1776 (1783) Libertas Americana Medal. Betts-615. Silver, 48 mm. MS-62 (PCGS). 837.2 grains. A superb example of an American classic, finely preserved, profoundly original, and new to the market after its acquisition in Paris more than 40 years ago. Deep antique gray surfaces, a shade lighter on the reverse than the obverse, retain beautiful pastel highlights of violet, blue, gold, and sea green. Nicely reflective in the fields on both sides, with abundant fine detail throughout the devices. Scattered marks are seen, none particularly serious, though we note a shallow arc-shaped abrasion in the lower left obverse field and some mild hairlines, as typical. The rims are clean, and the eye appeal is positively superb.
The current record for a silver Libertas Americana medal sold at auction is $198,000, achieved for a PCGS MS-63+ in our June 2022 sale. We know of another similarly priced private transaction from well over a decade ago. Our last two offerings of MS-62 (PCGS) silver examples have not been far removed from that threshold: the Martin piece brought $174,000 in August 2022 and the Cardinal specimen brought $168,000 in November 2022. The Archangel example, also graded MS-62 by PCGS, brought $156,000 in our sale of October 2018. This piece, with its fine original toning, is fresh to the market and has likely never been offered at auction previously, certainly not in the United States nor in living memory. Its quality is comparable to others in this grade, but its aesthetic appeal may well surpass them.
No other medal in the canon of American numismatics is invested with so much history and importance as the Libertas Americana medal. It followed the declaration of American independence, whose date is placed in the obverse legend, and the support of France in the American cause. The two greatest American victories, that of Gates at Saratoga and Washington at Yorktown, are referenced with dates in the reverse exergue. The British armies defeated on those dates, Burgoynes force at Saratoga and that of Cornwallis at Yorktown, are incorporated into the reverse allegory as the snakes strangled by Hercules in his crib. In that allegory, France is depicted as Minerva, defending the infant from the lioness, Great Britain, whose tail curls between her hind legs. The obverse design influenced many of the depictions of Liberty that would come from the first United States Mint, directly inspiring the Liberty Cap design found on copper half cents and cents in the 1790s. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of later American medals and tokens used the design, from privately issued business cards to the United States Mints 1945 Assay Commission medal. Its image was featured on contemporary engravings and textiles, and examples could be found in the 18th century in the collections of Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, John Adams, and more. No founding father is as closely associated with the medal, of course, as Benjamin Franklin. The medal was his brainchild and pet project, and every specimen that survives traces its provenance to him.
Silver examples are perhaps 10 times rarer than bronze examples. Having been distributed non-numismatically, most have been mishandled, and examples this fine are legitimately rare.
From the Richard Margolis Collection. Earlier from Emile Bourgey at the Biennale des Antiquaires, Paris, October 1980.
