Baldwin & Sons
Auction 93 5 May 2015
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COMMEMORATIVE MEDALS, Medals by Subject, Sport, Olympic Games, Sweden, Stockholm 1912, Gold Winner's Medal, awarded to Nils August Domingo Adlercreutz, for the Equestrian Team Eventing (Military), by Bertram Mackennal (obverse) and Erik Lindberg (reverse), a naked athlete stands with palm branch, crowned by two diaphonous classical figures, rev a herald, trumpet in hand, wearing tabard and by raised bust of Ling, reads a declaration, OLYMPISKA SPELEN STOCKHOLM 1912, 33.3mm, 26.53g. Very fine with usual signs of handling, extremely rare, only 90 specimens awarded.
provenance: Nils August Domingo Adlercreutz (1866-1955) then through family, by descent
Equestrian events made their first official appearance in a modern Olympics at the Stockholm Games. Nils Adlercreutz had a successful Olympics as indeed did the Swedish equestrian team, which won the gold for the Team Eventing – this medal, beating Germany (silver) and the USA (bronze). Individually in the same event Adlercreutz (and Atout) came fourth. He also competed (on Ilex) in the individual jumping event, coming sixth. It was expected that the competitors in these events would be military personnel as they would have had the cavalry experience and training.
The medal's obverse is adapted from the 1908 London medal (the details of those Games being removed from the plinths on which the female figures sit). Whilst it still bears the signature of Vaughton & Sons (Birmingham), records indicate that the medals were struck by C C Sporrong & Co. Records also state that in team events, such as this, winners received gilt-silver medals, but the Adlercreutz medal is solid gold. The Stockholm Olympics were the last games in which true gold medals were awarded for team event winners.
Estimate: £6000-8000
provenance: Nils August Domingo Adlercreutz (1866-1955) then through family, by descent
Equestrian events made their first official appearance in a modern Olympics at the Stockholm Games. Nils Adlercreutz had a successful Olympics as indeed did the Swedish equestrian team, which won the gold for the Team Eventing – this medal, beating Germany (silver) and the USA (bronze). Individually in the same event Adlercreutz (and Atout) came fourth. He also competed (on Ilex) in the individual jumping event, coming sixth. It was expected that the competitors in these events would be military personnel as they would have had the cavalry experience and training.
The medal's obverse is adapted from the 1908 London medal (the details of those Games being removed from the plinths on which the female figures sit). Whilst it still bears the signature of Vaughton & Sons (Birmingham), records indicate that the medals were struck by C C Sporrong & Co. Records also state that in team events, such as this, winners received gilt-silver medals, but the Adlercreutz medal is solid gold. The Stockholm Olympics were the last games in which true gold medals were awarded for team event winners.
Estimate: £6000-8000