1776 (1783) AE Medal Betts-615, Libertas Americana, BN MS(PCGS#151815)

The Summer 2022 Global Showcase Auction U.S. Coins

拍卖行

Stack's Bowers

批号

8262

等级

MS63+BN

价格

215,115

详细说明

Choice Mint State Bronze Libertas Americana Medal MS-63+ (PCGS) From the Newman Collection "1781" (1783) Libertas Americana Medal. Original. Paris Mint. By Augustin Dupre. Adams-Bentley 15, Betts-615. Copper. MS-63+ BN (PCGS). 47.7 mm. There are few items on more want lists, or more cherished once acquired, than a choice bronze Libertas Americana medal. This is an especially lovely one, with bold originality and rich deep chocolate-brown color. The surfaces are free of any significant distractions, though the luster is a bit muted from harmless surface dirt. A very subtle and shallow scratch is seen under DIIS on the reverse, but otherwise the surfaces are just about pristine. Some scattered lint marks are noted, including a curved one in the obverse exergue at the base of IL of JUIL, another at E of AMERICANA, and smaller ones elsewhere. A raised speck of verdigris is hidden on the stepped rim above R of AMERICANA. The obverse shows subtle spread in the two strikes, the reverse shows none, an indication that the obverse was the hammer die. The overall visual appeal is spectacular, particularly at this grade level. There is something special about this medal in its copper form. Whether it be its relationship to the first copper issues of the US Mint or just the way the design looks in rich chocolate-brown, the impact of medals like this in hand is always breathtaking. It is well known that Benjamin Franklin preferred Dupre's majestic design in copper. "The Impression in Copper is thought to appear best," Franklin wrote to Robert Livingston on April 15, 1783, though one wonders if he might have written something different if the piece he enclosed for Livingston was a silver one. Copper specimens like this one were sent to the members of Congress and other functionaries close to the government; it seems likely that more copper pieces were distributed in the United States than in France. "I have sent by different Opportunities so many as that every Member of Congress might have One," Franklin wrote to Elias Boudinot, then President of Congress but later Director of the Mint. "I hope they are come safe to hand by this time." Boudinot confirmed their arrival and described how he parceled them out: "I have received the additional number of Medals, which, not having any particular directions from you, I distributed among the Members of Congress, presented one to the Governor of each State, and the Ministers round Congress." Every time a collector encounters a Libertas Americana medal in this format today, it's fair to wonder if it was one of the ones Franklin sent to the United States for distribution to our Founding Fathers. This piece's more recent provenance, to a founding father of modern numismatics, only deepens that sense of history. Provenance: From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier ex Eric P. Newman Collection; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society; Heritage's sale of the Eric P. Newman Collection, November 2018, lot 15010. PCGS# 151815. Click here for certification details from PCGS. Image with the PCGS TrueView logo is obtained from and is subject to a license agreement with Collectors Universe, Inc. and its divisions PCGS and PSA. Click here to see Coins in Motion.[“Coins]