1903 Assay Commission Medal - JK-AC-47, Bronze, Theodore Roosevelt

Coin Details

Description

The 1903 Assay Commission medal in bronze, cataloged as JK-AC-47, features the portrait of President Theodore Roosevelt on the obverse. The Annual Assay Commission was a body mandated by the Coinage Act of 1792 to meet each February at the Philadelphia Mint to verify the weight and fineness of coins produced the previous year. Each year's medal typically depicted a figure of national significance, and the 1903 issue honored Roosevelt, who had assumed the presidency in September 1901 following the assassination of William McKinley. Roosevelt was then in his first full year as an elected president in his own right would not come until 1904, making this medal one of the earliest medallic portraits of his presidency. The obverse renders Roosevelt's distinctive features — the pince-nez spectacles, robust mustache, and vigorous bearing that cartoonists and engravers found irresistible. The reverse carries the standard Assay Commission inscription with the date and commission details. Bronze versions were struck in greater numbers than their silver counterparts and distributed to commission members and Mint officials as keepsakes of the annual proceedings.

Rarity Notes

JK-AC-47, bronze composition. Assay Commission medals were produced in small quantities for distribution to commission members. Bronze examples are more available than silver but remain scarce in the broader numismatic market.

Cross References

PCGS #972585; JK-AC-47; Theodore Roosevelt; 1903 Assay Commission