1834 Edwin Forrest Medal. Silver, 43 mm. By Charles Cushing Wright and Charles C. Ingham. MS-62 (PCGS).

Reflective silver gray with attractive peripheral toning in shades of blue, green, and pale violet. Somewhat hairlined on both sides, as seen on other specimens. No significant marks or damage, a nicely preserved and attractive medal. The obverse die is signed C.C.W.S. (Charles Cushing Wright, Sculpsit) under the attractive high-relief bust. The reverse die is signed C. INGHAM, DEL: for Charles Ingham delineavit or "drew it." Ingham, an Irish portrait painter who came to the United States in 1816, was a founding member of the National Academy of Design in 1825. Wright's subject was considered the greatest actor of his day, playing to packed houses in his native Philadelphia, New York, and Europe throughout the 1830s and 1840s. A tabloid feud with another actor in London killed his career there, and lots more drama enveloped his public persona in the decades after, but he managed to work until his death in 1872. The Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia is named for him. We've handled two of these in recent memory, one in the 2005 Ford IX sale (at $690) and one in our September 2009 Americana sale (at $632.50). The condition is quite similar on all of them, though this example also has the original box, round and form-fitting maroon shagreen (or similar material) lined in dark brown velvet.

From the Richard Margolis Collection.

Estimate: $1000