1876 Magna Est Veritas Medal. Original. Musante GW-861, Baker-292B. Bronze. MS-64 BN (NGC).

50.5 mm. Light reddish-mahogany bronze across both sides with only a few tiny handling marks scattered about and one tiny spot against the back of Washington's head. With the appearance of a silver one marked "No.1" and ".999 FINE" on the edge in our Spring 2022 sale came the awareness that restrikes of this issue exist. The differences between the originals and restrikes were not immediately apparent, but it would seem that the presence of a raised protrusion into the field from the front of Washington's neck is the easiest identifier for the restrikes. These seem to be rare, but the die trial plated in Musante on page 655 clearly shows this element. It is not on this medal, or the other two offered here, so these can be definitively call originals.