1861 United States Assay Commission Medal. By James Barton Longacre. JK AC-2. Rarity-5. Copper. MS-62 BN (NGC).33 mm. Glints of faded reddish-rose mint color persist in the protected areas around many of the devices, especially those at the obverse border. An otherwise olive-brown example with a sharp strike and pleasing satin surfaces.<p>The second issue in this series, the obverse of the 1861 Assay Commission medal features Longacres Liberty Head motif from the engravers various patterns of 1859 (Judd-237 to 246, Judd-253). The Julian-Keusch reference speculates that the reason the Mint recycled this motif is that the enormous demand for new coinage in late 1860 and early 1861 left no time to prepare new designs. The authors also state that the 1861 Assay Commission medal may be the last that Mint Director James Ross Snowden ordered before leaving office in mid May of that year.
