1784 Benjamin Franklin / Winged Genius Medal. Betts-619. Bronze, 46 mm. MS-62 BN (PCGS). 744.8 grains. Plain concave edge. An extreme rarity in the Betts, Comitia Americana, and Franklin medal series. Golden brown and rose with good gloss on both sides. Perhaps lightly cleaned ages ago, though no significant hairlines are seen, just a few beneath the bust truncation; the reverse shows some evidence of trivial lacquer. The devices are bold and well struck up, and the aesthetic appeal is superb for the grade. A short vertical scratch is seen beneath Franklins chin, but no other marks of consequence. A crescent-shaped gold fleck imbedded in the reverse surface at G of AUG in the exergue begs the question: did this medal exist in gold? The answer is an apparent yes. Would that that specimen (perhaps struck for the King?) survived …<p><p>The obverse die state is very early, as seen on all original strikings of this medal, considering the reverse seems to have failed by 1786 and was without question out of service by 1789. On the reverse, the die is broken and crumbling at the rim above SCE of SCEPTRUM, and the cud was filed flat at the time of production as seen on other original strikes. Some scattered lintmarks are seen, as is evidence of double striking, all speaking to the care with which these medals were struck.<p><p>Adams and Bentley listed only two bronze examples known to them: the Ford specimen and the Adams specimen, the latter of which was struck from an original obverse and a copy reverse. Deeper into the text, they described this Betts number as "probably mid to low R-7," but then cited another example struck from the replacement copy reverse. Unless a significant number of new discoveries await, this appears to be High Rarity-7 in bronze. We know of the following originals struck from the original obverse and original reverse dies:<p><p>1. The LaRiviere specimen, bronze, unappreciated at the time and an all-time auction bargain at $900 hammer.<p>2. The Ford specimen in silver. Ford:345. Later Adams: 2099.<p>3. The Ford specimen in bronze. Ford: 346. Later our August 2012 sale, lot 4092.<p>4. Our August 2013 sale, lot 1010.<p>5. Our August 2021 sale, bronze, lot 5012 (at $48,000).<p>6. This example.<p><p>It is remarkable that none are located in the major institutional collections surveyed by Adams and Bentley. This one has traded hands several times since 1950, but has never before been offered at auction. From the Richard Margolis Collection. Earlier from the J. Douglas Ferguson and George Fuld Collections; Alan Weinberg to Phil Keller in October 1986; from Phil Keller, September 1994.
