1917 Assay Commission Medal - JK-AC-61, Bronze, U.S. Treasury Seal

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,200 SP62 03-05-2019 Stack's Bowers

Description

The 1917 Assay Commission medal cataloged as JK-AC-61 in a bronze variant represents an additional striking of the annual medal featuring the U.S. Treasury Seal. The existence of multiple bronze specimens with the same JK-AC number indicates either a standard production run distributed among commission members or a later restrike. The 1917 medal coincides with a transitional period at the Philadelphia Mint — Chief Engraver Charles Barber died on February 18, 1917, ending a thirty-eight-year tenure during which he had overseen the production of every Assay Commission medal from JK-AC-24 through approximately JK-AC-61. His successor, George T. Morgan (designer of the celebrated Morgan dollar), would serve only a brief tenure before his own death in 1925. The reverse inscription documents the commission's continuing mandate to verify coinage standards during a year of extraordinary demands on the nation's monetary system.

Rarity Notes

JK-AC-61, bronze composition variant. Part of the 1917 Assay Commission medal production. Multiple bronze variants suggest standard commission distribution quantities.

Cross References

PCGS #972616; JK-AC-61; U.S. Treasury Seal; 1917 Assay Commission