WÜRDEN, Charles; BRICHAUT, Auguste Matrices de... Lot 22

WÜRDEN, Charles; BRICHAUT, Auguste Matrices de la médaille à l'effigie de Renier Chalon frappée pour le 39e anniversaire de la Société royale de numismatique de Belgique. S.l. [1880] Steel, Ø 10 cm x H. ± 5 cm (dies), Ø 5 cm (figures) (very slight traces of oxidation on the base, minor dark spots on the figures). In cylindrical, moiré mahogany cases, silver print inlaid in each of the two lids (lids broken and reglued with minor gaps). Among the many medals issued by the Royal Numismatic Society in honor of its revered president, this one is of particular importance. It was struck to mark the fiftieth anniversary of Belgium's independence, and the portrait by artist Ch. Würden, under the direction of A. Brichaut, served as a model for several commemorative medals subsequently issued by the Society. At the general meeting of July 4, 1880, General Cocheteux, vice-president, emphasized the medal's threefold objective: to celebrate Belgium, the Society and "its learned president" (quoted in de Callataÿ & Sorgeloos). Chalon was presented with two pieces of the medal. The minutes do not mention the dies, which were also given to Chalon. Ref. De Callataÿ & Sorgeloos 106:6. Prov. [Renier Chalon].