1881 Silver Medal J-IP-45, Chester A. Arthur

Coin Details

Description

The 1881 silver Indian Peace Medal cataloged as Julian IP-45 bears the portrait of President Chester A. Arthur, who assumed office following the death of James A. Garfield on September 19, 1881. Arthur served the remaining three-and-a-half years of Garfield's term, during which he oversaw significant changes in Indian policy including the early implementation of allotment concepts that would later be codified in the Dawes Act of 1887. The obverse features a right-facing bust of Arthur with the inscription CHESTER A. ARTHUR PRESIDENT OF THE U.S. A.D. 1881. The silver composition marks this as a diplomatic presentation piece produced in very limited quantities for ceremonial distribution to Native American leaders. The reverse carries the peace medal design. Arthur's presidency saw the continued concentration of Native American nations on reservations and the beginning of the assimilation movement that sought to break up communal tribal landholdings into individual allotments. Peace medals from his administration were distributed during this transitional period in Indian policy, and the silver format reflects the ongoing diplomatic significance attached to these presentations despite the increasingly coercive nature of government-tribal relations.

Rarity Notes

Silver presentation medals produced in very limited quantities. Arthur's succession to the presidency and the three-and-a-half-year term produced a moderate number of diplomatic distributions.

Cross References

Julian IP-45; PCGS #973269