(1766) Brass Medal Betts-518, William Pitt

Coin Details

Auction Record

$960 VF Details 08-24-2023 Stack's Bowers

Description

Betts-518 in brass is another brass variety of the William Pitt medal from 1766, featuring a die design distinct from Betts-517. The existence of two different brass Pitt medal types indicates that multiple manufacturers produced competing versions for the colonial American market, each using their own dies and marketing channels. The popularity of Pitt in America created commercial opportunity that medal makers eagerly exploited. Brass was the preferred metal for mass-market medals because it was inexpensive, attractive, and durable enough to survive handling. Betts-518 adds to the extensive catalog of Pitt medal varieties (Betts-514 through 521) that collectively represent one of the largest groups of political commemorative medals in colonial American numismatics. The number of varieties produced demonstrates the depth of colonial political engagement in the Stamp Act crisis.

Rarity Notes

Brass Pitt medal, Betts-518 design. Commercial colonial issue. Moderately scarce.

Cross References

Betts-518; PCGS #921196