Golden seal “Hoang de chi bao” is announced by auction house Drouot with a starting price of 2 to 3 million euros

On the auction site Drouot.com, the royal seal is expected to be sold for 2 to 3 million euros. Cast in pure gold in the 4th year of reign Minh Mang (1823), weighing 10.78 kg, this is the largest and most beautiful seal from the Nguyen Dynasty, used only for the most important ordinations and documents. The seal was passed down to the last king of the Nguyen Dynasty, Bao Dai.

“Hoang de chi bao” seal was given to a representative of the revolutionary government by Bao Dai on his abdication ceremony on August 30, 1945 at the Hue Citadel. The seal was brought to Hanoi for Vietnam's independence declaration ceremony on September 2, 1945.

In 1946, the French colonialists invaded Vietnam again and gave back the seal to Bao Dai, who authorized Madame Mong Diep to take the seal to France and give it to Queen Nam Phuong and Prince Bao Long. After Nam Phuong died in 1963, the seal was kept by Bao Long and he deposited it in a safe box at the European Bank.

After Bao Dai died in 1997, “Hoang de chi bao” seal was preserved by Monique Baudot, Bao Dai's wife, who he married in 1982.