1797 Presidency Resigned medal by Thomas Wyon. Musante GW-64, Baker-66. White Metal. AU Details—Tooled (PCGS).37.6 mm. 363.4 grains. Light pewter gray on the obverse with just a trace of retained luster in the recesses of the legend and outlining the portrait. The reverse is similar but has unfortunately been aggressively pin-scratched over much of the surface. Even with this curious abuse, the details remain sharp, but they don’t stand out visually as well as they would have had there been no damage.<p>The Wyon piece that Baker cataloged as his B-66 is actually known in four different die combinations, there being three known obverse dies and two known reverse dies. These are described by Musante as GW-63, 64, and 65, with the fourth combination represented by the Rulau-Fuld plate medal and a specimen in the collection at Yale Art Gallery (the only two we are aware of with this obverse). Considering the multiple dies, the inexpensive composition and the softness of the metal (which would not have been unusually taxing on the dies) these medals are amazingly rare. We surveyed our major sales of Washington medals including Garrett, Gilbert Steinberg, Lucien LaRiviere, John J. Ford, the Old Colony Collection, Norweb, the Patriot Collection and Charles Wharton. This exercise yielded only seven pieces. The Gilbert Steinberg Collection example was unplated and there was not one in Garrett, Patriot or Wharton. Among the six that are plated, only a single specimen is the GW-64 combination. This, the Yale variant, and GW-63 seem to be the rarest, with four specimens seen of the GW-65 pairing. While imperfect, this specimen has a fine provenance and very few collectors can ever own one.Ex Charles I. Bushnell, S.H. and H. Chapman, June 1882, lot 1299; William Spohn Baker Collection, to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania by bequest, November 15, 1897.
