death mask was sold in the USA for £2,600.

Mr Abbott's mask has a reserve price of £ 700 to £1,000.