(1763) Medal Betts-446, Messenger of Peace

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,320 SP61 02-24-2022 Stack's Bowers

Description

Betts-446 is a Messenger of Peace medal from 1763, one of several designs commemorating the Treaty of Paris that ended the Seven Years' War. The Messenger of Peace theme appears on multiple medals in the Betts catalog (446-447), each presenting different artistic interpretations of the peace settlement. The design features Mercury, the classical messenger of the gods, carrying news of peace, or allegorical scenes depicting the benefits of the war's end. The Treaty of Paris dramatically reshaped the colonial world, with France ceding Canada and Britain emerging as the dominant power in North America. The Messenger of Peace medals capture the optimistic mood that accompanied the peace, before the colonial tensions and taxation disputes that would lead to the American Revolution. This medal documents the brief period of imperial celebration between the end of the Seven Years' War and the beginning of colonial resistance.

Rarity Notes

Messenger of Peace medal from 1763. Treaty of Paris commemoration. Scarce.

Cross References

Betts-446; PCGS #570893