1815 Waterloo medal specimen striking. Silver, 36 mm. MY-99, BBM-47. About Uncirculated. THE MASTER OF THE MINT TO THE EARL OF HARROWBY. on edge. With original velvet and silk lined red Morocco case of issue. Even dark gray with lustrous, reflective surfaces. Sharp and exceptionally attractive, double struck to bring up profound relief. Some trivial hairlines are seen, single old diagonal scratch in left obverse field. <p>Struck without a suspension hanger as a presentation piece, this example was created for the Earl of Harrowby. Dudley Ryder, the 1st Earl of Harrowby, was Lord President of the Council at the time this medal was created (in office June 1812 to August 1827). He had previously been Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs under Pitt the Younger in 1804 and 1805. When U.S. Secretary of State (and later President) James Monroe met him in 1805, Monroe noted "his conduct throughout the interview was calculated to wound and to irritate," further describing him as "designedly unfriendly."<p>Similar specimen strikes are known named to the Dukes of York and Kent, the Rt. Hon. The Speaker (Charles Abbot, 1st Baron Colchester), Charles Long, Joint Paymaster- General, Rt. Hon. C. Bathurst, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Countess of Mornington (mother of the Duke of Wellington), and the Dowager Duchess of Beaufort, and an example was presented to King Miguel of Portugal as a mint visit gift in 1828.<p>The original case is in fine condition with a working clasp.<p> From the Gem Collection. <p> Earlier from the Dr. Arthur B. King Collection; Stacks / Morton and Edens sale of the King Collection, October 2003, lot 576.<p>
