(c. 1720) Medal Crowned Rose & Royal Arms

Coin Details

Description

This medal, attributed to circa 1720, features a crowned rose on one side and the British Royal Arms on the other. It is closely associated with the Rosa Americana coinage series, serving as a promotional or presentation piece connected to William Wood's efforts to secure and promote his patent for striking copper coinage for the American colonies. The crowned rose design directly prefigures the reverse type adopted for the Rosa Americana coins that would begin production in 1722, indicating this medal was produced as a sample or trial to demonstrate the proposed coinage design to officials or investors. The Royal Arms on the other side emphasizes the crown's authority behind the venture. The piece is struck in a copper or brass alloy consistent with the Bath metal experiments Wood was conducting during this period. William Wood was an English ironmaster and entrepreneur who obtained his patent from George I through the Duchess of Kendal, the king's influential mistress, and these early promotional pieces document the political maneuvering behind what became one of the most significant British colonial coinage programs. The medal's existence provides important documentary evidence for the development timeline of the Rosa Americana series, showing that Wood had finalized his reverse design concept before the formal coinage began.

Rarity Notes

Very rare. This promotional or pattern medal is known in very few examples and is seldom offered at auction. It represents a pre-production design for the Rosa Americana series.

Cross References

PCGS #919317; related to Rosa Americana coinage series (Wood's Patent 1722)