1798 Medal J-IP-53, GW-68 Copper Season Two, The Farmer

Coin Details

Auction Record

$49,200 SP63BN 11-09-2022 Stack's Bowers

Description

The 1798 medal J-IP-53 / GW-68 in copper, "Season Two — The Farmer," is a copper striking of the second design in the Season series of Indian peace medals. Carrying dual catalog numbers in both the Julian and Musante-Baker systems, this piece continues the agricultural theme from the 1796 Baker-171 Farmer design in a revised 1798 format. Season Two depicts farming activities that symbolized the settled agricultural life the Washington administration envisioned for Native American peoples. The farmer imagery was central to the ideology of the early republic — Thomas Jefferson's concept of the yeoman farmer as the ideal citizen found direct expression in these diplomatic medals, which were designed to communicate American values to Native American leaders in visual form. The copper composition of this striking, like its Season One counterpart (J-IP-51/GW-67), indicates production outside the standard diplomatic silver striking. Copper specimens of Indian peace medals occupy a specialized niche in numismatic collecting, valued both for their relative scarcity and for the warmth and detail that the copper medium can convey. The engraving quality of the Season series represents the capabilities of the early United States Mint at a time when it was still developing its technical expertise in medal production.

Rarity Notes

Copper striking. Julian IP-53 / GW-68. Copper versions of Indian peace medals are less commonly encountered than silver or bronze. The Season series in any metal is desirable.

Cross References

Julian IP-53; Musante-Baker GW-68; PCGS #784576