Heritage World Coin Auctions
March Signature Sale 3096 25-27 Mar 2021
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Netherlands
"Lifting of the Siege of Leiden" gold Medal of 19 Ducats 1574-Dated MS62 NGC, Bizot-I-27, Borchmann-II-304 var. (in silver), Van Loon-I-193. 47mm. 65.97gm. By G. Van Bylaer. The embodiment of peak Dutch medal-engraving in the late 16th and 17th centuries. This offering, expertly preserved, together with generally minimal surface chatter, allows for a full appreciation of the intricate design work. The obverse features the Spanish retreating from the siege works around Leiden, while the reverse paints a biblical allegory with a scene of the Angel of Death destroying the Assyrians outside the walls of Jerusalem (the legend above reads: "as was Sennacherib before Jerusalem, 2 Kings 19"). Indeed, the Siege of Leiden has often been regarded as one of the key events of Eighty Years' War and the Dutch Revolt against Spain. It is said that after William, Duke of Orange, cut the dykes surrounding the city and forced the Spanish to abandon their efforts, he delivered herring and bread to the starving citizens. In remembrance, the people of Leiden made a custom out of eating herring and bread every year on October 3rd, the anniversary of the lifting of the siege.
Although the existence of this type was first documented by Pierre Bizot in the 1688 edition of his Histoire métallique de la république de Hollande, knowledge of it in gold seems to have taken much longer to emerge. In the course of our research, we have been able to locate only one other example in this metal that sold in recent decades: a piece of approximately 12-1/2 Ducat-weight (43.7gm), which brought the equivalent of $34,000 in a European sale in June 2008. As such, this offering can only be regarded as of the highest rarity, and will certainly come as a key target for any serious collector of the Dutch series.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/netherlands/netherlands-lifting-of-the-siege-of-leiden-gold-medal-of-19-ducats-1574-dated-ms62-ngc-/a/3096-30423.s?type=CoinArchives3096
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 30000-50000 USD
"Lifting of the Siege of Leiden" gold Medal of 19 Ducats 1574-Dated MS62 NGC, Bizot-I-27, Borchmann-II-304 var. (in silver), Van Loon-I-193. 47mm. 65.97gm. By G. Van Bylaer. The embodiment of peak Dutch medal-engraving in the late 16th and 17th centuries. This offering, expertly preserved, together with generally minimal surface chatter, allows for a full appreciation of the intricate design work. The obverse features the Spanish retreating from the siege works around Leiden, while the reverse paints a biblical allegory with a scene of the Angel of Death destroying the Assyrians outside the walls of Jerusalem (the legend above reads: "as was Sennacherib before Jerusalem, 2 Kings 19"). Indeed, the Siege of Leiden has often been regarded as one of the key events of Eighty Years' War and the Dutch Revolt against Spain. It is said that after William, Duke of Orange, cut the dykes surrounding the city and forced the Spanish to abandon their efforts, he delivered herring and bread to the starving citizens. In remembrance, the people of Leiden made a custom out of eating herring and bread every year on October 3rd, the anniversary of the lifting of the siege.
Although the existence of this type was first documented by Pierre Bizot in the 1688 edition of his Histoire métallique de la république de Hollande, knowledge of it in gold seems to have taken much longer to emerge. In the course of our research, we have been able to locate only one other example in this metal that sold in recent decades: a piece of approximately 12-1/2 Ducat-weight (43.7gm), which brought the equivalent of $34,000 in a European sale in June 2008. As such, this offering can only be regarded as of the highest rarity, and will certainly come as a key target for any serious collector of the Dutch series.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/netherlands/netherlands-lifting-of-the-siege-of-leiden-gold-medal-of-19-ducats-1574-dated-ms62-ngc-/a/3096-30423.s?type=CoinArchives3096
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 30000-50000 USD