Heritage World Coin Auctions
Hong Kong Signature Sale 3055 22-23 Jun 2017
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Hong Kong
British Colony. Victoria silver Unadopted "First Opium War" Military Decoration 1842 Gem UNC, 37mm/29.01g. By W. Wyon. Obv: Youthful portrait of Queen Victoria, VICTORIA REGINA at legend. Rev: British lion with paws atop suppressed Chinese dragon, ARMIS EXPOSCERE PACEM at legend above; NANKING / 1842 in exergue. The first proposed design for the Anglo-Chinese War participants decoration by William Wyon, rejected due to its graphic depiction of a vanquished dragon, the thought being that its illustration might unnecessarily harm the mending of relationships. Extremely rare, only a few examples are known to exist, with our only sales record coming in a July 2010 DNW auction where an example with suspension ribbon attached, likely a prototype, hammered for £3,600. This piece, never having been suspended, is a die match to the example in the Royal Mint Museum. With a bit of die rust below the date, we presume that these were struck in extremely limited qualities at a slightly later date as museum archival copies or for well-connected collector cabinets. This example, similar to the Mint copy, displays wonderful multicolored tone through the fields and surfaces that border on flawless. The high relief design, reaching far above the rims, further compliments the appearance. An item that should be received with seldom-rivaled significance by the collector of Chinese, Hong Kong or British medals.
The Treaty of Nanking, signed in 1842, marked the end to the First Opium War (1839-1842) that was waged between the United Kingdom and China. Although the war was broadly a result of wide-ranging imbalances in trade between the two nations, it was the dispute over the British importation of opium from India that ultimately gave the war its popular name. While the treaty was largely ineffective, ultimately leading to the Second Opium War (1856-1860), it played a pivotal role in the West's cultural influence in the East, as it was responsible for the secession of Hong Kong to United Kingdom control, where it would remain for the next 156 years.
HID02901242017
Estimate: 4000-8000 USD
British Colony. Victoria silver Unadopted "First Opium War" Military Decoration 1842 Gem UNC, 37mm/29.01g. By W. Wyon. Obv: Youthful portrait of Queen Victoria, VICTORIA REGINA at legend. Rev: British lion with paws atop suppressed Chinese dragon, ARMIS EXPOSCERE PACEM at legend above; NANKING / 1842 in exergue. The first proposed design for the Anglo-Chinese War participants decoration by William Wyon, rejected due to its graphic depiction of a vanquished dragon, the thought being that its illustration might unnecessarily harm the mending of relationships. Extremely rare, only a few examples are known to exist, with our only sales record coming in a July 2010 DNW auction where an example with suspension ribbon attached, likely a prototype, hammered for £3,600. This piece, never having been suspended, is a die match to the example in the Royal Mint Museum. With a bit of die rust below the date, we presume that these were struck in extremely limited qualities at a slightly later date as museum archival copies or for well-connected collector cabinets. This example, similar to the Mint copy, displays wonderful multicolored tone through the fields and surfaces that border on flawless. The high relief design, reaching far above the rims, further compliments the appearance. An item that should be received with seldom-rivaled significance by the collector of Chinese, Hong Kong or British medals.
The Treaty of Nanking, signed in 1842, marked the end to the First Opium War (1839-1842) that was waged between the United Kingdom and China. Although the war was broadly a result of wide-ranging imbalances in trade between the two nations, it was the dispute over the British importation of opium from India that ultimately gave the war its popular name. While the treaty was largely ineffective, ultimately leading to the Second Opium War (1856-1860), it played a pivotal role in the West's cultural influence in the East, as it was responsible for the secession of Hong Kong to United Kingdom control, where it would remain for the next 156 years.
HID02901242017
Estimate: 4000-8000 USD