1809 James Madison Indian Peace Medal. Bronze. First Size. First Reverse. Julian IP-5, Prucha-40. MS-65 BN (NGC). 75.9 mm. 2950.7 grains. Lovely light olive brown with nuances of pale blue and gold in the reflective fields. Fine satin finish on the design motifs gives the piece pleasant visual contrast. A few tiny marks are scattered about, but there is none worthy of specific mention. Struck from the original dies used for the silver piece above, though in a later die state and refinished. Still, there are a few tiny shared die artifacts. On the obverse, a tiny raised bead may be seen close to the rim, just past the S of JAMES. On the reverse, there is a small lump on the lower left of the H in FRIENDSHIP, while double punching of the R and I of the same letter is plainly evident on both medals. Evidence of a later die state is found in a few scattered patches of light spalling including beneath the hands, left of the cuffed hand, in the field right of the axe head, and a few other places. John Reich’s “R.” mark on the obverse rim at 6:00. No collaring mark is noted. It is uncertain as to the date range when the bronzes were struck, but it was probably not in any significant number until the collector demand of 1860s. Ex Aesculapius Collection of Indian Peace Medals, Stack’s, January 2011, lot 6208.
