The sculptor Domenico Banti began his career in 1792-1793, and some of his works are preserved in the Villa Dionisi in Cerea, close to Verona. In 1805 he realized a series of statues for the façade of the Borsa Vecchia in Trieste. In 1808 the Chamber of Commerce of Venice decided to erect a statue to Napoleon, and a contest was launched. The task was entrusted to the little-known Veronese artist. The documents relating to the competition are published and discussed for the first time. The analysis continues with a close examination of the statue, found in the year 2002 and now exposed to the public at the Museo Correr in Venice. Finally a work attributed to Domenico Banti, preserved at the Tadini Academy of Lovere, is presented.