1902 AR Medal JK-AC-46, Assay Commission

Coin Details

Auction Record

$3,120 MS62 03-29-2023 Stack's Bowers

Description

The 1902 Assay Commission medal JK-AC-46 in silver features an institutional design focused on the Assay Commission itself rather than a presidential or official portrait. This shift to an institutional theme may reflect the transitional period following McKinley's assassination and the early months of Theodore Roosevelt's unexpected presidency, when the Mint chosen a neutral subject to avoid the appearance of either memorializing the fallen President or prematurely celebrating the new one. The Philadelphia Mint imagery on JK-AC-46 connects the medal directly to the institution that produced it and to the process of coin verification that the commission embodied. The silver composition elevates this institutional tribute to presentation quality, creating a premium piece that honors the Assay Commission's collective tradition rather than any individual. The 1902 silver JK-AC-46 represents a pause in the presidential portrait sequence that had dominated the series since 1880. This institutional interlude gave the Mint time to prepare appropriate Roosevelt portraits for future medals while providing the 1902 commission with a medal that honored the process of assaying itself, independent of any political figure or controversy.

Rarity Notes

JK-AC-46 (1902) in silver (AR). "Assay Commission" institutional design. Silver strikings are scarce.

Cross References

PCGS #972482; JK-AC-46; 1902 Assay Commission