Owner Comments:
We have elected to picture here a newly acquired Large tripple silver plated bronze Norse Medel. NGC MS-62 worthy of a higher grade added Nov. 2011. 67 millimeters. 2,396 grains. Obv: a full-length Viking figure, helmeted with sword and breastplate, landing on a foreign shore. Rev: Viking longship. Brilliant silver white surfaces are smooth enough to suggest an even higher grade. Both sides exhibit a bright, satiny sheen with myriad die polish lines (as made) discernible in the fields at certain angles. Traces of the underlying copper are evident here and there along the lower reverse borders, and a few extremely faint toning spots are also present on that side of the medal. All in all, however, this is a superior-quality example for the assigned grade, and one that also possesses impressive eye appeal.
After offering two examples of the large size Norse-American Centennial medal in our August 2011 Chicago ANA Auction (as part of the Rollie Finner Collection), we are pleased to present this third representative for the consideration of specialized collectors. Bidders should not make the mistake of assuming that this is a plentiful, readily obtainable type. It is not, and our offering of multiple examples in so short a period of time is a very rare occurrence. In fact, the original mintage of the large size Norse-American medal is though to have been just 75 pieces, only 60 examples of which were actually distributed to contemporary buyers. An important bidding opportunity.
Numismatic Reflections by Q. David Bowers
The Norse-American Centennial pieces are very interesting to contemplate. The organizers in 1925 sought to have a coin, but were not successful. Obviously, they did not try hard enough, for other commemoratives were indeed issued this year. The procedure involved contacting a congressman, giving the reason for the significance of a planned coin, and encouraging a bill to be discussed and passed.
These medals were popular in their time, normally made in small diameter silver format and thick and thin versions. Not much numismatic attention was paid to them, as was true of other Mint medals, until Wayte Raymond acquired a quantity of them in the 1930s, and included a space for them in holders. The rest is history, and since then they have been very popular. Large-size examples have always been very rare. As noted above, the present piece is a numismatic landmark.