Three New Medals from the NYINC

Iosephus

Went to the NYINC on Friday and was able to acquire three new medals. There tends to be little selection in my area, and I often end up picking up slightly lesser quality pieces which I still find interesting (though not necessarily inexpensive). Got to see Zohar and Harasha again, and met TwoKopeiki for the first time. It's always great to see people from the board in person, even if only briefly.

I returned on Saturday with the sole purpose of attending the Medal Collectors of America meeting, where Stephen Scher gave a talk on his history in collecting Renaissance medals. For anyone who doesn't know him, he is one of the preeminent scholars and collectors of Renaissance medals, and recently donated his collection to the Frick Collection. A very interesting talk, with a focus on seeking quality examples. Unfortunately, he also mentioned something that I have noticed in the past few years, which is the lack of availability of good quality medals in the current marketplace.

The newps:

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Ottaviano Vestri / Ornate Vase

c. 1572

Bronze, 78.7 mm Ø, 106.4 g

Obverse: Bust of Ottaviano Vestri facing left, bearded and wearing doublet. Around, · OCT · VESTRIVS · ACCONIORVM · COMES · IVRE · CONS · AN · XLIII (Ottaviano Vestri, Count of [?], Jurist, In His 43rd Year).

Reverse: A decorative two-handled vase. Around, LVTVM NISI TVNDATVR NON FIT VRCEVS (Unless clay is pounded, it does not become a jar). Below the vase, POSTERORVM IMMITATIONI (For the imitation of posterity).

Ottaviano Vestri was a noble and jurist from Imola who died in 1572. He mediated between Florence and Ferrara and was created consistorial advocate by Pope Pius V in 1571. There is a smaller medal of Vestri from five years earlier with a similar reverse, and Attwood notes that the design suggests that Vestri overcame adversity. Toderi and Vannel interpret the reverse as a funerary urn and, combined with the lower reverse inscription, see this as a memorial after Vestri's death. Attwood attributes this medal to Rome, while Toderi and Vannel list it under Milan.

References: Attwood 2003, no. 1053; Börner 1997, no. 820; Toderi and Vannel 2000, no. 300

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Francesco Redi / Eternity and Fame

by Massimiliano Soldani-Benzi, 1685

Bronze, 87.6 mm Ø, 188.0 g

Obverse: Bust of Francesco Redi facing right, with long curly hair and draped cloak. Around, FRANCISCVS · REDI · PATRITIVS · ARETINVS · . Beneath the bust, M · SOLD · 1684 .

Reverse: Eternity, veiled, sitting at left with her left foot on a globe, handing a laurel wreath to Minerva, who kneels on top of Time, represented as a winged old man with a scythe. In the background, two columns supporting an architrave on which is written AETERNITATI , topped by a snake biting its tail. To the right, AERE · PEREMNIVS . In exergue, M · S · F · 1685 .

Francesco Redi was born in Arezzo on February 18, 1626. He attended the University of Pisa and received doctoral degrees in both medicine and philosophy in 1647. He performed research and experiments in the fields of toxicology, entomology, and parasitology. He also wrote the poem Bacco in Toscana, which was published after his death. Redi died on March 1, 1697, in Pisa.

The reverse design of this medal can be interpreted that Redi's fame will live on for eternity. Eternity gives the laurel wreath, a symbol of triumph, to Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, who kneels on a fallen Old Man Time. Additionally, the ouroboros, an ancient symbol of a snake biting its own tail, is a symbol of eternity, representing the infinite cycle of life and death.

References: Börner 1997, no. 1489; Vannel and Toderi 1987, no. 38; Vannel and Toderi 2005, nos. 183-184

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Pope Clement XI / Aqueduct at the Port of Civitavecchia

by Ferdinand de Saint-Urbain, 1703

Silver, 35.2 mm Ø, 20.3 g

Obverse: Bust of Clement XI facing right, wearing camauro, mozzetta, and decorative stole. Around, CLEMENS · XI · P · M · AN · III . Under the bust, S · VR · .

Reverse: View of the Port of Civitavecchia, with the aqueduct throughout the background terminating at the decorative fountain in the center. Around, HAVRIETIS · IN · GAVDIO (Drink in Joy).

Annual medal for the third year of Clement XI's pontificate, commemorating the inauguration of the new aqueduct at Civitavecchia. In addition to this annual medal by Saint-Urbain, a larger medal by Giovanni Hamerani was also produced to commemorate this aqueduct.

Work had begun under Innocent XII to build an aqueduct to provide water to the port and city of Civitavecchia. The undertaking to carry water from Allumiere traced the ancient aqueduct of Trajan and covered over twenty miles. After Innocent's death, Clement XI continued the project and set aside the funds needed to complete the work. He entrusted the direction of the project to Cardinal Benedetto Pamphili, who had already directed the aqueduct work at the Port of Anzio. On November 22, 1702, the project was complete and water gushed forth from the fountain in the port.

References: Bartolotti 1967, no. E 703; Miselli 1997, no. 37; Modesti 2007, no. 181

Zohar

Great pickups Iosephus. Mr. Scher's collection is phenomenal, well beyond medals! Glad you enjoyed the show.

EVillageProwler

Great looking newps. Congrats. Sorry I missed you. Would like to have said 'hi' again. Maybe next year.

EVP

Iosephus

@EVillageProwler said:
Great looking newps. Congrats. Sorry I missed you. Would like to have said 'hi' again. Maybe next year.

EVP

Likewise sorry I didn't get to see you again, though from your thread it sounds like Friday was a bit of a rough day for you. Here's hoping for next year!

STLNATS

Great Clement silver harbor view. Congrats.

TwoKopeiki

Iosephus, it was great to meet you in-person. Looks like a very productive show for you. Love the new additions, especially Eternity and Fame reverse!

harasha

Always look forward to a Josephus production!

JCMhouston

Very nice, I really like the eternity and fame reverse.

PatAR

Great pickups! Love the flowing lines of the eternity and fame design.

laurentyvan

Unfortunately, he also mentioned something that I have noticed in the past few years, which is the lack of availability of good quality medals in the current marketplace.

Josephus, does this mean that top quality medals are in short supply from a mintage point of view or that material is being hoarded or that the population of medal collectors is increasing?

The Eternity and Fame medal is stunning!

Stork

Those are gorgeous! Medals/metallic art are fascinating--I particularly like the Francesco Redi one!

Iosephus

@laurentyvan said:
Unfortunately, he also mentioned something that I have noticed in the past few years, which is the lack of availability of good quality medals in the current marketplace.

Josephus, does this mean that top quality medals are in short supply from a mintage point of view or that material is being hoarded or that the population of medal collectors is increasing?

Related to Renaissance medals, there is in general not a lot (compared to more recent centuries) of material in existence, especially since many of the medals were cast, not struck in vast quantities. My sense is that a lot of material has left the marketplace for good by being acquired by institutions. Perhaps ironically is the example of Dr. Scher's own collection: over 400 medals which were donated to the Frick Collection - never to be on the market again. Similarly, I have seen medals from recent sales be purchased by the Met and the ANS, and I'm sure other institutions are also buying. I continue to hold out hope that there are pieces out there that will eventually surface, even if only sporadically.