(Ca. 1780) Admiral Augustus Keppel portrait medallion by Wedgwood and Bentley. Jasperware, white relief on blue-gray ground dipped darker blue. In a gilt brass frame with mount and ring. 93 x 114 mm. Reilly and Savage, type b, p. 206.

High relief bust of Keppel to right, KEPPEL impressed below. Back marked with impressed WEDGWOOD / & BENTLEY at center, three large firing holes, provenance markings at upper right and lower central field. A closed crack runs from the right obverse periphery to the portrait, over the lapel and across the neck to below the shoulder truncation. Minor loss at peruke, a few flakes and chips at lower back periphery, medallion glued to frame in that location. A handsome display piece with superb artistry. This medallion can be dated fairly narrowly, as Reilly and Savage note this bust type was put into production in 1780 but the Wedgwood and Bentley partnership ended in November 1780 with the death of Thomas Bentley.

From the Richard Margolis Collection. Earlier from the R.T.H. Halsey Collection; from William Reese & Company, April 2005.

Estimate: $1000