All Medals

The medal's obverse bears Washington portrait, facing quarter-left, under eye in the sky with radiant beams of light; underneath, streamer with inscription (acorn) SUO (acorn) SE (acorn) ROE - ORE (acorn) FIRMAT (acorn); right angle and compass at center bottom. Around bottom half, HE WAS A BROTHER - OF THE MYSTIC TIE

The reverse seal of Fredericksburg lodge with masonic symbols and Washington's progress throught the masonic hierarchy. From left throught bottom, to right, NOV. 4 / 5752 / ENTERED / APPRENTICE; MAR. 3 - 5753 / FELLOW - CRAFT; AUG. 4 / 5753 / MASTER / MASON; signed at bottom, I. F. WOOD, DES. G. H. LOVETT, FEC.

The dates on the medal are numbered in the masonic calendar, which can be a bit confusing to non-masons, but we can simply subtract 4,000 from the numbers to get the "common" calendar years. Washington advanced quickly through the apprenticeship stage to emerge a master mason at the young age of 21.

The medal was designed by Isaac F. Wood and the dies were cut by George H. Lovett. It measures 51mm in diameter and was struck in bronze.  It appears to be a pretty rare medal though I am not aware of its exact mintage.

The medallion's obverse bears figure in bedouin garb, hand over eyes as if to shield them from the sun. Across, TO / GREATER VISION THROUGH / OPTICAL SCIENCE / BAUSCH / & LOMB; around bottom, · CONTINUOUS · CONTROL · OF · EVERY · PROCESS · THROUGH · GLASS · MAKING · AND · SCIENTIFIC · COMPUTATION · TO · FINISHED · PRODUCT · ; signed and dated at bottom over rim, C.A. HAFNER 1919

The reverse bears legend only; across, THIS MEDALLION WAS / CREATED FOR / BAUSCH & LOMB OPTICAL CO. / OF ROCHESTER, N.Y. / BY / FRANK SEAMAN INCORPORATED / MERCHANDISING AND / ADVERTISING SERVICE / NEW YORK; at bottom over rim, GORHAM CO.

This is a simple and beautiful corporate advertising medal that reminds me a little bit of Daniel Chester French's great "Mourning Victory," even though the subject matter is totally different.

The circular medallion measures 89.2mm in diameter, 9mm in thickness, and weighs in at a massive 507g. It was manufactured by the Gorham Manufacturring Company of Providence, Rhode Island. No mintage is reported.

Many thanks to Igor A. Osipov for identifying the artist based on the tiny signature that I could not make out on my medal and providing me with the medal's weight.  My scale only goes to 500g...

References:   Cal MA-1996

References:   HSoNY 1904

The uniface medal bears bust of Captain Arthur Rostron facing right. Around, S·S·TITANIC (laurel branch) APRIL·15·1912 (laurel branch) S·S·CARPATHIA / CAPTAIN · ROSTRON; signed to left and right of bust, © - SPICER·/SIMSON

The edge is marked with a faint "41"

On April 15, 1912, Arthur Henry Rostron (1869-1940) was a captain for the Cunard Line when his ship, the ocean liner RMS Carpathia, received a distress signal from the White Star liner RMS Titanic. The Titanic had struck an iceberg and was sinking rapidly.  Rostron immediately ordered his ship to race for the sinking Titanic.  His engineering crew coaxed the Carpathia's engines up to 17.5 knots, 3.5 knots over its rated speed. He took a huge risk racing through dense ice at night but he knew what was at stake when a major liner was sinking in freezing water in the middle of the Atlantic.  In the 3.5 hours which it took to arrive at the Titanic's radioed position he gave 23 orders that would later prove to have saved lives. His crew prepared blankets, food and drinks and ended up rescuing 710 survivors from the freezing waters of the Atlantic.

Rostron was honored with the Congressional Gold Medal, the Thanks of Congress, the American Cross of Honor, and medals by the Liverpool and New York Shipwreck Societies.  Rostron would eventually rise to the position of Commodore of the Cunard Line and served as a British Naval Officer during World War I.

The medal was privately commissioned by Titanic survivors Margaret Brown and Dennis Telluride.

The circular medal measures 51mm. Only 500 pieces were struck in bronze.

The medal's obverse bears female figure, facing right, lightly resting arm on back of doe while holding down tree branch so doe can reach it. Around, THE · MASSACHUSETTS · SOCIETY · FOR · THE · PREVENTION · OF · CRUELTY · TO · ANIMALS; at left, KINDNESS / IS THE GREAT / VIRTUE · ;to right, · TO LOVE / BEAUTY IS TO / DRAW · NEAR / TO GOD · ; in exergue, MEDAL · OF · AWARD; signed at lower right, RAYMOND / PORTER

The reverse bears lit torch at top and laurel wreath around. Engraved in center field to HOLMES C. HURLL / APRIL 1928

The Massachusetts Society of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or MSPCA for short, was founded in 1868. Boston Brahmin lawyer George Thorndike Angell began a high-profile protest of animal cruelty, after reading about two horses being raced to death by carrying two riders each over forty miles of rough roads. He joined with Emily Appleton, a Boston socialite and animal lover who provided financial support. They and 1,200 others formed the MSPCA. Among distinguished locals on the first board of directors were John Quincy Adams II, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Saltonstall, and William Gordon Weld.

The circular medal measures 76mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Whitehead & Hoag Company of Newark, New Jersey. No mintage is reported.

The uniface medallion bears barefoot tapper, facing left, harvesting latex from cut rubber tree. From large number at lower left, running around top, 20 - YEARS OF FRIENDLY RELATIONS; to right of tapper, FIRST / GOODYEAR / RUBBER / PLANTATION / 1916; signed between tapper's feed, (RC monogram)

Rubber tapping is the process by which latex is collected from a rubber tree. The latex is harvested by slicing a groove into the bark of the tree at a depth of a quarter inch with a hooked knife and peeling back the bark. Trees must be approximately six years old and six inches in diameter in order to be tapped for latex. Each night a rubber tapper must remove a thin layer of bark along a downward half spiral on the tree trunk. If done carefully and with skill, this tapping panel will yield latex for up to five hours. Then the opposite side will be tapped, allowing this side to heal over. The spiral allows the latex to run down to a collecting cup. The work is done at night or in the early morning before the day's temperature rises, so the latex will drip longer before coagulating and sealing the cut.

Charles Goodyear is usually credited with the modern discovery of vulcanization of rubber, though Thomas Hancock of Boston received a patent for vulcanized rubber 8 weeks before Goodyear did and the two were in bitter litigation at one point. Though losing the patent suit he had brought in England, he prevailed as a business man. In 1860 he traveled to New York to see his dying daughter but upon finding that he had arrived too late he collapsed and died shortly thereafter. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was founded by Frank Seiberling almost four decaades after his death.

This is the 20 year version of Rene Chambellan's Goodyear series of medallions. All of these medallions came mounted to a wooden board to be hung in offices or shops that were selling Goodyear product.

The circular medallion measures 108mm and is struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York. No mintage is reported.

References:   MACo 1948-041-x

References:   MACo 1972-103

The medal's obverse bears bust of Pocahontas facing left. Around, within beaded border, · TER-CENTENNIAL · OF · THE · SETTLEMENT · OF · JAMESTOWN · / 1607 - 1907

The reverse bears two ships under full sail. Around, within beaded border, · LANDING OF EXPEDITION UNDER CAPT.N JOHN SMITH ·  / MAY 13. 1607

The Jamestown Exposition of 1907 was held at what is now the Naval Base of Norfolk, Virginia.  It attracted 1.2 million visitors.

The circular medal measures 33.4mm in diameter and was struck in three different materials by the U.S. Mint.  The bronze variant is #346 and the gilt variant is #347 in the Hibler & Kappen reference of "So-Called Dollars."

Many thanks to the staff of the Yale University Art Gallery for their support and assistance and making the silver-plated variant of this medal available to me for research.

References:   HK 346,347

References:   BG 25