Commemorative medals

The first commemorative medals were made in Renaissance Italy in the 1430s. They marked significant events, people or places, or were intended as propaganda. The V&A has a large collection of commemorative medals. The oldest in this drawer were cast in small numbers and are now known only in a handful of examples. Others, such as Queen Victoria's coronation medal, were mass-produced.

'The Pazzi Conspiracy', Bertoldo di Giovanni

'The Pazzi Conspiracy'
Medal (obverse view)
Bertoldo di Giovanni (died 1491)
Italy (Florence)
1478
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 4579-1857

The Pazzi Conspiracy was a dramatic but unsuccessful attempt led by the Pazzi family to overthrow the Medici rulers of Florence. It came to a head on 26 April 1478 when Guiliano de' Medici was killed in Florence Cathedral.

'The Peace of Oliva', medal

'The Peace of Oliva'
Medal (obverse view)
Johann Höhn (died 1693)
Germany (Danzig now Poland, Gdansk)
1660
Gold, struck
Museum no. 1462-1882

The Peace of Oliva was a treaty signed between Sweden and Poland at Oliva, near Danzig, on 23 April 1660. It marked the end of a war between the two countries.

View the reverse of this medal

'Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury'

'Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury'
Medal (obverse view)
George Bower (died 1690)
England (London)
1681
Silver, struck
Museum no.195-1907
Given by Mrs Glinn

This medal commemorates the acquittal for High Treason of the 1st Earl of Shaftesbury in November 1681. He had supported the Duke of Monmouth's claim to the throne and was briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London. On his release Shaftesbury's followers struck and wore this medal.

View the reverse of this medal

'Coronation of Queen Victoria', medal

'Coronation of Queen Victoria'
Medal (obverse view)
Benedetto Pistrucci (1784-1855)
England (London)
1837
Silver, struck
Museum no. A.6-1916
Given by the Deputy Master of the Royal Mint

Queen Victoria's coronation took place on 28 June 1838 in Westminster Hall. During the ceremony the Treasurer of the Household threw silver medals to crowds. The queen had sat specially for the portrait.

View the reverse of this medal

'Presentation of a Cradle by the City of Paris to Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie', medal

'Presentation of a Cradle by the City of Paris to Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie'
Medal (reverse view)
Pierre-Jules Cavelier (1814-94) and André-Vauthier Galle (1818-99)
France (Paris)
1856
Bronze, struck
Museum no. 721-1875
Given by Monsieur le Préfet de la Seine

This medal commemorates the occasion when the City of Paris presented a cradle to Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugénie following the birth of their only son, the Prince Imperial. This side of the medal shows the child sleeping in the cradle on pillows supported by a Napoleonic eagle.
 

'Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria', medal

'Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria' 
Medal (obverse view)
Sir Alfred Gilbert (1854-1934)
England (London)
1887
Bronze, cast
Museum no. A.94-1970

The 50th anniversary of Queen Victoria's accession to the throne was marked by exuberant celebrations and a great number of commemorative wares. This medal was issued by the Art Union of London, an organisation that encouraged public interest in the arts and also celebrated its own Golden Jubilee in 1887.

View of the reverse of this medal

 

 

 

'The Emin Pasha Relief Expedition', medal

'The Emin Pasha Relief Expedition'
Medal (obverse view)
Elinor Hallé (born 1856)
Cast by James Moore of Thames Ditton
England
1890
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 361-1890
Given by the Royal Geographical Society

Emin Pasha, the Governor of Egyptian Sudan, was rescued from an uprising by a party led by the famous explorer Henry Morton Stanley. Five out of the nine Europeans died during the expedition. In commemoration, the Royal Geographical Society commissioned a medal. It was designed by a woman, which was unusual at that time.

View the reverse of this medal

 

'The Pact of Malice', medal

'The Pact of Malice'
Medal
Karl Goetz (1875-1950)
Germany (Munich)
1915
Bronze, cast
Museum no. A.2-1998
Given by Richard Falkiner

The dramatic symbolism on this medal reflects the bitterness felt by Germany towards the secret Treaty of London signed in April 1915 between the Allies and Italy - the so-called 'Pact of Malice'. France, Britain, Russia, Serbia and Japan are depicted as a many-headed hydra, while Italy is represented as a suckling boy.

 

'British Empire Exhibition', medal

'British Empire Exhibition'
Medal (obverse view)
Percy Metcalfe (1895-1970)
England (London)
1924
Bronze
Museum no. A.135-1978
Given by Professor and Mrs J. Hull Grundy

The British Empire Exhibition opened on St George's Day 1924 at Wembley Park in north-west London. Its aim was to promote trade within the countries of the Empire and to honour those who had served during the First World War.

View the reverse of this medal.

 

'The Festival of Britain', medal

'The Festival of Britain'
Medal (uniface)
Cast by Vaughtons Ltd (active from 1831)
England (Birmingham)
1951
Gold, struck and enamelled
Museum no. A.95-1980

The Festival of Britain was a nationwide celebration that looked to an optimistic future beyond post-war austerity. It was a huge success and attracted around 18 million people. The 'Festival Star' - a stylised portrait of Britannia with a star in the colours of the Union flag - appeared throughout the Festival.

 

'Leonello d'Este', Antonio Pisano

'Leonello d'Este'
Medal (obverse view)
Antonio Pisano, called Pisanello (before 1395-about 1455)
Italy (Ferrara)
1444
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 7130-1860

Leonello d'Este, Marquess of Ferrara (1441-50), was an intellectual ruler and passionate about the arts. He commissioned this medal from Pisanello to mark his marriage to Maria of Aragon in 1444. Pisanello established the format for the portrait medal and produced superb examples for the d'Este family.

View the reverse of this medal.

'Desiderius Erasmus', Quentin Matsys

'Desiderius Erasmus'
Medal (obverse view)
Quentin Matsys (1466-1530)
Southern Netherlands (Antwerp)
1519
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 4613-1858

Erasmus (about 1469-1536) was the leading scholar of the northern Renaissance. He wrote on aspects of religion, philosophy and education, and was the first editor of the New Testament. This medal was commissioned by Erasmus himself from an artist who was primarily a painter.

'Philip II', medal

'Philip II'
Medal (obverse view)
Jacopo da Trezzo (died 1589)
Southern Netherlands (Brussels)
1555
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 6759-1860

This medal was made just the year before Philip became King of Spain, and shortly after his marriage to Mary Tudor, Queen of England. It was probably intended as one of a pair from the same artist.

View of reverse of this medal.

'Christine of Lorraine', medal

'Christine of Lorraine'
Medal (uniface)
Guillaume Dupré (about 1579-1642)
Italy (Florence)
1613
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 7382-1861

Christine of Lorraine (1565-1636) was the wife of Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, who died in 1609. This formal portrait medal shows her in widow's dress, dominated by an extensive veil. Dupré was principal sculptor to the King of France but made this medal during a visit to Italy.

 

'Charles II as Prince of Wales', medal

'Charles II as Prince of Wales'
Medal (uniface)
Thomas Rawlins (active about 1620-70)
England (London)
1645
Lead, cast
Museum no. A.57-1926
Bequeathed by Lt.-Col. G.B. Croft-Lyons, 1926

Medals became particularly popular in England during the Civil War period and were produced in large numbers. The one from which this is cast, known as the 'Forlorn Hope', showed Charles I on the obverse and the Prince of Wales, later Charles II, on the reverse. Rawlins, who was also a playwright, made many medals for the royalist cause.

 

 

'John Conduitt', medal

'John Conduitt'
Medal (obverse view)
John Sigismund Tanner (died 1775)
England (London)
1737
Bronze, struck
Museum no. A.86-1978
Given by Professor and Mrs J. Hull Grundy

John Conduitt (1688-1737) was Member of Parliament for Southampton and also Master of the Mint, having succeeded Sir Isaac Newton, his uncle by marriage. This medal was struck in his honour after his death.

View of the reverse of this medal.

 

 

'Samuel Plimsoll', medal

'Samuel Plimsoll'
Medal (obverse view)
England
1875
Brass, struck
Museum no. 246-1886
Given by Thomas Tapping

Samuel Plimsoll (1824-98) was a coal merchant and later Member of Parliament for Derby. While in office he lobbied passionately for an internationally agreed line to mark the safe loading limit for cargo ships. The Merchant Shipping Act was eventually passed in 1876 and the Plimsoll Line exists on ships to this day. 

View the reverse of this medal.

 

 

'Murray Marks CB', medal

'Murray Marks CB'
Medal (obverse view)
Cecil Browne
England (London)
About 1913
Copper, cast
Museum no. A.4-1913
Given by Murray Marks

Murray Marks (1840-1918) was a friend of William Morris and other leading figures in the London art world. He was also a dealer, specialising in bronzes, medals and Chinese porcelain, and often assisted the V&A with the purchase of objects. He commissioned this medal for presentation to his friends.

View the reverse of this medal.

'Eric Gill', medal

'Eric Gill'
Medal (uniface)
George Friend (active 1913-60)
About 1925
England
Struck white metal
Museum no. A.6-1982
Given by John R. Fairbank as Executor of the Late Alfred Fairbank CBE

Eric Gill (1882-1940) was an innovative typographic designer and carver of lettering, as well as being an accomplished sculptor. No other versions of this portrait medal are known to exist. The artist also engraved bookplates and may have met Gill through their shared occupation.

 

 

'St Paul's Cathedral', medal

'St Paul's Cathedral, London'
Medal (reverse view)
George Daniel Gaab (active 1744-84)
England or Germany
About 1723
Bronze, cast
Museum no. 1260-1856

This medal was cast to commemorate the death of Sir Christopher Wren (1632-1723), scientist, mathematician and architect of St Paul's Cathedral. His tomb bears a Latin inscription which translates, 'If you seek a monument, look around you'.

'Foundation of the City of London School', medal

'Foundation of the City of London School'
Medal (obverse view)
Benjamin Wyon (1802-58)
England
1837
Bronze, struck
Museum no. A.136-1929
Given by Miss T.A.C. Durning-Lawrence

The City of London School was built between 1835 and 1837 by the Corporation of London. The reverse of this medal commemorates John Carpenter, a Town Clerk of the City of London, who founded an earlier school on the same site in 1442 and established a fund that paid for the later school.

View the reverse of this medal

'Crystal Palace', medal

'Crystal Palace'
Medal (obverse view)
Messrs Allen & Moore (active 1843- 54)
England (Birmingham),
1851
Alloy, struck
Museum no. A.40-1978
Given by Professor and Mrs J. Hull Grundy

The Crystal Palace was a huge glass and iron structure erected in Hyde Park in London to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition attracted over six million visitors and numerous firms capitalised on its success by issuing cheap, mass-produced medals as souvenirs.

View the reverse of this medal

'28 Les Halles Centrales, Paris'

'28  Les Halles Centrales, Paris'
Medal (obverse view)
Jean François Bovy (1795-1877)
France
1857
Bronze, struck
Museum no. 7-1878
Given by Monsieur le Préfet de la Seine

Les Halles Centrales was a large indoor market area in Paris. The original building, commemorated by this medal, was destroyed during the First World War and replaced in 1923.

 

'Castel Sant' Angelo, Rome'

'Castel Sant' Angelo, Rome'
Medal (reverse view)
Italy (Rome)
About 1493
Bronze, cast
Museum no. A.289-1910
Salting Bequest

Originally built as a mausoleum for Emperor Hadrian, the Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome was later used as a fortress and prison. On the obverse of this medal is a portrait of the notorious Borgia pope, Alexander VI, who built a new tower and entrance gate.

View the obverse of this medal

 

'Tower Bridge, London'

'Tower Bridge, London'
Medal (obverse view)
Frank Bowcher (1864-1938)
England
1894
Bronze, struck
Museum no. 123-1896
Given by The Bridge House Estates Committee of the Corporation of the City of London

This medal, one of a series issued by the Corporation of the City of London, commemorates the opening of Tower Bridge by Prince Albert in June 1894.

View the reverse of this medal