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H
Miscellaneous Tokens and Medals
1971.
79.8mm. Bronze. Ulysses Ricci, Sc. (MACO) Edge
engraved: AWARDED TO LOUIS E. SELEY 1971 FOR HIS
DEDICATED SERVICE TO SALMAGUNDI CLUB. Choice
Uncirculated. Ho u s e d i n i t s o r i g i n a l p l u s h l e a t h e r
p r e s e n t a t i o n c a s e . The medal of honor and merit was
designed in 1930 to be awarded to a member chosen by the
Executive Committee for outstanding service to the club. The
head of Dionysus sits above a kylix with two hands flanking it
on either side. This medal was designed around the same time
that Paul Manship was designing his famous Dionysus medal
for the SOM and the parallels in imagery are striking The
camaraderie of the club always focused around good food and
especially drink. The first beer ever served on Fifth Avenue
was at Salmagundi. The symbols of a book, lyre and tools
for painting and sculpting allude to the diversity of the club’s
membership. The reverse shows a female figure holding a scroll
in one hand and a laurel in the other . The sun over the water
and owl, aside from the reference to landscape painting and
sculpture, are also symbolic of enlightenment and knowledge.
The medal has been awarded 52 times since its inception.
The Salmagundi is the oldest existing art club in America.
Founded in late 1871 by a group composed of sculptors,
painters, illustrators, an actor and a writer who gathered weekly
to discuss art and sketch. Owing to their diverse backgrounds
they adopted the name Salmagundi Sketch Club in 1877 after
Washington Irving’s Salmagundi Papers. The club moved about
for many years, dropping the “Sketch” from their title in 1905,
and finally settled for good at 47 Fifth Avenue in 1918. Their
roster has included some of America’s greatest artists including
Edwin A. Abbey, William Merritt Chase, F. Childe Hassam, John
LaFarge, Edward Potthast, Howard Pyle, Louis C. Tiffany and
N.C. Wyeth. Currently, the club offered the prestigious Louis
E. Seley Purchase Prize for first place in the club’s annual oil
exhibition. (I)
458.
OBVERSE PLASTERS FOR THE SKYLAB I AND
a nicer example! Obverse: ALASKA ADMITTED TO THE
UNION 1959 surrounds the Alaskan state flag flying above
Mt. McKinley. Rx: Oval portrait of Seward facing right flanked
by a Kodiak bear at right and a polar bear at left. The medal is
accompanied by its original blue envelope which states “Serial
No. 14”. There is. however, no actual serial number on the medal.
(The gold medals in this series never did have serial numbers.)
Robert McNamara established Heraldic Art, Co. in 1959, to
create half dollar size medals to fill a need brought about
by the suspension of commemorative half dollars by the U.S.
Treasury. After issuing his first three medals, the Secret
Service demanded he desist since his medals were too close to
half dollar size (slug laws) despite his fineness of .925 fine
versus U.S. coins .900 fine. He responded by making his blanks
a fraction of a millimeter thicker.
This was the first in a series of 67 medals. Collectively, the
series has become known as ‘So-Called Half Dollars”. The
entire series was struck in silver, but only the first seven issues
were produced in gold. The mintage figure of this attractive
medal is a modest 24 pieces! We were able to find only one
auction record for this Alaskan medal in gold. In Heritage’s
auction of February 2014, Lot 4494 an MS-67 specimen brought
a healthy $7050.00.
457.
THE SALMAGUNDI MEDAL OF HONOR AND MERIT,
Lot 456
Lot 457 (reduced)
Lot 458 (reduced)