1759 Brass Medal Betts-419, British-American Victories

Coin Details

Auction Record

$282 AU55 02-16-2017 Heritage Auctions

Description

This 1759 brass medal (Betts-419) celebrates the series of "British-American Victories" achieved during the annus mirabilis of 1759, when British forces won a string of stunning triumphs across multiple theaters. In North America, Quebec fell to Wolfe, Fort Niagara was captured, and French forces retreated from Lake Champlain. Globally, the British won major naval victories at Lagos and Quiberon Bay and captured Guadeloupe in the Caribbean. The brass medal commemorating this extraordinary year of triumph was produced for popular distribution, celebrating the moment when the British Empire reached new heights of power. The quality of die engraving on the finest Betts medals rivals the best European artistic production of their respective periods, with master medalists achieving remarkable detail in portraits, landscapes, and battle scenes. The collective commemoration of multiple victories on a single medal was common practice when a year produced an exceptional concentration of military successes.

Rarity Notes

Original 1759 brass. British-American Victories series. Popular distribution format. Scarce.

Cross References

Betts-419; British-American Victories 1759; annus mirabilis; brass