1892 Medal Eglit-224 Copper Christopher Columbus

Coin Details

Description

This 1892 copper medal, cataloged as Eglit-224, features Christopher Columbus as its primary subject. The Columbus portrait type is the single most common motif across the entire WCE medal series, and Eglit-224 is one of many designs that place the explorer's likeness at the center of their artistic program. The copper composition gives this piece a distinctive warm reddish tone that distinguishes it from bronze (darker, more golden-brown) and provides a pleasing surface for portrait details. Columbus portrait medals from the Columbian Exposition reflect the late 19th-century consensus that celebrated the explorer as a heroic figure who opened the Americas to European civilization. This perspective, shared by the vast majority of Americans in 1892-93, informed the entire conceptual framework of the Exposition and was expressed across hundreds of commemorative objects. The fair's official Columbian half dollar and Isabella quarter, designed by Charles Barber and produced by the United States Mint, established the precedent for Columbus portraiture that private medal makers freely followed. The Eglit-224 design in copper represents one of the many variations on the Columbus theme that private manufacturers produced for the souvenir market. While these pieces lack the official sanction of the U.S. Mint's commemorative coins, they form a far more diverse and extensive series that documents the full range of artistic interpretations applied to Columbus's image during the quadricentennial celebration.

Rarity Notes

Moderately scarce Columbus portrait type. The Eglit-224 number falls in the less common upper portion of Levine's catalog. Copper composition is less frequently encountered than bronze for this design.

Cross References

Eglit-224; PCGS #914480; Christopher Columbus