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ANA Signature Sale 3094 19-20 Aug 2021
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Colombia
Republic silver "The Congress of Colombia to Bolívar upon the Victories at Junín and Ayacucho" Medal 1825-Dated AU Details (Damaged) NGC, Barac-Unl., Fonrobert-Unl., Ulex-Unl., R&S-Unl., Urdaneta Braschi-I.A.4 (listed only in ormolu), Rodríguez, "Medallas, Fichas y Monedas de Colombia" (October 2016), pg. 2. 94.69gm. 54mm. By Raymond Gayrard (Paris). JUNIN Y AYACUCHO VI DE AGOSTO Y IX DE DICIEMBRE DE MDCCCXXIV, Victory, standing right, holding a palm in her left hand and crowning the Genius of Freedom (standing left and holding rod topped by a Phrygian cap) with a laurel wreath held in her right; GAYRARD F. in exergue / A | SIMON BOLIVAR | LIBERTADOR DE COLOMBIA | Y DEL PERU | EL CONGRESO DE COLOMBIA | AÑO DE | MDCCCXXV in seven lines within olive and laurel wreath.
"...Liberator... a title more glorious and satisfactory to me than the scepter of all the empires of the Earth..." - Simón Bolívar, upon his proclamation as "Libertador" (Liberator) by the Municipality of Caracas, Venezuela on October 14, 1813
Put succinctly-a medal of the utmost rarity and importance for all students of South American history. Among the many famous personalities of the 19th century, few echo down to the present day with such undimmed clarity and mythological status as that of Simón Bolívar, El Libertador. A significant Venezuelan military and political leader who spearheaded the independence of Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, and Panama from the Spanish Empire, Bolívar had led the Colombian forces to victory at the Battle of Junín on August 6, 1824 and aided in decisively beating back the Spanish at the Battle of Ayacucho on December 9 of the same year. Much like the United States Continental Congress and in the same spirit as the Comitia Americana medals, the Colombian Congress decreed on February 11, 1825, upon receiving word of the glorious victories of the Colombian armies, that honors should be commissioned to be presented to Bolívar. According to a letter of General Francisco de Paula Santander, the then Vice-President of the Republic of Colombia, dated January 6, 1826, a platinum medal was ordered from the extremely able and talented Parisian sculptor and medalist Raymond Gayrard-called, "that Nation's foremost sculptor"-at the cost of five thousand French Francs. Examples were also struck in silver and copper for distribution to municipalities and universities as an "authentic testimony of national gratitude."
Although it is recorded that Bolívar willed the platinum example to José María del Castillo y Rada, former Treasury Ministry of Colombia, prior to his death in 1830, its current whereabouts are unknown. In an inventory made of the Liberator's possessions on December 22, 1830, General José Laurencio Silva recorded 6 medals in silver and 2 in bronze matching the description provided above. Subsequently, a handful of trials in white-metal and lead have also emerged. Though the exact number of pieces produced is unknown, we are aware of only a handful of silver examples having occurred on auction, with one reportedly recorded in the inventory of the Colombian National Museum, but never put on display:
1. Adolph Weyl (April 1899, Lot 2460) [not illustrated]
2. The Alejandro Rosa specimen (Numismática: Independencia de América 1904, pg. 47, No. 48)
3. The Oscar Salbach specimen (Jacques Schulman February 1911, Lot 1838) [not illustrated]
4. The Jose T. Medina specimen (Almanzar's April 1971, Lot 179)
5. The Alberto Lozano specimen (B&C Subastas, Bogota, July 2009, Lot 307)
6. The Fleury Heemsen specimen. Reportedly acquired from a private individual, who purchased it from Venezuelan collector Leopoldo Murillo, who in turn purchased it from an antiquarian in Santiago = Rodríguez-pg. 2 Plate Piece. Certified AU55 by NGC.
7. Künker Auction 349 (March 2021, Lot 6028). Certified SP65 by PCGS.
Reportedly, an example was also sold over 30 years ago by well-known Venezuelan dealer Antonio Alessandrini, with Carlos Jara suspecting that the total number of survivors is no more than 8. What is even more telling, however, is those esteemed collections which did not contain an example, including those of Julius Fonrobert, Georg Ulex, and Robert Ross. Even assuming that each example above represents a unique occurrence, it seems quite likely that most of these are those reported by General Silva in 1830, hardly surprising given how expensive such pieces were to commission in the 1820's. Indeed, taken together with the census above, our research indicates that the present opportunity represents both this specimen's first auction appearance and the first occurrence of an example in an American sale in over 50 years.
Visually, even given the noted damage, the piece can only be regarded as a masterpiece of the height of Gayrard's career. The motifs exhibit a charming neo-classicism against the antique slate-gray patina of the fields, all as iridescent jade and topaz elements color the recesses around the legends. Clearly minted with a painstaking accuracy and attention to detail. Simply a must by all measures, and very likely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
We thank Carlos Bacalao-Fleury for his contributions to the historical background for this lot.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/colombia/colombia-republic-silver-the-congress-of-colombia-to-bolivar-upon-the-victories-at-junin-and-ayacucho-medal-1825-da/a/3094-33152.s?type=CoinArchives3094
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 3000-5000 USD
Republic silver "The Congress of Colombia to Bolívar upon the Victories at Junín and Ayacucho" Medal 1825-Dated AU Details (Damaged) NGC, Barac-Unl., Fonrobert-Unl., Ulex-Unl., R&S-Unl., Urdaneta Braschi-I.A.4 (listed only in ormolu), Rodríguez, "Medallas, Fichas y Monedas de Colombia" (October 2016), pg. 2. 94.69gm. 54mm. By Raymond Gayrard (Paris). JUNIN Y AYACUCHO VI DE AGOSTO Y IX DE DICIEMBRE DE MDCCCXXIV, Victory, standing right, holding a palm in her left hand and crowning the Genius of Freedom (standing left and holding rod topped by a Phrygian cap) with a laurel wreath held in her right; GAYRARD F. in exergue / A | SIMON BOLIVAR | LIBERTADOR DE COLOMBIA | Y DEL PERU | EL CONGRESO DE COLOMBIA | AÑO DE | MDCCCXXV in seven lines within olive and laurel wreath.
"...Liberator... a title more glorious and satisfactory to me than the scepter of all the empires of the Earth..." - Simón Bolívar, upon his proclamation as "Libertador" (Liberator) by the Municipality of Caracas, Venezuela on October 14, 1813
Put succinctly-a medal of the utmost rarity and importance for all students of South American history. Among the many famous personalities of the 19th century, few echo down to the present day with such undimmed clarity and mythological status as that of Simón Bolívar, El Libertador. A significant Venezuelan military and political leader who spearheaded the independence of Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, and Panama from the Spanish Empire, Bolívar had led the Colombian forces to victory at the Battle of Junín on August 6, 1824 and aided in decisively beating back the Spanish at the Battle of Ayacucho on December 9 of the same year. Much like the United States Continental Congress and in the same spirit as the Comitia Americana medals, the Colombian Congress decreed on February 11, 1825, upon receiving word of the glorious victories of the Colombian armies, that honors should be commissioned to be presented to Bolívar. According to a letter of General Francisco de Paula Santander, the then Vice-President of the Republic of Colombia, dated January 6, 1826, a platinum medal was ordered from the extremely able and talented Parisian sculptor and medalist Raymond Gayrard-called, "that Nation's foremost sculptor"-at the cost of five thousand French Francs. Examples were also struck in silver and copper for distribution to municipalities and universities as an "authentic testimony of national gratitude."
Although it is recorded that Bolívar willed the platinum example to José María del Castillo y Rada, former Treasury Ministry of Colombia, prior to his death in 1830, its current whereabouts are unknown. In an inventory made of the Liberator's possessions on December 22, 1830, General José Laurencio Silva recorded 6 medals in silver and 2 in bronze matching the description provided above. Subsequently, a handful of trials in white-metal and lead have also emerged. Though the exact number of pieces produced is unknown, we are aware of only a handful of silver examples having occurred on auction, with one reportedly recorded in the inventory of the Colombian National Museum, but never put on display:
1. Adolph Weyl (April 1899, Lot 2460) [not illustrated]
2. The Alejandro Rosa specimen (Numismática: Independencia de América 1904, pg. 47, No. 48)
3. The Oscar Salbach specimen (Jacques Schulman February 1911, Lot 1838) [not illustrated]
4. The Jose T. Medina specimen (Almanzar's April 1971, Lot 179)
5. The Alberto Lozano specimen (B&C Subastas, Bogota, July 2009, Lot 307)
6. The Fleury Heemsen specimen. Reportedly acquired from a private individual, who purchased it from Venezuelan collector Leopoldo Murillo, who in turn purchased it from an antiquarian in Santiago = Rodríguez-pg. 2 Plate Piece. Certified AU55 by NGC.
7. Künker Auction 349 (March 2021, Lot 6028). Certified SP65 by PCGS.
Reportedly, an example was also sold over 30 years ago by well-known Venezuelan dealer Antonio Alessandrini, with Carlos Jara suspecting that the total number of survivors is no more than 8. What is even more telling, however, is those esteemed collections which did not contain an example, including those of Julius Fonrobert, Georg Ulex, and Robert Ross. Even assuming that each example above represents a unique occurrence, it seems quite likely that most of these are those reported by General Silva in 1830, hardly surprising given how expensive such pieces were to commission in the 1820's. Indeed, taken together with the census above, our research indicates that the present opportunity represents both this specimen's first auction appearance and the first occurrence of an example in an American sale in over 50 years.
Visually, even given the noted damage, the piece can only be regarded as a masterpiece of the height of Gayrard's career. The motifs exhibit a charming neo-classicism against the antique slate-gray patina of the fields, all as iridescent jade and topaz elements color the recesses around the legends. Clearly minted with a painstaking accuracy and attention to detail. Simply a must by all measures, and very likely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
We thank Carlos Bacalao-Fleury for his contributions to the historical background for this lot.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/colombia/colombia-republic-silver-the-congress-of-colombia-to-bolivar-upon-the-victories-at-junin-and-ayacucho-medal-1825-da/a/3094-33152.s?type=CoinArchives3094
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 3000-5000 USD