1796 Medal Indian Peace Medal Baker-170 The Shepherd

Coin Details

Description

The 1796 Indian Peace Medal Baker-170, known as "The Shepherd," is one of three related oval peace medal designs commissioned during George Washington's presidency for presentation to Native American leaders during treaty negotiations. The Shepherd design depicts a pastoral scene showing a figure tending sheep, representing the agrarian ideal that Washington and his administration promoted as part of their "civilization program" for Native American peoples. The reverse typically features Washington's portrait or the presidential arms. Indian peace medals were among the most important diplomatic tools of the early American republic. They were presented to tribal chiefs and headmen as symbols of friendship and alliance, and recipients wore them as badges of their relationship with the United States government. The three 1796 designs — The Shepherd (Baker-170), The Farmer (Baker-171), and The Family (Baker-172) — form a thematic set illustrating the domestic arts that the Washington administration hoped to encourage among Native American communities. The Baker-170 design was engraved and produced in limited quantities, primarily in silver, for actual diplomatic use. Examples that survive today may be original presentations, diplomatic specimens, or later restrikes produced for collectors. The Shepherd design is the first in the three-part series and carries particular significance as a statement of Washington-era Indian policy.

Rarity Notes

Original silver presentations are extremely rare and valuable. Later restrikes and copies exist in various metals. Baker-170 is one of the most historically significant Washington medals.

Cross References

Baker-170; PCGS #506323; Julian IP-3; Prucha-36