The medallion's obverse bears nude Mercury, head turned towards left. He is soaring
above harbor, city skyline to left and large freighter approaching from right. At left and right,
1850 - 1925; signed around bottom right, ARTHUR LEE
The reverse bears anvil with scroll above surface. Around, THE WELL-BEING OF MEN IS
FORGED ON THE ANVIL OF INDUSTRY / & MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE CHANNELS OF TRADE; above anvil,
MARCH 28 · 1925; scroll inscribed with WALTER E. FREW
The edge is marked GORHAM CO FOUNDERS OFCI
The medallion celebrates the 75th anniversary of Lehman Brothers, a finance firm whose storied
career came to an infamous end in 2008 when its bancruptcy declaration triggered a global financial
crisis. In 1925, the year of this medallion's issue, Lehman Brothers had just added its first non-family
partner and was rapidly becoming one of the premier investment banks of the world. Often working in
conjunction with Goldman Sachs, they brought such giants as Sears, Roebuck & Co., Woolworth, Gimbel Bros.,
R. H. Macy, Studebaker and Goodrich Co. to market.
This particular medallion is inscribed to Walter E. Frew (1864-1941), 
who was Chairman of the Corn
Exchange Bank and Trust Company from 1929 to his death in 1941. Lehman Brothers handled a large stock issuance
for the company and this medallion was probably given to him as a deal memento.
Arthur Lee was called upon again twenty-five years later to create a medallion for Lehman's 100th
anniversary. That later version was smaller but shared this medallion's general design, with the
exception of different dates and a slightly
different legend on the reverse. It was manufactured by the Medallic Art Company of New York.
The circular medallion measures 122mm in diameter and was cast in bronze and gold-plated by the Gorham Company
of Providence, RI.
