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Click here to subscribeBritish Commemorative Medals, Princess Clementina Sobieska, Escape from Innsbrück, copper medal, 1719, by Ottone Hamerani, bust of the Princess left, CLEMENTINA M BRITAN. FR ET HIB REGINA, rev. the Princess escapes in a chariot, the Italian landscape and the city of Rome behind, FORTVNAM CAVSAMQVE SEQVOR, 48mm. (MI.444/49; Woolf 36:1; Eimer 484), extremely fine
British Commemorative Medals, James (III), Elder Pretender, Marriage to Princess Maria Clementina Sobieska, copper medal, by Ottone Hamerani, his bust r., IACOBVS III DG M B F ET H REX, rev. her bust left, CLEMENTINA MAGNA BRITANNIAE ET.C. REG, 48mm (MI.ii 446/52; Woolf 37.1; Eimer 485), extremely fine, rare
British Commemorative Medals, The Princes Charles and Henry, The Legitimacy of Jacobite Succession, silver medal, 1731, by Ottone Hamerani, dr. and armoured bust of Prince Charles r., a star to front, MICAT INTER OMNES, rev. armoured bust of Prince Henry l., ALTER AB ILLO, lettered edge, DIE XXXI DECEMBR MDCCXX EXTVLIT OS SACRVM COELO, 41.5mm. (MI.492/34; Woolf 43:1; Eimer 521), minor marks and bruises, very fine
British Commemorative Medals, Cardinal Henry of York, The Death of Prince Charles Edward Stuart, copper medal, 1788, by Giovanni Hamerani, bust of the Cardinal r., rev. Piety stands by lion holding cross, St. Peter’s in the distance, 52.5mm. (BHM.282; Woolf 73.1a), perhaps once silvered; medallet, 1697, of James (III), and Peace of Ryswick, 25mm. (MI.194/503; Woolf 14.5a; Eimer 376); Death of Queen Mary, copper medal, 1694, 49.5mm. (MI.111/343; Eimer 362), first and last very fine, second poor (3)
British Commemorative Medals, Emma, Lady Hamilton (1765-1815), white glass paste cameo portrait, late-18th century, by James (1735-1799) or William (1777-1860) Tassie , after a gem by Filippo Rega, her head and shoulder bust to r., as ‘Hope’, her hair with single braid and wearing band, signed in Greek below ΡΕΓΑ, 52 x 43mm., the cameo 40 x 32mm. (cf. S. Comfort, Matthew Boulton’s Naval Medals, Wimbledon 2017, p. 94, a contemporary plaster cast illustrated), in a Victorian gold brooch mount with floral embellishments, a delightful and rare image, much as made In the portrait, Lady Hamilton’s hair is bound and braided in a self-conscious attempt at a Grecian coiffure, designed to complement Emma’s famous Grecian profile or here Elpis, the Goddess of Hope. The cameo is identical to that in the National Maritime Museum (JEW0338), there attributed to William Tassie, this in a gilt-metal mount and set in a black frame; the British Museum has a similar but intaglio image (1867,0708.1), in amber glass, set in gold frame with suspension loop attached, for use as a seal and supposed to have been owned by Lord Nelson. A left-facing hardstone cameo with a very similar image was sold at Sotheby’s, Trafalgar - Nelson and The Napoleonic Wars, including The Matcham Collection, 5 October, 2005, lot 154. Filippo Rega (1761– post 1833), born in Chieti on 26th August 1761, he was trained in Rome by the famous Pichler family between 1776 and 1787, before moving to Naples where he became director of the Laboratorio della Pietre Dure di Napoli, an institution founded by Carlo di Borbone in 1738.
British Commemorative Medals, Anti-Slavery, Thomas Clarkson (1760-1846), Abolitionist, silver medal, 1840, for the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society Convention, London, by J. Davis, bust r. in frock coat, rev. kneeling slave in chains, arms raised to God, legend encircling, 51.5mm. (BHM.1977; Eimer 1342, neither list in silver), toned, nearly extremely fine and exceedingly rare The portrait on the medal copies the painting by Benjamin Robert Haydon (now in the National Portrait Gallery) of the 81 year old Clarkson, President of the Society, speaking at the Convention held in the Great Room of the Freemasons’ Tavern, London in June 1840.
British Commemorative Medals, The Harris Award for Economical Cookery – The Winner of the Pork Sausage Derby, silver medal, 1897, unsigned and undated, bearded bust of William Harris, almost full-face, rev. Harris, waving his hat in the air rides a huge pig to l., 42.5mm., London hallmark, maker F.B, perhaps Frederick Thomas Buckthorpe, also stamped 0.990, suspension loop, ring and ribbon, good very fine, rare Mr William Harris (dc. 1843-1912), ‘The Sausage King’, of Smithfield, London. The medal’s reverse depicts his trade mark, used in his advertisements, depicting him as the winner of a fictional event called the Pork Sausage Derby. His principal catch-phrase was ‘Harris’s sausages are the best’ and it spread the fame of his sausages all over the world. Every Christmas Harris sent a gift of 1 lb. of sausages to each policeman and fireman in the City of London and in all other districts where he had a shop. He was not connected to the Harris factory in Calne, Wiltshire.
Foreign Medals, Germany, Brandenburg-Prussia, Crown Prince Wilhelm (1783-1851), circular Berlin Iron snuff or patch box, by (or after) Leonhard Posch, with high-relief half-length uniformed bust l., with three decorative machine-turned border circles around; the base with 10 decorative machine-turned border circles around central design, early 19th century, 76mm. (cf. Hintze pl. 41, 116b), an excellent box, extremely fine
Foreign Medals, Russia, Alexander II, Alexander Maximovich Knyazhevich, Minister of Finance, copper medal, 1861, to commemorate his 50 years of service, by Carl Heinrich Lorenz (Chief Medallist at the St. Petersburg mint, 1859-1861), bust r., rev. legend in five lines, 58.5mm. (Diakov 700.1; Sm.636), nearly extremely fine with chocolate-brown patina
Foreign Medals, Sweden, Queen Christina (1626-1689; Queen 1632-1654), small copper medal, by Johann Carl Hedlinger (1691-1771), no. 50 from his series of medals of Swedish royalty, armoured bust r., as Bellona, wearing plumed helmet, rev. legend in 11 lines, 34.5mm.; with a medal of the earlier King Erik XIV (1533-1577; King 1560-1568), no. 45 from the series, armoured bust r., rev. legend in 10 lines, 32mm. (Felder 100, 95), extremely fine (2) *ex Alan Irvine Collection
Foreign Medals, Sweden, copper medals (2), by Johann Carl Hedlinger (1691-1771): Queen Christina (1626-1689; Queen 1632-1654), no. 50 from his series of medals of Swedish royalty, armoured bust r., as Bellona, wearing plumed helmet, rev. legend in 11 lines, 33.5mm.; Gustav II Adolf (1594-1611-1632), Uppsala University founded 1624, undated (1733), laureate bust r., rev. seated figure of the Arts, FELICITAS MVSARVM VPSAL, 32.5mm. (Felder 100, 138), first extremely fine, second very fine (2)
Foreign Medals, Sweden, Charles XII (1682-1697-1718), Death at the Siege of Fredriksten, white metal medal, 1718, by Johann Carl Hedlinger (1691-1771), armoured bust r., with Sash, rev. a rampant lion tries to free himself from the entanglements of a rope, INDOCILIS PATI, 51.5mm. (Felder 18; Hild.I, 197), die flaw to edge at 3 o’clock, good very fine *ex Alan Irvine Collection Charles XII was besieging the Norwegian fortress of Fredriksten in the city of Fredrikshald [now Halden].
Foreign Medals, Sweden, Count Nicodemus Tessin, the Younger (1654-1728), Baroque architect, city planner and administrator, silver medal, 1728, by Johann Carl Hedlinger (1691-1771), his draped bust to right, with flowing hair, N TESSIN COM REGNI SVEC SEN ET S MARESCH, rev. Minerva seated by broken column with shield, globe and other emblems, PROFERT ET PROTEGIT ARTES, 62mm. (Felder 73; Hild. p.107, 4), extremely fine with dark tone, especially on the obverse, rare *ex Alan Irvine Collection and Spink, NC November, 1999 (4902) The medal was commissioned by his son, Karl Gustav Tessin, in the year of Nicodemus’s death. The popular medal was used as a prize medal for the arts. The portrait is considered to be one of Hedlinger’s finest.
Foreign Medals, Sweden, Johann Carl Hedlinger (1691-1771), self-portrait medals (2), the ‘Lagom’ medal, in copper, 1733, his head l., rev. an owl with helmet, spear and shield stands to the left, head turned back, Λ Α Γ Ο Μ, 35.5mm. (Felder 134; Hild.6; illus), a most pleasing example, mount-mark on top edge, otherwise extremely fine, scarce; bronzed white-metal, 1730, head and shoulders bust l., IOHANNES CAROLVS HEDLINGER, rev. fringed cloth covers plinth, on which sits a mirror, NE DISSIMVLA NE LVSINGER, 41.5mm. (Felder 114; Hild.169), this struck from flawed dies, scratch on reverse, very fine, very rare (2) *ex Alan Irvine Collection The Greek legend on the first spells the Swedish word ‘Lagom’, which became Hedlinger’s motto, implying ‘not too much and not too little’.
Foreign Medals, Syria, Syrian Arab Republic, proof gold commemorative medal, AH.1421/2000, President Hafiz Assad, 30th Year in Office, coat of arms of Syria upon hawk of Quraish with spread wings, rev. facing bust within sprigs, issued by the Central Bank of Syria, 35mm., .917 fine, wt. 40.11gms., in fitted case of issue, FDC
British Coins, Victoria, proof sovereign, 1887, ‘Jubilee’ bust l., rev. St. George and the dragon, straight grained edge (S.3866B; W&R.333; DM.219), type as issued in the proof sets of this year, a truly exceptional specimen, brilliant and virtually as struck, certified and graded by PCGS as Proof 63+ Deep Cameo Only two other examples graded PF63+DC by PCGS.
British Coins, Victoria, sovereign, 1887, ‘Jubilee’ bust l., tiny JEB (hooked J) at base of truncation, rev. St. George and the dragon (S.3866A), certified and graded by PCGS as Mint State 64 A very rare piece, probably the finest known, superior to the example in the Bentley collection that fetched £1320. The only example graded MS64 by PCGS.
British Coins, Victoria, proof sovereign, 1893, veiled bust l., rev. St. George and the dragon, straight grained edge (S.3874; W&R.341; Nobleman 277/9 (part); DM.221), type as issued in the proof sets of this year, a truly exceptional specimen, brilliant and virtually as struck, certified and graded by PCGS as Proof 65 Deep Cameo
Ancient Coins, Roman, Julia Domna (wife of Septimius Severus), silver denarius, struck AD.216, IVLIA PIA FELIX AVG, dr. bust facing r., rev. VENVS GENETRIX, Venus enthroned l., holding out her r., hand and holding a sceptre, wt. 3.13gms. (RIC.388c; BMC.434; C.212; RCV.7106), attractive iridescent cabinet tone, extremely fine
Ancient Coins, Roman, Macrinus (AD 217-218), silver denarius, struck AD.218, IMP C M OPEL SEV MACRINVS AVG, laur., dr. and cuir. bust r., rev. P M TR P II COS P P, Macrinus, togate, seated l., on a curule chair, holding globe and short sceptre, wt. 3.48gms. (RIC.27; BMC.47; C.51; RCV.7341), an outstanding example, excellent portrait, perfectly struck, lustrous and mint state *ex Spink Numismatic Circular, August 2001, vol. CIX, no.4, item RM0460
Ancient Coins, Roman, Balbinus (AD.238), silver denarius, IMP C D CAEL BALBINVS AVG, laur., dr. and cuir. bust facing r., rev. PROVIDENTIA DEORVM, Providentia standing l., holding a wand over a globe at her feet on l., and a cornucopiae, wt. 2.95gms. (RIC.7; BMC.33; C.23; RCV.8490), beautiful cabinet tone, extremely fine
Ancient Coins, Roman, Late Roman - Dark Ages (5th century AD), gold tremissis, contemporary copy of a Roman gold tremissis of Honorius (AD.393-423) or Theodosius II (AD.402-450), D HCOZIO-IOI()R()TAVIG, pearl-diademed bust r., draped and cuirassed, rev. VICOTOTIVA AVGVSTOR, Victory advancing l. holding wreath and cross on globe, in ex. CONOB, wt. 1.34 gms. (copying RIC.X, 212-3), fine to very fine Found Nottinghamshire, recorded PAS DENO-EBDD60. These coins, often termed ‘Pseudo Imperial Gallic’ imitatives, were produced in the post-apocalyptic period after the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
Ancient Coins, Roman, Dark Ages - Merovingian (580-670), gold tremissis, national coinage. minted at Canac, Rodez (France), copying a late Roman (4th-5th century AD) gold tremissis, pearl diad. bust, draped and cuirassed, CAN NACO, rev. RVTI NO, cross on globe, serpent in field upper right, in ex. IIII, wt. 1.17gms., about very fine, very rare Found Hampshire, recorded PAS Hamp 38D124. This type is a very good example of the ‘national civic’ series, originating in Northern Frankia. The fact that it was found in the UK shows the trade links of the period.
Ancient Coins, Byzantine, Theodosius II, solidus, Constantinople, AD 423/4, D N THEODO-SIVS P F AVG, diademed, helmeted and cuirassed bust of Theodosius II facing slightly r., holding spear over shoulder and shield with horseman spearing enemy, rev. VOT XX MVLT XXX G, Victory standing l., holding long cross, in upper l. field, star, in ex. CONOB, wt. 4.46gms. (RIC.225; Depeyrot 75/1), light traces of double striking on reverse, high relief and lustrous, superb extremely fine
Ancient Coins, Byzantine, Heraclius (AD.610-641), solidus, Constantinople, ∂∂ NN hERACLIVS ET hERA CONST PP AVG, facing busts of Heraclius on l. and Heraclius Constantine on r., each wears chlamys and elaborate crown with cross, Heraclius has short beard, whilst his son, whose bust is much smaller, is beardless, cross above, rev. VICTORIA AVGU followed by officina letter ε, cross potent on three steps, in ex. CONOB, I in field to r., wt. 4.40gms. (BMC.22; MIB.10), very fine
British Coins, George III, pattern sixpence, 1787, with semée of hearts, edge plain, by Pingo, laur. and dr. bust r, rev. cruciform shields, crowns in angles (cf. S.3749; ESC.1640; Bull 2212), attractively toned, about mint state, rare Proof issue with semée of hearts in Hanoverian shield not listed in the Standard Catalogue. Bull states only 168 pieces struck.
British Coins, Elizabeth I, sixth issue, pound, mm. anchor (1597/8-1600), crowned bust of queen l. with long hair, wearing richly ornamented dress with ruff, double pellet stops, rev. crowned square-topped shield of arms, ER at sides, double pellet stops (S.2534; N.2008), certified and graded by NGC as Mint State 64, a beautiful and lustrous coin, unusually bold in details on both sides, on a broad flan having almost complete outer beaded rims, this is the finest known with the anchor mintmark - the rarest mintmark on Elizabeth I pounds - a trophy coin for the connoisseur This lovely coin is one of the more regal portraits of Elizabeth I in gold. Even as she advanced in age she retained her dignified bearing. It took half a century but under her guidance England regained the wealth that her father wasted, shown off on this coin in the queen’s jewelled, fancy dress. On the other side, the large crown atop the regal shield again stood for majesty and strength, after the anaemic reigns of Henry’s only son, Edward, and his eldest daughter, Mary. Indeed, on this coin we see symbols of the queen’s importance as a monarch who recaptured the devotion of her subjects and the admiration of her enemies.
British Coins, Charles I, triple unite, Oxford mint, mm. plumelet on obverse only, 1644, small module, crowned half-length armoured bust l. holding long thin sword and olive branch, gloved hand on top of beaded circle, no scarf, diamond-shaped stops, rev. Declaration in three bands of a wavy scroll, mark of value ‘III’ centred above with three plumes around, date below with OXON underneath, wt. 26.52gms. (S.2729; N.2385 [extremely rare]; Brooker 842, this coin; Sch.304; B-J dies VIII/L8), about extremely fine, on a fully round uncracked flan, portrait of the king and much of reverse sharply detailed but softly struck in areas, as illustrated, because struck from rocker dies, no serious abrasions, pleasing gold colour *ex J. Nunn, 27 November 1896, lot 434, £12-8-0 ex O’Hagan, 16 December 1907, lot 154, £5-5-0 ex J. Dudman, 15 December 1913, lot 111, £8-12-6 ex J. Bliss, Sotheby’s, 22 March 1916, lot 347, £9 ex J. G. Brooker, SCBI, 33:842 ex Spink Numismatic Circular, February 1983, 177 ex Glendinings, 15 October 1985 ex St. James’s Auction 20, 18 November 2011, lot 55 In our modern collectors’ world, obsessed with quality, it is easy to forget that for many coins ‘MS63’ or whatever numerical grade might apply is not especially relevant to the pursuit of quality historical coinages. In the case of emergency issues or siege coins, mere survival is something of a miracle. Such coins were typically born of momentary good fortune in the face of impending doom, and survivors somehow escaped the punishments of the ages that followed their creation. Certainly this is true of the massive Triple Unites of King Charles I, each valued contemporaneously at three pounds sterling and struck in soft gold. Literally speaking, a mere handful of those created at the temporary Oxford Mint during the Civil War have survived the ages. Perplexing difficulties compromised Charles’s traditional divine right, ranging from his marriage to the Catholic princess Henrietta Maria of France to revolts in Ireland and Scotland, but most serious of all were his seemingly endless clashes with Parliament. Early in his reign he enjoyed a strong popularity with his subjects at large and with his aristocratic court, but this began to fail during the Thirty Years War, when his alliances suggested that he sided with Catholic ecclesiastics. As time went on, needing funds he reintroduced, against the wishes of Parliament, long-obsolete feudal taxes including the widely hated Ship Tax. Through his first quarter century as monarch, an unusual number of internal political/religious battles lessened his popularity while external war threatened his kingdom. At last, members of the ‘Long Parliament’ seized power in January 1642, forcing Charles to march north. He reached Nottingham by late August, then went on to Oxford, where he set up court in October and began to make ready for war. Lacking income from taxes, he had a dire need for support from local loyalists. On 26 October, the Civil War commenced at the Battle of Edgehill. In the college town of Oxford, the king found friendly souls; they must surely have been most welcome sights for the beleaguered monarch. His supporters saw first and foremost, beyond the instant need to protect the king’s person, that his cause would quickly fail without financing of his army. Lacking such aid, Charles would be captured and dethroned, and quite possibly killed. Loyalists rallied, and the king’s mint at Oxford continued to issue money in his name until sometime in May 1646. All during this time, coinage was solely the king’s prerogative, traditionally his right and his alone in the kingdom, and the history abounds with stories of college plate and other local riches being converted to money bearing the king’s name, perhaps most famous of all being his massive Triple Unites in gold, which were the ultimate pledges of his monetary power and by far the largest repositories of wealth in coinage form. Most of this money coined at Oxford saw use for procuring supplies, arms, rents and other necessities, not least of which was loyalty. The smaller denominations from Oxford and other local, temporary mints paid soldiers and bought goods for the cause. At one of the war’s early skirmishes, at Wellington, the king had urged support when he made what has come down through history to be called the Wellington Declaration. He vowed to uphold, even enforce, the Protestant religion, the laws of England, and the liberty of parliament—thereby seeking to dissuade any and all opponents that he was pro-Catholic, or a monarch who might disavow laws for his convenience. His vow became his war slogan and it appears as the central reverse inscription on this and other triple unites. Most of the war’s famous battles and sieges - at Naseby, Newark and Oxford - ended by the spring of 1646 but negotiations for peace failed and open hostilities began again in the summer of 1648, led by a Scots invasion. The Civil War ran intermittently from the autumn of 1642 until Charles was beheaded on 30 January 1649. Never before had an English king been brought to trial as a monarch, accused of treason, and executed. Although they outlived him, most of the coins made at Charles’s rudely established mints disappeared long ago. At their best, even when new, most bore witness to the anguish of the king as they were sometimes poorly engraved, unevenly struck, and blemished at issue. None of this money was likely to be saved for posterity. Some was intentionally defaced and melted by the king’s enemies. By the time the Civil War ended, the concept of monarchy had changed forever. Even the king’s centuries-old sole right to issue money had vanished. The Triple Unite we see in this lot was one of the last of its kind made at the king’s mint at Oxford - in fact, the last of the truly royal money. It remains as mute testimony to some of the nation’s most troubled times. Within five years of its creation, the kingship it proclaims had ended. The Latin legend which appears above and below the Declaration, on the reverse of this coin, expressed more hope than reality. Exurgat Deus Dissipentur Inimici translates to mean ‘Let God Arise, Let His Enemies Be Scattered’, but the royal assertion failed. Divine right was gone. The king was dead. The age-old monarchy died off with him. And yet, today’s collectors may still hold the king’s hopes in their hands, here in this golden emblem of its age.
British Coins, George I, crown, 1726, TERTIO, roses and plumes, laur. bust r., rev. crowned cruciform shields, small roses and plumes in angles (S.3639A; ESC.115; Bull 1546), toned, extremely fine *ex Lockett, Sotheby’s, 28 April 1927, lot 143 ex Sanderson, lot 134 ex Glendinings, 30 October 1974, lot 45, £500
British Coins, George III, proof guinea, 1787, laureate bust r., rev. crowned spade-shaped shield, plain edge (S.3728; WR.104 as R3), certified and graded by PCGS as PR65 CAM Terner, a gem example of this type, dies engraved by Pingo and clearly struck in proof state to memorialize the first date of issue of the Spade guinea, the king’s portrait heavily frosted against the mirrored field, as are the royal shield and all letters of the legends on both sides, with rich gold colour, clearly an exceptionally fine guinea with a provenance to the now-famous collection of American collector Jacob Y. Terner, M.D.
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