(1867) Medal JAB-M4 Silver Libertas Americana

Strike Type

Coin Details

Year

1867

Denomination

Medals

Strike Type

Regular Strike

Series

Misc. Medallic, Token, and Fantasy Coinage

Composition

N/A

Auction Record

$5,280 MS64 03-29-2023 Stack's Bowers

Description

This silver medal cataloged as JAB-M4 is John Adams Bolen's rendition of the Libertas Americana medal, one of the most celebrated and artistically significant medals in American numismatic history. The original Libertas Americana medal was conceived by Benjamin Franklin and designed by Augustin Dupre in 1783 to commemorate the American victories at Saratoga (1777) and Yorktown (1781). Its stunning obverse features a profile bust of Liberty with flowing hair, while the reverse depicts the infant Hercules (America) strangling two serpents (the British armies at Saratoga and Yorktown), with Minerva (France) holding a shield to protect the child. Bolen's version, produced in silver around 1867, reproduced this iconic design for collectors who could not obtain the extremely rare originals. The JAB-M4 designation identifies this within Bolen's medal series. Bolen's copies, while controversial among purists, served the valuable purpose of making great numismatic designs accessible to a broader collecting public and are now collected as significant numismatic items in their own right.

Rarity Notes

Rare. Bolen silver medals were struck in quantities of approximately 25-50 pieces. Original 1783 Libertas Americana medals are extremely rare and valuable.