1865 John Adams Bolen Store Card. Musante JAB-19, Rulau Ma-Sp 35. White Metal. MS-63 (NGC).27.8 mm. Medium to light pewter gray with mildly striated patina and a couple of small superficial pesting spots on each side, fairly well located as to not be distracting. Stated in the August 1866 edition of the <em>American Journal of Numismatics</em> to bear "a more correct likeness than the former ones," this medal would seemingly have been readily distributed and, based on the reported mintage of 50 in copper and 50 in white metal, readily available today. However, such is far from the case. Heritage does not include a single white metal example in their archives, and we have just two (not including this). This is a very rare Bolen medal in any composition and has long been under-appreciated. It was missing from the extensive E Pluribus Unum Collection in November 2021, which included a significant portion of Bolens personal collection of his medals in his own collector trays.From the Claremont Collection. Earlier ex Robert Moffatt; Stephen L. Tanenbaum.
