I guess This Is My Next Area of Collecting.....Heraldic Art Medals

Jzyskowski1

coinsarefun

Awesome! Does this mean you have a complete set? I'm missing I think I still need 17 pieces for the standard set.

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@Goldminers said:
#60 last of the series. 1978.

coinsarefun

I was lucky and picked this one up for rather good price. It an Occasional Piece.
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1965 ADLAI STEVENSON Heraldic Art Medals

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coinsarefun

And, 2 more that I finally was able to image.

Jimmy Doolitle Heraldic Art medal

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Nathan Palmer‘Antarctic Pioneer

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Zoins

@coinsarefun said:
And, 2 more that I finally was able to image.

Jimmy Doolitle Heraldic Art medal

Bob McNamara picked really interesting and important topics. I didn't realize Doolittle was a scientist and that text made me look him up and learn some new information. It's neat that he was raised in Nome, Alaska, went to Berkeley and received a PhD from MIT.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Doolittle

James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his daring raid on Japan during World War II.[1] He also made early coast-to-coast flights, record-breaking speed flights, won many flying races, and helped develop and flight-test instrument flying.[2]

Raised in Nome, Alaska, Doolittle studied as an undergraduate at University of California, Berkeley, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1922. He also earned a doctorate in aeronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1925, the first issued in the United States.[2][3] In 1929, he pioneered the use of "blind flying", where a pilot relies on flight instruments alone, which later won him the Harmon Trophy and made all-weather airline operations practical. He was a flying instructor during World War I and a reserve officer in the United States Army Air Corps, but he was recalled to active duty during World War II. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for personal valor and leadership as commander of the Doolittle Raid, a bold long-range retaliatory air raid on some of the Japanese main islands on April 18, 1942, four months after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The raid used 16 B-25B Mitchell medium bombers with reduced armament to decrease weight and increase range, each with a crew of five and no escort fighter aircraft. It was a major morale booster for the United States and Doolittle was celebrated as a hero, making him one of the most important national figures of the war.

Doolittle was promoted to lieutenant general and commanded the Twelfth Air Force over North Africa, the Fifteenth Air Force over the Mediterranean, and the Eighth Air Force over Europe. Doolittle retired from the Air Force in 1959 but remained active in many technical fields. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 1967, eight years after retirement and only five years after the Hall was founded. He was eventually promoted to general in 1985, presented to him by President Ronald Reagan 43 years after the Doolittle Raid.[4] In 2003, he topped Air & Space/Smithsonian magazine's list of the greatest pilots of all time, and ten years later, Flying magazine ranked Doolittle sixth on its list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation.[5][6] He died in 1993 at the age of 96, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

coinsarefun

@zoins that’s what got me so interested in this series! Besides fantastic depictions and creative artwork. You learn just a little bit more about each person or topic. In a few of his designs I love the way the mountains creep into the rim area. They don’t always stay inside the predefined circle of the coin. His series is the only series I ever had the desire to collect.
And……..they aren’t even toned…….lol

Goldminers

@coinsarefun said:
Awesome! Does this mean you have a complete set? I'm missing I think I still need 17 pieces for the standard set.

@Goldminers said:

60 last of the series. 1978.

I am very close to having an example of all of the standard silver series. I am missing one of the medals and a Special edition.

I would really like to get them all in PCGS holders, but it would cost over $2,100 at regular grading to do around 70 medals, counting a few thick, thin, or reverse orientation varieties, and that is just hard to justify.

There should be a special bulk or discounted rate for sending in a set like this, as no special medal research time is really needed. I may need to get a few graded, and/or crossed over to request a registry set for them. Have you asked Paulina about a registry set yet?

coinsarefun

@Goldminers said:

@coinsarefun said:
Awesome! Does this mean you have a complete set? I'm missing I think I still need 17 pieces for the standard set.

@Goldminers said:

60 last of the series. 1978.

I am very close to having an example of all of the standard silver series. I am missing one of the medals and a Special edition.

I would really like to get them all in PCGS holders, but it would cost over $2,100 at regular grading to do around 70 medals, counting a few thick, thin, or reverse orientation varieties, and that is just hard to justify.

There should be a special bulk or discounted rate for sending in a set like this, as no special medal research time is really needed. I may need to get a few graded, and/or crossed over to request a registry set for them. Have you asked Paulina about a registry set yet?

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No I haven’t yet because I just don’t know what to do either. I would really like to have a registry set but like
you it doesn’t make sense to spend that kind of money.
I’m having a few graded and trueviewed form PCGS. And the rest sit waiting.

Goldminers

This last of the 7 special issue pieces was a very tough one to get. I wish I could get my photos to look as good as yours do.

mr1931S

@coinsarefun said:
I have a whole bunch of reading material but it takes time to get it from him. He’s an older guy In Tennessee and makes me read what he send me followed by a short quiz….then more. OMG I’m tired of that but I guess he wants people to learn

Old guys can be like that. I can understand where he's coming from. Too many these days think they have learned it all. Information and knowledge is valuable and not to be dispensed to those who don't really want to learn new things. The quiz is for him to try and figure out that he's not wasting his time and energy on a know-it-all whose biggest concern is "how much money is it worth?" Your patience with him about the quizzes you cheerfully endure is his reward for sharing with you.

isamucoinandcurrency

@coinsarefun
I am so glad I found this thread. I have three coin boxes of Heraldic Art coins that I wasn't sure to do with. I will now give them a closer look.

coinsarefun

@isamucoinandcurrency said:
@coinsarefun
I am so glad I found this thread. I have three coin boxes of Heraldic Art coins that I wasn't sure to do with. I will now give them a closer look.

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You have to post them when you can......would love to see what you have.

Paradisefound

I admire your unparalleled passion in this hobby @coinsarefun 🥰

❤️These …..

coinsarefun

@Paradisefound said:
I admire your unparalleled passion in this hobby @coinsarefun 🥰

❤️These …..

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Thank you very much. I really do love these modern Half dollars.

isamucoinandcurrency

@coinsarefun these are the coins that I have. There are multiples of most except for about two which are singles.

Goldminers

After 5 months, I finally have these which add to the Coin Facts database in hopes of a set for them someday.

Goldminers

These 1978 ones are the last in the series.

coinsarefun

Fantastic @Goldminers. Excellent job and super patience!
I hoping after all this health problems settle down and we sell our home I want to return
to this series and submit mine to the database and try to finish it.
Be well!

ZoidMeister

I know this isn't part of the regular Heraldic Art Medal series, but I do believe it was created by their maker, Robert McNamara for a local coin club he belonged to. I happened across this piece and picked it up to pair with the Heraldic Art medals I have been fortunate to acquire.

I think I am only missing five or six pieces of the regular 60 piece series.

Z
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Goldminers

@coinsarefun said:
Fantastic @Goldminers. Excellent job and super patience!
I hoping after all this health problems settle down and we sell our home I want to return
to this series and submit mine to the database and try to finish it.
Be well!

I wish PCGS would separate the Heraldic Art medals into categories in Coin Facts and Pop reports and also the Medallic Art medals, and other so-called dollars and SC50C medals.

There should already be a list of the 60 Heraldic Art medals in the PCGS database, plus the 7 special ones to look up numbers even before submitting like we have done for some of the first ones they have seen.

Unfortunately, it seems to require lengthy research each time a new one shows up for grading like some of these. I have them all, as I am sure you do too now, but submitting is very time consuming and pricy.

A graded set would be challenging, as I still can't see why my Colorado got MS67, as it really looked good. I need to know what I missed.

Cheers, and stay healthy!

coinkid855

Great stuff everyone!

Here's another few dies I still own. I like the little arrows on the Illinois pointing out a pair of die cracks.

Paul

coinsarefun

Super cool @coinkid855 i would love to own the Yellowstone dies that you have.

coinkid855

@coinsarefun said:
Super cool @coinkid855 i would love to own the Yellowstone dies that you have.

Thanks!

Well I've never sold a die pair, but only because I haven't received an offer I like more than the die pair itself. :P

Goldminers

@coinsarefun,

There is now a PCGS registry for these Heraldic Art Medals. Someone has a stunning first set filled with mostly all top pops already.

https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/u-s-coins/medals-tokens/so-called-half-dollars-silver-basic-set-1959-1978/8363

I will need to sort through a few of mine to decide what to send in. Since this is the "basic" set of 60, I think the 7 special medals will be a variety set and maybe with some thick, thin examples at some point.

coinsarefun

@Goldminers said:
@coinsarefun,

There is now a PCGS registry for these Heraldic Art Medals. Someone has a stunning first set filled with mostly all top pops already.

https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/u-s-coins/medals-tokens/so-called-half-dollars-silver-basic-set-1959-1978/8363

I will need to sort through a few of mine to decide what to send in. Since this is the "basic" set of 60, I think the 7 special medals will be a variety set and maybe with some thick, thin examples at some point.

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Interesting to say the least!. And super happy to see one finally started

coinsarefun

I’m not sure if I posted this here yet. I’m also not sure if I have the number right but this is what I have and what I’m missing. Some are graded PCGS and some by NGC. But, most are raw.

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seanq

@erwindoc said:

@Meltdown said:
A few years back, I had a chance to purchase an old estate collection with a bunch of Heraldic Art Medals.
They sure were fun to go through. I kept a few of my favorite pieces but sold most of the rest.

I have been sort of looking for a set of those Presidential / Declaration Signor medals in the Whitman bookshelf albums. I collect the bookshelf albums and have all but one of the those empty, but they are so unusual I think it would be cool to have a set filled as well.

Sean Reynolds

coinsarefun

Well it's been sometime now that Ive posted to this thread. I picked up a few that I didn't have yet and one in particular I'm not sure to call it an error or uniface. It's the Dwight D. Eisenhower which is included in the occasional medals, not the regular issue. It is unique but seem considerably larger in diameter (I'll get a measurement tomorrow) And, well its looks more like an error to me. I am posting two images. One including the edge and one without.
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All comments or help would be great!.

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joeykoins

@coinsarefun said:
Well it's been sometime now that Ive posted to this thread. I picked up a few that I didn't have yet and one in particular I'm not sure to call it an error or uniface. It's the Dwight D. Eisenhower which is included in the occasional medals, not the regular issue. It is unique but seem considerably larger in diameter (I'll get a measurement tomorrow) And, well its looks more like an error to me. I am posting two images. One including the edge and one without.
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All comments or help would be great!.

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Awesome!
Brockages?

Another Brockage example

Goldminers

Since I didn't know what these errors were, I figured it would help to look it up.

Brockage errors are caused when an already minted coin sticks to the coin die and impresses onto another blank that hasn't been struck yet, pressing a mirror image of the other coin into the blank.

Learn or see something new almost every day on this site.

Thanks.

davewesen

The cent looks more like a uniface - 2 blanks between dies at same time

coinsarefun - looks like broadstruck at least - what is the other side supposed to look like?

coinsarefun

Well, I put three Occasional medals together on edge and the Ike is on the left. So it did not get larger in diameter but it does weigh less.

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Then I took obverse and reverse images of all three occasional medals. I still am not sure what this error....if it could be called an error is or was it struck as a die trial? It weighs less but different from the standard wight of the regular series.

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Goldminers

@coinsarefun,
Don Smith has one listed on eBay for $500 but the photos are of no value for comparison. He calls it a uniface error, but I suspect this was one of Robert McNamara's trial strikes since it is different weight or thickness.

My regular one has been sitting at PCGS for 4 months now, so I don't have a photo of the reverse the way it should be to post yet. I found this.

coinsarefun

@Goldminers said:
@coinsarefun,
Don Smith has one listed on eBay for $500 but the photos are of no value for comparison. He calls it a uniface error, but I suspect this was one of Robert McNamara's trial strikes since it is different weight or thickness.

My regular one has been sitting at PCGS for 4 months now, so I don't have a photo of the reverse the way it should be to post yet. I found this.

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Sorry, took sometime to get back to you. Yours is beautiful and I agree it’s one of his die trial strikes. I posted it on Facebook and Ron Landis saw it and gave me the opinion it’s a die trial as well for several reasons.

coinsarefun

Here are some pickups from several months ago. Most are duplicates but some are really nice enough to get graded.

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Namvet69

Current US mint artists should take note of these designs. IMO

coinsarefun

@Namvet69 said:
Current US mint artists should take note of these designs. IMO

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I could agree with you more. McNamara is responsible for all this beauty on the half dollar commemoratives.
He knew who to hire for engravers.

coinsarefun

I forgot to include one more pick up. Nathan Palmer

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Goldminers

Here is my new pickup. Still waiting on grades for my silver set to be complete.

This thin version like the Alaska and Hawaii, was 18kt gold, 48 minted, .5625 troy ounce. Later versions from 1960 on were 22kt .6875 troy ounce.

Zoins

@Goldminers said:
Here is my new pickup. Still waiting on grades for my silver set to be complete.

This thin version like the Alaska and Hawaii, was 18kt gold, 48 minted, .5625 troy ounce. Later versions from 1960 on were 22kt .6875 troy ounce.

Wow! Congrats on a gold!

Did you get one of the copper restrike sets from @coinkid855? I think those could look great with the gold and silver.

Zoins

@Zoins said:
Here's a great pair I picked up from @coinkid855! Thanks!

I'm a big fan of full brockage errors, which seem especially common with Civil War Tokens. I couldn't resist picking up this pair with both pieces together!

Is it bad to bump your own piece?

@Goldminers said:
Since I didn't know what these errors were, I figured it would help to look it up.

Brockage errors are caused when an already minted coin sticks to the coin die and impresses onto another blank that hasn't been struck yet, pressing a mirror image of the other coin into the blank.

Learn or see something new almost every day on this site.

I just had to see this full brockage again!

Here, piece 2 was struck first and then a new blank was impressed upon it to form piece 1.

Thanks to @coinkid855 for selling these to me!

Zoins

@coinsarefun said:

@Namvet69 said:
Current US mint artists should take note of these designs. IMO

I could agree with you more. McNamara is responsible for all this beauty on the half dollar commemoratives.
He knew who to hire for engravers.

For the Eisenhower piece, he worked with Paul Vincze, but for the most part, he engraved these himself, which is amazing!

Goldminers

@Zoins said:

@coinsarefun said:

@Namvet69 said:
Current US mint artists should take note of these designs. IMO

I could agree with you more. McNamara is responsible for all this beauty on the half dollar commemoratives.
He knew who to hire for engravers.

For the Eisenhower piece, he worked with Paul Vincze, but for the most part, he engraved these himself, which is amazing!

I believe the first two medals were sculpted/engraved by Steven Augustus Rebeck from Cleveland, and medals #3-8 were engraved by Walter A. Sinz who was educated at the Cleveland school of Art and taught there from 1911 to 1952. Robert McNamara did most the rest.

Goldminers

@Zoins said:

@Goldminers said:
Here is my new pickup. Still waiting on grades for my silver set to be complete.

This thin version like the Alaska and Hawaii, was 18kt gold, 48 minted, .5625 troy ounce. Later versions from 1960 on were 22kt .6875 troy ounce.

Wow! Congrats on a gold!

Did you get one of the copper restrike sets from @coinkid855? I think those could look great with the gold and silver.

I did not try for any of the copper medals but agree they look nice. I tend to stick with PM's for my collecting other than a few scarce original bronzes.

horseyride

Apologies, might be slightly off topic, but I since have all the medal collectors in one spot ... If anyone has an extra Franklin Mint NCS Richard Byrd, which I believe is Series II #56, please PM me. Thanks

coinsarefun

I’ve been looking and comparing these two Northfield medals. The one is graded by PCGS and the other is raw.
I’m still not sure to send it to NGC or PCGS because I have a fair amount of HA medals over at NGC but don’t have the
Northfield there.
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Anyways the reason I’m posting this is the finish on the raw one (right side in pics)
Looks almost like it can be a proof, or a SP. is it me? Am I wrong and the raw is just a better strike?
I tried to make the light shinning even on both pieces.
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I don’t remember reading anything about -roofs or special proofs, even presentation pieces.
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Give me your thoughts please………..

The one on the right is in a self slab
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Goldminers

Very nice pair of Northfields! The one on the right is certainly proof-like, but probably not a true proof.

Here is a link to my current digital album and gallery. I have several being graded that will upgrade it as I want to get them all to 68 or better. I think you will see a couple True Views in there, that have a look a little bit like yours on the right.

https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/u-s-coins/medals-tokens/so-called-half-dollars-silver-basic-set-1959-1978/album/310268

https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/u-s-coins/medals-tokens/so-called-half-dollars-silver-basic-set-1959-1978/imagegallery/310268

jesbroken

Does this Sangre de Hispania Fecunda Medal qualify as a Heraldic Art Medal? Also, would acetone help the verdigris in the lower right, or would it discolor the brass?
Jim

Goldminers

@jesbroken said:
Does this Sangre de Hispania Fecunda Medal qualify as a Heraldic Art Medal? Also, would acetone help the verdigris in the lower right, or would it discolor the brass?
Jim

No, the Heraldic Art Medals are considered to be those minted by Robert McNamara in Ohio.

Acetone usually will not harm the medal and can help remove that area you mentioned.

The medal obverse states something like, "The fertile blood of Spain" and may be from a Nicaraguan poem written in 1905. Do you know the date of the medal?

jesbroken

This was made by the Medallic Art Co. NY but doesn't have a date as some of the same medals do on the opposite edge side. So it's probably just a medal made for a commercial purpose and not to commemorate an event. Bought this a couple of years ago out of curiosity. An Ismael Smith listed on the obverse and reverse.
Jim