Medallic Art Collector's Selection

The medal's obverse bears winged nude male, facing helf right, standing erect on top of cloud shrouded globe, wings and arms stretched wide, face turned upwards. Around, BRONXVILLE · VICTORIOVS

The medal's reverse bears oil lamp on book above cartouche with hanging garlands.  Around, BRONXVILLE HIGH · SCHOOL · ; under book, CREATIVE / ARTS · MEDALL / AWARDED · TO; in cartouche, JAMES MARTIN / 1936; signed under cartouche with ( FE AAW CIT monogram)

This Weinman design is probably one of the most beautiful school award medals of all times.

The circular medal measures 69.8mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York.  No mintage is reported.

References:   MACo 1931-002

The medallion's obverse bears bust of Charles Doolittle Walcott facing right. To left and right, CHARLES - DOOLITTLE / WALCOTT; around bottom, PRECAMBRIAN RESEARCH MEDAL; signed under truncation, LAVRA GARDIN FRASER SCVLPTOR

The reverse bears the picture of a trilobite. On lower half, NATIONAL - ACADEMY / OF / SCIENCES

Charles Doolittle Walcott (1850 - 1927) was a paleontologist, early member of the U.S. Geological Survey, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institute and President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

The medal, designed in 1931 but first awarded in 1934, is awarded every five years by the National Academy of Sciences for outstanding work in the field of pre-Cambrian and Cambrian life and history. Since 2008, the Walcott Medal and the Stanley Miller Medal are presented alternately, collectively known as the NAS Award in Early Earth and Life Sciences.

The medallion measures 102mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York. No mintage has been reported.

Many thanks to a collector who wishes to remain anonymous for the images of this beautiful medal.

References:   MACo 1931-006

This medal was chosen as the third issue of the prestigious Society of Medalists series in 1931. The obverse bears five Hopi rain dancers, two with snakes in their mouths, two distracting the snakes with eagle feathers, and one crouching to gather up snakes. In exergue, incuse HOPI; at lower right, H A macNeil

The reverse bears dancers racing from mesa onto the desert, hands full of snakes to be returned to their dens. Lightning flashes above. In exergue, incuse PRAYER FOR RAIN; at lower left, incuse ©

This medal's theme was based on bas-relief panels that MacNeil had made decades earlier after a visit to a Hopi reservation. In the brochure accompanying the medal he wrote:

"The two incidents of the Hopi Prayer for Rain on the mesas of northeastern Arizona depicted on this medal are chosen by your sculptor because of the extraordinary vital enthusiasm and power that the Indians throw into this ceremony. Having witnessed it and been thrilled by the intensity of their emotion and on further study by the complicated and perfectly natural development of this drama, I cannot help feel that in it we find a basic note underlying all religions. All these Southwest Indians, living as they do in an arid region, have developed their religion along the lines of their greatest need - water."

This is one of the SoM medals that come in several strikingly different finshes. You can scroll the medal images between variants.

Struck by the Medallic Art Company of New York, the medal is an ovoid measuring 74mm x 70mm. The reported mintage of this medal is 1,713 medals in bronze and 25 in silver.

References:   Baxter 354, MACo 1930-001-003, Marqusee 251, SoM 3

The medal's obverse bears a nude with lyre in front of Pegasus; signed GAETANO CECERE 1931.

The reverse bears a grouping of transmission towers, lightning bolts, and wings, surrounded by wreathes and text in concentric circles. Legend reads FOR DISTINGUISHED CONTRIBUTION TO THE RADIO ART | OVER THE COLUMBIA BROADCASTING SYSTEM.

The medal was awarded "for Distinguished Contribution to Radio" and by 1934 only six people had received it. They were: Colonel Charles Lindbergh, Sir John A. Reith, director general of the BBC, Leopold Stokowski, conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Amelia Earhart, Nino Martini, Metropolitan Opera tenor, and Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd, Antarctic explorer.

The medal is part of many museum collections, including the Smithsonian Institute, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Cornell University Library, which has a beautiful image online.

The circular medallion's diameter is 102mm and it was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York.  No mintage is reported.

References:   MACo 1931-017, Marqusee 104

References:   MACo 1932-025, Marqusee 169

This uniface medal bears a standing female nude turned right towards pedestal bearing hourglass; decorative border extending around medal. At left, inscription in bands, ART IS / MIGHTY / LIFE IS / FLEETING / (CLH monogram)

This little gem picks up a famous line attributed to Hippocrates and reused by (among many others) Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:

"Ars longa, vita brevis."

While the quote originally refers specifically to the art of healing, Hinton probably interprets "art" much more literally and expresses his belief that art survives the artist.

The circular medal measures 76mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York. No mintage is reported.

References:   MACo 1932-028

References:   MACo 1933-024, Marqusee 53

The obverse bears upper body of muscular worker with short-sleeved shirt unbuttoned, right arm across body in dynamic pose. At lower left, COURAGE

The reverse bears rising sun over stylized wave-framed horizon at bottom. Above, DEDICATED / to all / those who have / the courage to / face adversity / with a conquering / spirit

This plaque holds one of Fairbanks' most iconic images: the heroic worker, facing whatever challenges the day might bring with determination and courage. It is a very 1930's motif, executed beautifully and dynamically. In some ways, it is very reminiscent of Communist imagery. Taken out of context, it might well be an image from a Soviet medal praising the "heroic socialist worker doing his part to fulfill the ten-year plan." Regardless, it is a beautiful plaquette and definitely in my list of favorite medals.

This plaque measures 60mm x 90mm and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York. No mintage is reported.

References:   MACo 1933-018

The medal's obverse bears youthful male figure with outstretched arms, standing on two outcroppings labeled 1833 and 1933 respectively. To his left, branch with leaves above RESEARCH; to his right, rectilinear design above INDUSTRY; signed at right, ERZ

The reverse bears an aerial view of the fair grounds. Around, - 1933 - A - CENTURY - OF - PROGRESS - INTERNATIONAL - EXPOSITION - CHICAGO; signed at left, ZETTLER

As the artist wrote in the pamphlet accompanying the medal:

"The youthful figure of strength, energy and action represents the intellectual arch between natures's resources and man's work. From research and invention have come the great achievements of the century, 1833-1933. The extended arms of the figure praise the work of Science and Industry and their great benefits to humanity."

This is a beautiful example of both art deco and machine age symbolism. As the U.S. was struggling to leave the Great Depression, belief in science and technology was at an all-time high and the Century of Progress Exposition was a way to celebrate this "scientific optimism."  Those were the endeavors that would make life better for everyone.  Unfortunately, the horror of World War II that was only six years in the future would illustrate the other uses of research and industry.

The medal was struck in different sizes. The large size is the official souvenir medal whereas the smaller sized "so-called dollar" HK-463 is the official medal. No mintages are reported.

References:   Marqusee 415