1933 Benjamin Franklin Memorial Medal. Silver. 75 mm. Greenslet GM-147. MS-62 (NGC). Lovely pewter gray patina is seen on both sides of this large and impressive medal, with peripheries that show warmer russet highlights. Satiny in finish with a subtle sandblast texture, both sides are overall smooth, with just a few trivial handling marks to the central high points that preclude a Choice Mint State grade. This type was struck in the United States Mint using a design by John R. Sinnock, the obverse portrait of Franklin serving as a model for the artists famous half dollar introduced in 1948. The reverse exhibits figures representing Philosophy, Literature, Science and Patriotism at a monument inscribed to the founding father. This is the first silver impression of the type that we can recall offering in recent years.
