Birds
A gallery of many of my favorite images from medals with prominent birth themes (particularly storks and eagles and frequently these are aviation related).
Below are full pictures and varying levels of descriptions of some examples.
Below are full pictures and varying levels of descriptions of some examples.
Marcel Rau (1886-1966), artist's proof. 170 grams, 66 mm. Stamped 'Fisch'. My newest, and current favorite eagle medal, a fantastic proof, though I've not seen the 'regular' medal. Beautiful art deco, with eagles, stylized sun/clouds and the front view of an airplane beneath the talons. More research needed.
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Albert Laessle (1877-1954). Bronze, 76 mm diameter. 1926. Sesquicentennial Medal of Award.
The 1926 Sesqui-Centennial International Fair was in honor of the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the 50th anniversary of the 1876 Centennial. The event was held in Philadelphia from June to December of 1926, with an attendance of around 10 million. This medal is difficult to photograph as it is fairly low relief. Will try and do a re-shoot on a nice day with natural light and see if that helps. |
It features an adult eagle on it's nest (both males and females tend to the eggs so I hesitate to call it a 'mother eagle', though that may be documented elsewhere), with the Philadelphia's Independence Hall in the background.
East Coast Memorial to the Missing At Sea, dedicated 1963, with a speech by JFK (May 23rd, 1963).
The obverse has a very stylized eagle (carrying olive branch) with a quote from JFK's inaugural address "We Shall Pay Any Price, Bear Any Burden Meet Any Hardship Support Any Friend Oppose Any Foe To Assure The Survival Of Liberty". The flame to the left field has the number 4956 representing those lost. |
The reverse features a more realistic eagle facing head on and carrying a wreath that frames the Statue of Liberty with "Erected By The United States Of America In Proud And Grateful Remembrance For Her Sons Who Gave Their Lives In Her Service And Who Sleep In The American Coastal Water of the Atlantic Ocean."
A busy and interesting medal. It was one of the first I purchased (thinking the eagle theme a worthy one) and it was brought to my attention when it was posted on a message board with commentary about the unattractiveness of the obverse eagle (as in, 'what is that thing, a condor, a pterodactyl????). I found it fascinating, as is the whole medal. Somewhat tragically so, but fascinating.
A busy and interesting medal. It was one of the first I purchased (thinking the eagle theme a worthy one) and it was brought to my attention when it was posted on a message board with commentary about the unattractiveness of the obverse eagle (as in, 'what is that thing, a condor, a pterodactyl????). I found it fascinating, as is the whole medal. Somewhat tragically so, but fascinating.
So far I know it's written in Dutch and has to do with an airplane roundtrip July 22-25, 1949. Bronze. Looks like a stork, which is a bird closely associated with the Netherlands in general and The Hague in particular. Benelux refers to Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg--which signed a treaty in 1944 to establish a political/economic entity.
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Georges Henri Prud'homme, 1919. French. 50 mm x 67 mm, Bronze. There is a scarcer silver version and a round medal version. The Alsace medal features a woman in regional dress on the obverse with storks shown nesting on the reverse, with the Strasbourg Cathedral in the background. Some are engraved within the reverse cartouche for service in WWI. There is also a Lorraine version as well.
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A little different, this one is an actual medal.
The Swiss seller described it as commemorating a new sport shooting range which opened in Frick, Switzerland in 1947. Huguenin is still active as a family/company from Le Locle, Switzerland known for it's medal production (among other things, the link takes you to the history page for the company). |
Trying to confirm the sellers translation with google:
'kranz auszeichnung' = wreath award
'standeinweihungs' = stood inauguration
'schiessen' = shoot
so, by google-translate-speak, that is pretty close to what the seller stated.
'kranz auszeichnung' = wreath award
'standeinweihungs' = stood inauguration
'schiessen' = shoot
so, by google-translate-speak, that is pretty close to what the seller stated.