1876 Phila Expo medal
Namvet69
Posts: 8,947 ✭✭✭✭✭
Came across this 58mm white metal version of this medal at a great price. It's got proof like fields and was even in it's original case with purple velvet lining. I know they made 2 sizes but I can't seem to figure out rarity. Your indulgence is appreciated. Enjoy. Peace Roy
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Comments
I own a four pice set in the original. Off the top of my head, the large white metal piece has the lowest mintage of the four at about 500 pieces. That sounds low, but it isn’t for a 19th century medal. The other medals are a large bronze with the same diameter as your white medal piece and two smaller, approximately silver dollar size in gilded bronze and silver.
The larger 57mm. medals were available in Bronze, White Metal and Gilt Copper with medals also reported in Copper and Silver. I haven't seen the latter two but own example of the first three.
The smaller 38mm. medals were issued in Silver, Bronze and Gilt Copper which I have owned in the past and reported issues in White Metal which I haven't seen.
They are all readily available with the larger White Metal and Gilt Copper being hardest to find. The smaller medals are all pretty common. The example posted appears to have been wiped, but the hairlines could be die polish. The 4-piece set alluded to above could be purchased at the fair in any configuration the purchaser wanted, there was no standard set. Most of the sets seen today have been put together and it isn't uncommon for a collector to "pay up" for the box to assemble their medals.
Thanks @BillJones @Maywood . The larger size really works for this medal design. Wonder why the mint didn't include engraver/ designer initials or last name.
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Julian lists a mintage of 583 for the large white metal version, but what it REALLY says is that he found US Mint records that say that 583 were struck. There's nothing to say that the US Mint records were complete. Also, the US Mint records say nothing about examples struck outside the Mint.
The large white metal version is common enough that there clearly were more than 583 struck.
There is a subvariety that has no daubs of paint on the artist's palette (at the lower left of the side with three figures), and other minor design differences. That variety is rare enough that I could believe that there were 583 struck of that variety, and the rest of the white metal examples with daubs have a higher mintage. That's just speculation, though; I don't have anything to back it up.