1832 Philadelphia Civic Procession medal. Original. Musante GW-130, Baker-160. Silver. AU-58 (PCGS).32.4 mm. 241.0 grains. Light steel gray on the obverse with a trace of darker bluish gray toning in the recesses. The reverse is pleasantly toned soft rose, gold, green and blue. Lustrous on the obverse and somewhat prooflike on the reverse. Nicely struck and without any sign of the network of cracks that formed on the reverse before the later restrikes were produced. It is likely that only the white metal pieces were struck during the actual Civic Procession. Originals in silver are both very rare and prized. They may have been struck in advance to be worn or carried by officials, or perhaps as mementos immediately after.<p>For much of history we are left to our own imaginations as to what an event looked like, and the older the event, the more true this becomes. Certainly there are many exceptions where the representation of an artist might provide a tantalizing clue as to how history looked. This is more commonly seen with a major occurrence, the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown comes immediately to mind, painted by John Trumbull (whose brother, Jonathan, was Aide de Camp to Washington, present at the surrender, and depicted in the painting), but for the vast majority of history this certainly is not the case. The Philadelphia Civic Procession and the production and distribution of these medals is one of these very rare exceptions in our area of study. Published in Musante is an image of an 1832 engraving by Mannevillette Elihu Dearing Brown, titled just as the medals, “The Gold & Silver Artificers of Phila. / in Civic Procession / 22 Feb 1832,” which remarkably shows this specific occasion. It is one of the rare chances we get to virtually see the history behind our objects of fascination.Ex William Spohn Baker Collection, to the Historical Society of Pennsylvania by bequest, November 15, 1897.
