Early American and Betts Medals

Spectacular 1777 B. Franklin of Philadelphia Medal in Bronze

1777 B. Franklin of Philadelphia Medal. Unidentified English Medalist. Betts-547, Greenslet GM-40. Bronze. Specimen-64 BN (PCGS).

45 mm. A truly exceptional specimen of this medal, fully Mint State, and Choice at that, with bold to sharp detail throughout the design. Even the tip of Franklin's nose is sharp, which is an area that often shows noticeable friction on examples of this type. Generally reddish-brown in color with blushes of warmer steel-brown toning that are most pronounced in the left reverse field. The surfaces are glossy and lustrous, despite microscopic granularity indicative of striking atop a cast planchet. Multiple strikes have brought up exacting detail and given the basined reverse field a nearly reflective smoothness. There are no sizeable marks and, indeed, the surfaces are remarkably well preserved. The visual appeal is superb, as well, surpassing the "Uncirculated, choice" Ford XIV example and its suspect color. The earliest American offering we find of a copper strike from these dies is October 1865, in Ed Cogan's Dr. F.S. Edwards sale, lot 1598. Nearly every 19th century offering makes mention of this medal's rarity. It is no more common today. Adams and Bentley enumerated eight specimens but only casually surveyed known collections; they estimated "this medal in bronze is mid-range R-6," or about 20 specimens known. It may be a touch more common than that, but the greater proportion of survivors are worn and mishandled. Gems are non-existent. This is about the nicest one we've encountered, equal, if not superior to the John W. Adams Collection specimen that realized $16,800 as lot 2097 in our November 2019 Baltimore Auction.

From the Norman G. Peters Collection.

Estimate: 15000