(1825) Bronzed-Copper Medal J-IP-13, John Quincy Adams

Coin Details

Auction Record

$720 MS63BN 11-18-2020 Stack's Bowers

Description

This bronzed copper Indian Peace Medal depicts John Quincy Adams and is cataloged as Julian IP-13, a third die variety in the Adams peace medal series alongside IP-11 and IP-12. The proliferation of die varieties within a single president's peace medal program reflects the evolving needs of the diplomatic medal distribution system and the Mint's production practices during the early nineteenth century. Different Julian IP numbers for the same president may indicate different medal sizes — large medals for principal chiefs, medium for secondary chiefs, and small for warriors and other figures of lesser rank. This hierarchical distribution system was inherited from European colonial practice, where the French and British had used tiered medal sizes to reflect the political standing of indigenous recipients within their own communities. The Adams period (1825-1829) represented a transitional moment in peace medal history. The earlier handcrafted quality of the Washington and Jefferson medals was giving way to more standardized Mint production techniques, while the diplomatic context was shifting from alliance-building to what would become the removal era under Jackson. The IP-13 variety preserves a specific iteration of the Adams portrait and reverse design in bronzed copper, a format intended for collection and study rather than diplomatic presentation.

Rarity Notes

Bronzed copper striking of Julian IP-13 dies. One of three known die varieties for J.Q. Adams peace medals. Produced as a collector duplicate.

Cross References

Julian IP-13; PCGS #536740