Baldwin & Sons
Argentum Auction Fall 2015 7 November 2015
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WORLD MEDALS, FRANCE, The Siege of Paris, Balloon Post, Lead Medal, the "Le Kepler", 11 January 1871, 19 October 1870, pigeon with wings spread, rev flight details and date in concentric lines around balloon, 28.5mm; Small Silver Tribute Medal to Alberto Santos Dumas, 1901, by S Kingsburger, 27mm. First very fine, the second extremely fine, toned. (2)
During the siege, 66 balloons carried 164 passengers, 381 pigeons, 5 dogs and more than 2 million letters - about eleven tons of mail. The Le Kepler took off from the gare d'Orleans carrying 160kg of mail and three pigeons. It landed at Montigné-le-Brillant, a flight of 283km. Alberto Santos Dumas won the Deutsch de la Meurthe prize on 19 October 1901, rounding the Eifel Tower in his dirigable, this depicted on the medal.
Estimate: £50-70
During the siege, 66 balloons carried 164 passengers, 381 pigeons, 5 dogs and more than 2 million letters - about eleven tons of mail. The Le Kepler took off from the gare d'Orleans carrying 160kg of mail and three pigeons. It landed at Montigné-le-Brillant, a flight of 283km. Alberto Santos Dumas won the Deutsch de la Meurthe prize on 19 October 1901, rounding the Eifel Tower in his dirigable, this depicted on the medal.
Estimate: £50-70