(1733) Bronze Medal Betts-168, Company of the Indies

Coin Details

Auction Record

$4,320 MS62BN 08-24-2023 Stack's Bowers

Description

Betts-168 in bronze commemorates the French Compagnie des Indes (Company of the Indies) in 1733. This is the standard bronze striking, distinguished from the gilt bronze version (PCGS #960893). The Company of the Indies, reconstituted from the ruins of John Law's Compagnie du Mississippi after the 1720 Bubble, continued to manage France's colonial trade throughout the first half of the eighteenth century. By 1733, the company had regained stability and was profitably managing trade with Louisiana, Canada, the West Indies, Africa, India, and China. The medal celebrates a specific company milestone or the ongoing success of French colonial commerce. The Company of the Indies was one of the great commercial enterprises of the eighteenth century, and its medals document the economic infrastructure that underpinned France's global colonial empire. Bronze strikings were distributed to company officials, shareholders, and other individuals connected to the colonial trade.

Rarity Notes

Bronze striking of Betts-168. Standard composition, more available than gilt version. Company of the Indies medals are sought by collectors.

Cross References

Betts-168; PCGS #921209