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The Newsletter of Medal Collectors of America

Volume 12 Number 8 September 2009

Board MembersJohn Sallay, President, jsallay@comcast.netDavid Menchell, Vice President dmenchell@aol.comBarry D. Tayman, Secretary/TreasurerJohn W. AdamsDavid T. Alexander, davida@stacks.comRobert F. Fritsch, bobfritsch@earthlink.netScott Miller, wheatabix@comcast.netIra Rezak, ira.rezak@med.va.govDonald Scarinci, dscarinci1@aol.comMichael Turrini, emperori@juno.comBenjamin Weiss, Webmaster

John W. Adams, Editor99 High Street, 11th floorBoston, MA 02110john.adams@canaccordadams.com

Barry Tayman, Secretary/Treasurer3115 Nestling Pine CourtEllicott City, MD 21042bdtayman@verizon.net

Benjamin Weiss, Webmasterbenweiss.org@comcast.net

Website: medalcollectors.org

Editor of Collectors’ Guide, Dick Johnson(dick.johnson@snet.net)

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What’s New on Our Website!

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From the Editor 3

Review of the Stacks’ AmericanaSale 3

Montreal Medal (by John W. Adams) 3

The Spanish Defense of Bahia Brazilat all Saints Bay in 1631(by Skyler Liechty) 4

Letters to the Editor 9

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From the EditorIn our August issue, we published a

description of the contents of Stacks’ pendingAmericana sale. We cited Vicken Yegparian asthe author of the piece, whereas it had beenpenned by David Alexander. Our apologies toDavid.

Speaking of authors, let us welcomeSkyler Liechty, a newcomer to our pages. Hisarticle on Betts 32, see below, is a worthybeginning to what we hope will be a successionof works from his pen. Mr. Liechty’s thoroughrecounting of the history of the time addsimmeasurably to one’s enjoyment of themedal/jeton itself.

This issue was delayed in order toinclude an account of Stacks’ Americana Sale.Given declines that have occurred in comesegments of the numismatic markets, readerswill be interested in the relative health of themarket for medals. The quality of the materialbeing offered is certain to surface all buyerswith the interest and the means.

Our thanks to Dick Johnson for hisencompassing answer to a question posedbelow.

Review of Stacks’ AmericanaSale

To dispense with our cavils at theoutset, this catalogue was not prepared withStacks’ usual care. Three rarities trumpeted inthe prospectus for the sale (see our Augustissue) were not present: Betts 13 and Betts 29were misattributions and Betts 28 was nowhereto be seen. The piece catalogued as Betts 407was actually Betts 409. A few of the lotdescriptions were careless, the most egregiousof which we discuss elsewhere in this issueunder “The Montreal Medal.”

Cavils aside, the material in the salewas simply glorious. Appropriately, it attracteda good crowd in the room as well asconsiderable activity from the phones and the

internet. Aided by a well-moneyed bookbidder (the former owner?), prices were wellabove the bargain level.

Some prices were below Ford: e.g. thecopper Tuesday club hammered at $37,500 vs.$40,000, the Kittanning brought $75,000 vs.$90,000, the gold Louisborg $65,000 vs.$75,000, and the silver Germantown $32,500vs. $45,000. Other prices were above Ford,notably the large Jefferson peace medal at$300,000 hammer, a world record for a silvermedal by a wide margin. The Betts 35, theMaryland medal, fetched $110,000, almostdouble the Ford price but, this specific case, theeconomics were strongly boosted by TonyLopez’ outstanding article in The Advisory justa few months ago.

The Montreal medal opened and closedat $100,000. In Ford, it had opened and closedat $65,000. If the owner truly wants to sell theitem, he or she could begin by requesting thatthe piece be given a candid description.

A Dutch dealer opined that “prices werestrong by European standards.” No doubt this isa fair statement but, by Ford standards, wewould say that prices were “spotty.” Grantedthat some items went higher, a greater numberwent lower. From our standpoint, we aregrateful to Stacks’ for laying out such a richfeast and to John Kraljevich for making thecatalogue an enduring reference.

The Montreal Medal(by John W. Adams)

The Montreal Medal can lay claim tobeing the most desirable of all Indian peacemedals. Unlike George II, George III and laterpieces, the complete story is known: how 691Indians accompanied British forces on themarch to Montreal; how this number dwindledto 185 after they were denied their prerogativeof looting the captured Fort Levis; how thefaithful remainder continued on to Montrealand how they were rewarded with medalsconceived by Sir William Johnson andexecuted by Major General Jeffrey Amherst.

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To make the awards even more special, each isengraved with the recipient’s name and tribe.All other Indian peace medals are namelessand, with precious few exceptions, timeless andplace-less.

The Montreal medal in Stacks’ just-completed Americana Sale came from FordXIV just three years earlier. Though it ispossible that other examples lie in hiding, thisexample is the only one in collectors’ hands.Given such extreme rarity and given itsimportant historical context, the medal is of theutmost desirability. As such, it deserves acatalogue description worthy of the item.

Michael Hodder described the Montrealmedal in Ford XIV and John Kraljevichcatalogued its reappearance in the Sale ofSeptember 2009. Michael is easily the finestcataloguer of Americana to lace on shoes and,if he elects to remain retired, John will assumethat mantle. Both do credible jobs ofdescribing the importance of the piece.However, both fail to face up to the unpleasantlikelihood that Songese’s name on the reversewas polished off with evil intent. The fullname “SONGOSE” was on the piece whenBeauchamp published it in 1905. Only fainttraces remained 100 years later; indeed John J.Ford, Jr. reported to ye editor in 1998 that heowned an unnamed Montreal medal.

Because the removal of the namecaused the medal to lose some portion of itsvalue, one can fairly assume that the removalwas done to mask its identity. In our opinion,the medal was “hot” when the dirty deed wasdone. If forced to play detective, we believethat we could make a logical case as to when,by whom and even how the removal wasaccomplished.

The medal is “cold” now, so there is noreason to hire a detective and assign blame.However, we do believe it is important to pointout to collectors that the magnificent medal inquestion was once desecrated. It is better, inour opinion, to make this bald statement than topretend that such things don’t happen.

The Spanish Defense of Bahia,Brazil at All Saints Bay in 1631(by: Skyler Liechty)

There were few Spanish militaryvictories over the Dutch in South America fromthe late sixteenth through mid-seventeenthcentury. The most notable of these wasdefensive in nature; that of Bahia, Brazil at AllSaints Bay known as Baia de Todos os Santosin Portuguese, with the Spanish prevailing.Accordingly, few medals were struckcommemorating the limited number of Spanishsuccesses. C. Wyllys Betts, in his workAmerican Colonial History Illustrated byContemporary Medals lists merely one medalcommemorating the Spanish defeating theDutch; there are five medals listed by Bettsmemorializing Dutch victories against Spain.Including the Caribbean, the number of Dutchvictory medals swells to sixteen and theSpanish remains at only one.

Betts lists the medal commemoratingthe defense of Bahia, Brazil at All Saints Bayby Spain and catalogues it as Betts-32, entitledthe “VICTORY AT BAY OF ALL SAINTS”medal. The medal is cross referenced in Bettsfrom Gerard Van Loon’s work HistoireMetallique Des XVII Provinces Des Pays-Bas:Volume II. It is the only medal struck tocommemorate the Spanish efforts in SouthAmerica during this time frame which did notreflect Spanish defeat. This is also the onlycontemporary Spanish victory medal listed inthe 1924 Medallas Euopeas Relativas AAmerica, by J.T. Medina.

A synopsis of the events surroundingthis noteworthy Spanish defensive victoryreveals much about the historic relationshipbetween the Dutch, Portuguese and Spanishcolonial efforts in South America during thistimeframe, and specifically with regard toBrazil.

On April 22, 1500, a thirteen-ship fleetcommanded by the Portuguese navigator PedroAlvares Cabral, anchored off the South

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American coast of what is now Brazil nearBahia’s coast. A claim for the territory was laidby Cabral, in the name of King Manuel I ofPortugal. With little to export besides Brazilianwood, compared to Portugal’s other profitablecommerce existing with China, India, andJapan, there was initially only limitedPortuguese interest in exploiting Brazil. By the1530’s, however, the Brazilian sugarcaneindustry took off, becoming one of its mostprofitable exports. The sugar crop wouldultimately become the most important productof colonial Brazil from the sixteenth –eighteenth century on.

By the late sixteenth century, the Dutchwere intensely engaged in commercial tradewith Brazil, the main purchase being sugar.This brought the Dutch into direct competitionwith Portugal. Portugal had formed a personalUnion with the Spanish King Philip II, due toits succession crisis in 1580. It was officiallyrecognized by the Cortes of Tomar, but wouldultimately last only 60 years. This personalunification began the Portuguese House ofHabsburg, as it was known in Portugal. Aprincipal condition to the Union was theagreement by Philip II of Spain that he wouldrule Portugal as a kingdom separate from hisSpanish Domains. From the onset of theunification, this proved almost impossible. ThisSpanish-Portuguese personal Union meant that,by default, the Dutch ambitions in Brazil werein competition with Spain as well as Portugal.Accordingly, following the personalUnification of Portugal and Spain, Philip IIbegan to prohibit commerce with Dutch ships,including trading in Brazil.

Under the new Spanish control of thesugar production in Brazil, there wererestrictions placed on colonial trade.Specifically, Brazil was only permitted toexport and import goods to and from Portugaland other Portuguese colonies. Portugal hadestablished several colonial outposts on thecoasts of Brazil and dominated these tradenetworks for decades. With the Portuguesecrown now joined with that of Spain under

Philip II, any attack on Portuguese overseaspossessions by the Dutch was viewed as anassault on Spain, forcing Spain to act, anddivert their important financial and militaryresources to resolve any hostilities. This wasthe beginning of a several decade-long warknown as the Dutch-Portuguese War.

With the expiration of the 1621 Treatyof Antwerp between the Dutch and the Spanish,conflict began intensifying in South Americaand the Caribbean between these two powers.That same year, a Charter creating the DutchWest India Company was granted by theStates-General of the Netherlands to WillemUsselincx. Usselincx was a Flemish investor,merchant, and diplomat. Part of the Chartergranted the company a 24-year monopoly ofnavigation and trade. The monopoly extendedto the coastlands of America and the WestIndies, from the south-end of Newfoundland tothe Straits of Magellan, and to the coasts andlands of Africa from the tropic of Cancer to theCape of Good Hope. Their historydemonstrates that in many ways the DutchWest India Company was intended to be moreof an instrument of war, with aims ofbuccaneering rather than simply commerce. Tothat end, a Dutch strategy was laid out to attackthe Spanish and Portuguese. Its most effectiveapproach was to molest the most profitableinterests, those in Brazil.

Numerous other factors lead to thedecision for the Dutch to exploit their power inBrazil using the vehicle of the Dutch WestIndia Company. A primary factor was thevulnerable condition of the Spanish defenses onthe South American coast. It was determinedthat Bahia’s meager defenses made it the mostvulnerable of the coastal cities in SouthAmerica, and the optimum target.

In 1624 Dutch Vice-Admiral Piet Heyn,one of, if not the most notable Dutch Admiralsof the time, arrived in the Bay of All Saint’snear Bahia. On May 10th, a fleet of five Dutchvessels went to contain an approaching Spanishfleet, and to cover the landing of the Dutchforces lead by Colonel Jan van Dorth, lord of

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Horst. What was initially meant to be a simplesuppression soon became a full-fledged attackand rout by the Dutch, resulting in either thecapturing or burning of all the Spanish ships inthe fleet by Heyn’s forces. The Dutch troopswho landed at Bahia were without opposition,and proceeded to occupy a convent on theheights opposite the town. Hein’s victorycaused an all out panic to seize the garrison.That night the solders and inhabitants of Bahiavacated the town - leaving only the Governorand his son, who had refused to leave theirposts in the city. The next morning the Dutchmarched into the undefended town, andoccupied it. The Dutch occupation of Bahialasted less than a year; it was ultimately retakenby the Spanish.

Late in 1630, word of a possible Dutchattack planned against Olinda, on the coast ofPernambuco, Brazil, was received by theSpanish. Matthias de Albuquerque was sent bythe King of Spain to protect any threat toOlinda and its village port of Recife. At theentrance of the town there were two forts, SanFrancisco and San Jorge, both stronglygarrisoned and armed. Despite these defenses,Jonckheer Diederik van Waerdenburgh,Commander of the Dutch military forces, andHendrik Cornelisz Lonck, Admiral-in-Chief ofthe Dutch fleet, attacked and captured Olindalater in 1630. The capture of Olinda finallygave the Dutch access to the highly lucrativePortuguese sugarcane plantations andthreatened important Spanish financial interestsin the region.

The Spanish initially responded bycreating a military blockade of the Dutch forcesin Recife, preventing the supply of necessaryprovisions to the port, hoping to eventuallystarve the Dutch occupation into surrender. OnMay 5, 1631, under the command of AdmiralAntonio de Oquendo, a powerful joint fleet offifteen Spanish and five Portuguese warshipsset sail from Lisbon to Pernambuco. Their mainintention was to serve as reinforcements forMatthias de Albuquerque. They first arrived inBahia, which was originally intended to be a

brief stop. The fleet sat there idle for weeks,delaying their intended trip to retakePernambuco. Admiral Adriaan Pater,Commander of the Dutch West Indies fleet nearPernambuco, was informed by his scouts ofAdmiral Oquendo’s arrival at Bahia and hisintended target of Pernambuco. In what provedto be an ill-conceived move, Admiral Paterdecided to take his fleet, and engage thesuperior forces of the Spanish flotilla at AllSaints Bay, which is positioned nearly 500miles Southwest of Olinda.

The Dutch fleet was comprised ofsixteen ships and yachts. The opposingSpanish flotilla defending All Saints Bayconsisted of a much larger force of twentySpanish galleons and sixteen Spanish caravels.Admiral Pater’s initial strategy for the seabattle was to separate the Dutch fleet into twolines, attacking the Spanish fleet in twosections. One line was led by Pater’s ship, PrinsWillem; the second line by Vice-AdmiralThijssen aboard the Vereenigte Provintien.When they first sighted the vastlyoverpowering Spanish fleet, most of the otherDutch ship captains decided not to participatein the offensive. Thus, the Dutch force thatengaged the Spanish consisted only of the PrinsWillem, Vereenigte Provintien, and two otherships. Prins Willem, and one other Dutch shippulled alongside Oquendo’s St. Jago.Vereenigte Provintien and the remaining Dutchship engaged the St Antonio de Padua,captained by Spanish Vice-Admiral Franciscode Vallecilla. After a pitched seven hoursbattle, the Spanish galleon St. Jago was nearlydestroyed. A Dutch victory seemed inevitable,but then an unexpected fire broke out on boardthe Prins Willem reversing her fortunes. With asinking ship, Admiral Pater, unwilling tosurrender, wrapped his body in the flag andplunged into the sea. On the other line of battleVice-Admiral Thijssen had more favorableresults - he sank the St Antonio de Padua andanother galleon, and captured a third.

With the sinking of the Prins Willem,the Battle of All Saints Bay was a defensive

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victory for the Spanish, celebrated by the Betts-32 medal. The damage to the size and power ofthe Spanish fleet, however, caused AdmiralOquendo to cancel his primary objective tocontinue on to Pernambuco to recapture Olindafrom the Dutch, resulting in the expansion ofDutch power in Brazil. In the end, the Spanishsuccess at All Saints Bay resulted in “winningthe battle but losing the war.”

The Victory at Bay of All Saints medalis one of my personal favorite colonial medalsfrom this era, first and foremost because of itsstatus as only Betts medal struck tocommemorate any Spanish victories during thishistoric period. The obverse of this medalfeatures a bust of King Philip IV of Spain. Thelegend PHILIP . IIII . HISP . INDIA . REX.CATHOLICVS (Philip IV, Catholic King ofSpain and the Indies). In exergue the date inroman numerals translates to the date of 1631.Philip IV became King of Spain and sovereignof the Spanish Netherlands at the age of 16 andruled between 1621 and 1665. He was knownas Philip III the King of Portugal and ruledPortugal until 1640. In 1640 he was expelledfrom the Portuguese throne by John IV whogave it to the Braganza’s, which would be theruling dynasty of Portugal from 1640 until1853. Under King Philip IV the Spanish empirereached its historical peak spanning anestimated three billion acres. Philip IV was oneof the last rulers during the Spanish GoldenAge and last King of the Portuguese House ofHabsburg.

The reverse design depicts of Samsonwrestling a lion. The allegorical interpretationgiven at the UK National Maritime Museumonline is “Here Samson takes the honey ofBrazil from the jaws of the Dutch lion”. Thenarrative of Samson and the lion is found in theBible in the Book of Judges chapters 13through 16. The legend DVLCIA . SIC .MERVIT according to Betts is translated “Thushe deserved joys”, although I believe a moreaccurate translation would be “Thus he wonsweetness”. This translation would also be abetter fit given the importance of the sugar

industry in Brazil at that time. The date 1631appears on a stone on the bottom. Interestingly,the medal was struck also struck as a jeton, themain difference being is that the medal haswhat appears to be the Antwerp mintmark,which is a hand seen at the top of the reverse;also the lettering size is larger on the jeton. Thejeton is referenced in the same work by VanLoon as is the medal. In 1631 when the medalsand jetons were presumably stuck, Antwerpwas part of the Spanish Netherlands. TheSpanish Netherlands were comprised of thesouthern part of the Low Countries, which arethe countries on low-lying land around the deltaof the Scheldt, Rhine, and Meuse rivers,controlled by Spain from 1579–1713. The areabecame known as the Spanish Netherlands in1581 after the northern portion of theNetherlands separated from Spanish rule andbecame the United Provinces, leaving thesouthern portion under Spanish jurisdiction.

Bibliography

Braudel, Fernand, The Perspective of theWorld, Vol. III of Civilization and Capitalism.University of California Press (1992).

Boxer, C.R., The action between Pater andOquendo, 12 September 1631.Society forNautical Research (1959)

Boxer, C. R., The Dutch in Brazil, 1624–1654.Clarendon (1957)

Edmundson, George, History of Holland.(Cambridge historical series) The UniversityPress (1922)

Glete, Jan, Warfare at sea, 1500-1650:maritime conflicts and the transformation ofEurope. Routledge (2002)

Glete, Jan, War and the State in Early ModernEurope. Spain, the Dutch Republic and Swedenas Fiscal-Military States, 1500-1660. Routledge(2002)

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Hume, Martin, Court of Philip IV: Spain inDecline. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons.(1907)

Israel, Jonathan I, Dutch Primacy in WorldTrade, 1585 -1740. Clarendon Press. (1989)

Israel, Jonathan I, The Dutch Republic. ItsRise, Greatness, and Fall 1477-1806,Clarendon Press. (1995)

Maclagan, Michael & Louda, Jiří, "Portugal",in Lines of Succession. Heraldry of the Royalfamilies of Europe. Orbis Publishing (1981)

Paine, Lincoln P. Warships of the world to1900. Mariner Books ( 2000)

http://www.nmm.ac.uk

the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition

About The Author

Skyler Liechty, a native Texan and commercialreal estate entrepreneur, has been involved innumismatics for many years. Early Americancoins and medals is where his journey intonumismatics began. It was not until the Stacksauction of the John J. Ford, Jr. collection inJanuary 2006 that his attention turnedexclusively towards historical medals. Hispassion for historical medals is complimentedperfectly by his love of history. Currently he isworking on the Betts series, attempting to forma collection encompassing the entire series. In2007 he was awarded Best Overall SignatureSet by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation forhis set American Colonial Historical Medals.He is a member of the American NumismaticAssociation, Colonial Coin Collectors Club,and Medal Collectors of America.

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Letters to the Editor

Inquiry about City of New YorkMichael Lantz Medallion

Dear Mr. Adams,I have a medallion that was given to me

around 1968 by John V. Lindsay, Mayor ofNew York City. I have attached photographsof the obverse and reverse. It appears to bebronze and is about 2.75 inches in diameter. Itshows “Michael Lantz” at the 4 o’clockposition on the obverse. On the edge, etched incapital letters, is “MEDALLIC ART CO NY”

Can you tell me something about thismedallion?

David Asch

Good morning, Dick,Can you help Mr. Asch out?

Thanks,

John Adams

Mr. Asche:Consider yourself fortunate. This is a

very attractive and desirable medal. It wasindeed struck by Medallic Art Company in1948--then of New York City, now of Dayton,Nevada -- and created by sculptor MichaelLantz (1908-1988).

The medal had a dual purpose. It wascreated as an anniversary medal of the City ofNew York, but shortly after was also adapted asan award medal. It was bestowed as amunicipal award for the period 1948 thru 1962.

The obverse female is a stunningsymbol of New York City. The five stars beloware symbolic of the city's five boroughs.

On the reverse the center panel, called areserve, is where lettering was to be placed,obviously the recipients name and date, withenough room for a citation of his or her award

achievements. The round circle is a companionof the circular panel on the obverse, a designdevice called repetition, an example ofexcellent medallic design employed byseasoned medallists.

The figures surrounding the centerpanel are magnificent. The top is a symbol ofLee Lawrie's Atlas at Rockefeller Center; thebuildings include a New York skyline, andfactory buildings belching smoke. Smoke wasonce the symbol of prosperity before it becamepolitically correct to eliminate the smoke.Sheesh!

All-in-all an exceptional design andwell modeled by the artist. It is textbookexample of fine art using high reliefappropriately in medal art. It is cataloged inMedallic Art Company records as MAco 48-12.It exists in two varieties.

The artist's use of high relief in hismedals was even more profound in his EdgarAllen Poe on a medal in the series of the Hall ofFame for Great Americans at New YorkUniversity [now Bronx Community College].That medal is considered the epitome of highrelief in all American art medals.

(Perhaps we could encourage you tobecome an art medal collector now. You have aforerunner of a collection in your New YorkCity Medal, and perhaps you could add asecond with that Edgar Allen Poe specimen!No one collects just one medal, with two youare on your way to becoming a full fledgedmedal collector.)

While your New York City medal wassculptor Lantz's first art medal, he went on tocreate 26 more medals. He was oftencommissioned to do medals in series, includingthe most prestigious of all, The Society ofMedalists -- he did their 37th Issue--plus anAmerican Bicentennial medal, produced by theUnited States Mint, two more for FranklinMint's National Commemorative Society, andone in their International FraternalCommemorative Society.

His Ecology Medal for BrookgreenGardens is particularly notable. Also he pushed

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the medallic envelope in creating one of thefirst American multiple-part medals, the FourFreedoms Medal, in this case a two-part medal.

He holds the distinction of being thefirst American medallist outside the U.S. Mintto have exhibited at the InternationalFederation de la Medallie (FIDEM). Hismedalllic work was displayed in seven of theseinternational exhibitions (1955-1983). YourNew York City Medal was on exhibit at two ofthese: Stockholm (1955) and Paris (1957).

He was the brother of artist WalterLantz, creator of Woody Woodpecker. A decadeolder than Michael, Walter was so successfulwith this cartoon character he was able to fundhis younger brother through art school.However, Michael always existed in hisbrother's shadow, and despite hisoverwhelming success as a medallist, it neverquite reach the same level as his older brother'sfame.

His medallic fame includes receivingthe J. Sanford Saltus Medal from the AmericanNumismatic Society in 1968, and the LindseyMorris Prize for the best Bas-Relief (includingmedals) from the National Sculpture Society,1950, where he was a fellow member.

He was a jolly good fellow with widecontacts in society and the art field. I knew himpersonally and remember once a pleasant autotrip together where I drove him home from aNew York City function, stopping off at acamera shop to pick up a repaired camera. TheGreat Artist used photography in his medallicwork.

May we have your permission topublish your inquiry and this reply in ourcollector newsletter?

Dick Johnson

Hi John (and John) --In recataloging a San Francisco

Mechanics' Institute medal in our collection, Ihappened upon this reference to a WestVirginia project (1984). I wonder how far

they've come in locating heirs of these WestVirginia Union soldiers to be able to awardthese medals!http://www.wvculture.org/History/journal_wvh/wvh45-12.html

Anne E. BentleyMassachusetts Historical Society1154 Boylston StreetBoston, MA 02215-3695Tel. 617-646-0508Fax 617-859-0074www.masshist.org

John,I think you will be pleased to know

that your "plastic" prodding managed to trickledown, and has influenced one more person tobring their appreciation of the multi-sensorybeauty of medal collecting to the next level.

Best,

Tony Lopez

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John,I must repeat how much I am still very

actively feasting on your superb medals book.Since it was published, have you

learned anything more about replacementReverse dies for the Franklin medals known asBetts 619 and 620?

Many thanks for sharing what you canabout this when time permits. Hope all is goingwell with your work on Vernon.

Cordially,

Bill Michal

Hi John,Mike Maisen asked me if this note

(below) could be posted on the MCA Advisory.Could you please publish it?

Thanks.

Ben Weiss

Hi Ben,I’m a copywriter at Northwest

Territorial Mint and we’re very excited to bereleasing an eye-catching large calendarmedallion for the 100th Anniversary of the BoyScouts of America. To support the upcomingpromotion of this release, I’m researching thehistory of calendar medals.

I’ve used MCA’s site in the past andhave found it very helpful and am hoping youcan help in my research. I would like to knowif you can suggest resources or articles thatwould help illustrate the appeal and collectorinterest in these unique types of medals.

Any help or suggestions would beappreciated.

Sincerely,

Mike

Mike Maisen CopywriterNorthwest Territorial MintEmail : mikem@nwtmint.com

LA medal

Dear John,You forgot one very important part of

the Libertas Americana medal that I bought for$625 in 1971 (I think) the only LA I've owned.I panicked when I couldn't get $95 for a UNCcopper bronze one as I had 4 of them in stock atthe time.

Best Regards,

Hank Spangenberger

P.S. Thanks for all the publicity you've givenme

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