1834 (ca. 1838) Heroes of Liberty Medal. Bronze. 51.5 mm. Musante GW-149, Baker-196. MS-63 BN (NGC).This warmly and originally patinated example combines a reddish-brown obverse with a reverse dressed in slightly marbled gray and golden-brown. Both sides are boldly defined with a satiny texture and only a few trivial handling marks precluding an even higher numeric grade. This type was issued by the Cercle Britannique, a library in Paris at 55 Rue Neuve Saint Augustin, in conjunction with the national display of French pride that followed upon the death of Lafayette in 1834. Although examples may have been struck as early as that year, the type does not appear in the Paris Mint catalog until 1838. Survivors are rare and eagerly sought by advanced Washingtoniana collectors.
