1790 Manly Medal. Original Dies. Musante GW-10, Baker-61B. Brass. MS-62 BN (PCGS).48.5 mm. 670.2 grains. Deep mahogany brown on the obverse with slightly lighter highlights on the areas of highest relief and darker patina through the recesses of the design and near the protective rims. Traces of deep tan brass are revealed along the central hair curl and at the highest point of the bust truncation. Trivial porosity from the original cast planchet is noted, as usual for the type. Light handling, but no serious marks. The reverse is considerably lighter in tone, featuring medium brown with very faint nuances of light mahogany. Outlines of olive are seen through much of the legend. Rather well struck with nice expression of the reverse letters, though double-striking has slightly blurred some of the lower ones. Still, Manlys signature is clear even if the date following is less so. The distinct differences between the obverse and reverse patinas often suggests long-term cabinet storage. However, in this case it is perhaps more from a situation where the medal spent decades in a frame as a small wall display, the obverse being subjected to a typical early 19th-century home environment where the air was frequently laden with smoke from heating, cooking or smoking. To be clear, the medal shows no evidence of any mounting, but the patina suggests something different than simply cabinet storage.<p>The Manly medal is the earliest known Washington portrait medal of American manufacture, struck in 1790, and as such it is one of the very few issues that Washington himself would have seen. Indeed, Samuel Brooks, who engraved the dies for this medal and whose signature is seen on Washingtons truncation, appealed directly to George Washington in 1793, hoping to gain an appointment as engraver at the new United States Mint in Philadelphia. The arguably unflattering portrait on the Manly medal and the fact that Washington had no interest in seeing his own portrait on coins likely did little for Brooks cause.From the Richard August Collection.
