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1933 Franklin D Roosevelt Inaugural Medal
Shola79
Posts: 11 ✭
Can anyone help with guidance on how to get an appraisal on these medals. The medals are 3 inches in diameter, bronze in color, WITH THE INSCRIPTION ON THE FRONT: FranklinDelanoRoosevelt* 31st President of the United States, John Nance Garner Vice President and on the BACK SIDE: GreatThouTooSailOnOShipOfStateSailOnOUnionStrongand*Great. Thank you!!
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First recommendation: get it out of the palm of your hand. Only handle it by the edges. (The oils/sweat on your hands can damage the surface).
It would be really helpful to see the other side as well.
In any case, this may or may not be an Inaugural medal - might just be the US Mint's medal for FDR. Not sure on this - someone here will know.
No matter which it is, it is a large bronze medal in very nice shape.
It is the 1933 FDR inaugural medal. I agree about the way you are handling it. You need to keep you skin off of the surfaces.
There are two surface finish varieties of this medal. This one is more common variety, which I think was struck be the U.S. Mint. Medallic Art made the scarcer one, which has a darker finish.
Check the side rim to see if any of these were made by Medallic Art. The production by Medallic Art was limited... L believe that number was 50 before the US Mint took over the production. The total production was around 1000 or so. The value for these have dropped but they do not surface that often. As for the value, the US mint examples probably would still fetch 400-600 and the Medallic Arts examples should bring over 1000. I don’t recall seeing a group of 5 together like this. Consigning to auction might be the best route if you plan to sell.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
They appear to be in fantastic condition.
Wow, that's something you don't see every day!
The 1933 inaugural medal is one of the rarer inaugural medals. I bought a pair from a seller on eBay a number of years ago. I don't think I've ever seen five at once.
If you're looking for an appraisal for insurance purposes, then nobody's opinion here matters to you. You need to go to a licensed appraiser near you, and get the required paperwork.
If you're simply looking for a value estimate... well, then nobody's opinion here matters to you either. Mine included. :-) You're better off looking at recent sales, for example on eBay or major auction houses.
Off the top of my head, I would have said they're definitely worth $500 each, and might sell for $1000. With a little bit of research, I see two on eBay that aren't getting any bids at $600 and $800, plus one that sold last year at Heritage for over $1,100. Those numbers are EACH. You've got five? Congrats!
@JBK @jonathanb @coinkat @BillJones Thank you for the advice. I'm new to collecting and was lucky to get my hands on theses medals.
You don't need to get too personal, but do you care to share a very general hint of the source. such as inheritance or got lucky at a yard sale?
ONE nice one would be a find, but five in such nice shape is a huge score.
@JBK no worries....auction in Washington, DC selling items from different government agencies.
Nice!
They've probably been sitting in a drawer or closet for decades. No wonder they look so nice. No wear on the high spots. Outstanding.
They are in amazing condition.
If you have the original boxes, that will adds to the value.
I bought my example years ago and don’t follow the market on these pieces. That’s why I didn’t write more about them.
@BillJones I do have the original boxes