1826 Charles Carroll of Carrollton Medal. Julian PE-6. Silver, 50.7 mm. MS-61 (PCGS).

781.9 grains. A rare and important early U.S. Mint medal by Christian Gobrecht, struck to mark the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the 90th birthday of its sole surviving signer on September 20, 1826. Attractive blue and violet pastel tones frame the peripheries, surrounding golden tinted brilliant silver gray surfaces. A circular toning area is noted in the left obverse field. Finely executed in high relief, a nice contrast from the reflective fields. Scattered hairlines and fine marks and scuffs are seen on both sides, typical of these. The Carroll medals were distributed to family and friends, not numismatists, so nearly all were handled and polished over the years. This one has a good deal of luster and originality. David Tripp's study of this medal yielded a population of 17 silver medals and three in gold; six copper examples are known. It seems possible from the documentary evidence that the known silver and gold medals account for the entire original mintage, as the dies were extracted from the Mint and held by the family rather than left on deposit for decades of restriking. John Ford liked these and amassed four silver specimens, in addition to the unique silver Edwards counterfeit in the following lot. The historical importance of this medal is great, connecting the era of the Revolutionaries who signed the Declaration to the era of Christian Gobrecht's time as Mint engraver. In some ways, the Gobrecht era ended in 1891, making this medal a rather staggering inflection point between the era of the Brown Bess and the era of the automobile. Charles Carroll, a Marylander, is buried in Annapolis. A rendition of this medal is on his modern grave marker today.

PCGS# 926013.

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From the Sydney F. Martin Collection. Earlier ex Spink & Son, Ltd., November 1966; our (Stack's) sale of the John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, Part V, October 2004, lot 223; Lawrence R. Stack Collection, November 2006.