The medals of Soho near Birmingham
1802 Great Britain (Eimer-941) Peace of Amiens Medal Bronze With Shells - Bust Type 3b

Owner Comments:

As noted by Pollard (1970), there are two distinct obverse busts found on the Preservation of George III medals. The entry immediately before this listing depicts the Type 3a bust, while the current entry depicts the Type 3b bust. I provide a thorough description of the obverse and reverse design of all medals in this set. Any differences between the types should be apparent from those descriptions.

Historical Context:

Sentiment towards the war with France grew uneasy as time progressed, and it became increasingly difficult to sell the idea of prolonging the conflict to the people. The end of the war, even if temporary, marked a significant event at the time. You can find more contextual information within the write-up for the medal that immediately proceeds this entry. The point of the current write-up is to provide context using contemporary publications. To this end, we can find a series of Royal Proclamations published in the London Gazette on May 1st, 1802 (Issue 15476).
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By the King.

A PROCLAMATION.

GEORGE R.

Whereas a Definitive Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Us, the French Republic, His Catholick Majesty, and the Batavian Republick, have been concluded at Amiens, on the 27th day of March last, and the ratifications thereof have been duly exchanged: In Conformity thereunto, We have thought fit hereby to command the same be published throughout Our Dominions: And We do declare to all Our loving Subjects Our Will and Pleasure, that the said Treaty of Peace and Friendship be observed inviolably as well as by Sea as Land, and in all Places whatsoever; strictly charging and commanding all Our Loving Subjects to take Notice hereof, and to conform themselves thereunto accordingly.

Given at Our Court at Windsor, the Twenty-sixth day of April One thousand eight hundred and two, in the Forty-second Year of Our Reign.

GOD save the KING.
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By the King.

A PROCLAMATION.
Declaring the Conclusion of the War.

GEORGE R.

Whereas by the act passed in the Thirty-fourth Year of Our Reign, An Act for the further Encouragement of British Mariners, and for other Purposes therein mentioned, various Provisions are made which are directed to take Effect from and after, the Expiration of Six Months from the Conclusion of the then existing War, To be notified in Manner therein mentioned; And it is thereby further enacted, that, for the Purposes of the said Act, the Conclusion of the said War shall be Holden to be from the time that the same shall be pointed by our Royal Proclamation, or Order in Council, to be published in the London Gazette: And whereas a Definitive Treaty of Peace has been duly ratified between Us, the French Republic, His Catholick Majesty, and the Batavian Republick; We have therefore thought fit, by and with the Advice of Our Privy Council, for the Purposes of the said Act, hereby to notify and declare the Conclusion of the said War, by this Our Royal Proclamation, to be published in the London Gazette; and We do direct the same to be published accordingly.

Given at Our Court at Windsor, the Twenty-sixth day of April One thousand eight hundred and two, in the Forty-second Year of Our Reign.

GOD save the KING.
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By the King.

A PROCLAMATION.
For a Public THANKSGIVING

GEORGE R.

Whereas it has pleased Almighty God, in His great Goodness, to put an End to the late bloody, extended, and expensive War, in which We were engaged; We therefore, adoring the Divine Goodness, and duly considering that the great and publick Blessings of Peace do call for publick and solemn Acknowledgements, have thought fit, by the Advice of Our Privy Council, to issue this Our Royal Proclamation, hereby appointing and commanding, That a General Thanksgiving to Almighty God, for these His Mercies, be observed throughout those Parts of Our United Kingdom called England and Ireland, on Tuesday the First Day of June: next: And for the better and more devout Solemnization of the same, We we have given Directions to the Most Revered the Archbishops, and the Right Reverend the Bishops of England, to compose a Form of Prayer suitable to this Occasion, to be used in all Churches and Chapels, and other Places of publick Worship, and to take Care for the timely dispersing of the same throughout their respective Dioceses: And We do strictly charge and command, That the said Publick Day of Thanksgiving be religiously observed by all Our loving subjects, as they tendered the Favor of the Almighty God, and upon Pain of suffering such Punishment as We may justly inflict upon all such as shall contempt or neglect the same.

Given at Our Court at Windsor, the Twenty-sixth day of April One thousand eight hundred and two, in the Forty-second Year of Our Reign.

GOD save the KING.
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Obverse:

George III is depicted facing left, wearing armor that protects his chest, shoulder, and presumably back (i.e., cuirassed). A tightly drawn ribbon covers the King's neck. Protruding out of the top of the armor, just below the ribbon on his neck is a piece of fabric ruffled in large waves, the interior of which is detailed with a random pattern of raised dots. This fabric is encased by a large breastplate, on the front of which appears a man’s face. To the left of the face appears a rope-like ornament that bisects the leftmost side of the breastplate before disappearing below another piece of ruffled in large waves, which are discernably much larger than the previous piece of similar fabric. Presumably, this fabric wraps around the King’s torso and supersedes the breastplate, smaller ruffled fabric, and the ribbon around his neck. At the foremost tip of this fabric appears an oval medallion encased by a series of neatly formed beads. At the center of which is a man on horseback. This medallion is partly incomplete as it gives way to the innermost part of the rim. To the right appears another ornament similar to the rope-like item previously mentioned. This is almost immediately paired with a series of straps that presumably hold the armor together with small dots intended to represent rivets. His left shoulder protrudes out toward the viewer and is contained within the shoulder portion of his armor. His arm is shielded by a piece of cloth. The King’s hair forms three distinct and finely shaped rolls of curls that appear above and on top of his ear. Only the lowermost tip of his earlobe is visible. The remainder of his hair falls behind his head tightly fastened by a ribbon. Of which only one bow and one loose end are viable. A lock of curly hair can be seen on his right shoulder as well as resting on his left shoulder. The rest falls freely behind his torso before concluding in one large curl. The engraver's initials C•H•K appear immediately below the bust. The obverse legend appears above the bust closely in line with the inner rim. It reads “GEORGIUS III · D: G · BRITANNIARUM REX · FID · DEF · &” All of this is contained within a slightly raised inner rim, which is superseded by a substantially wider rim of greater relief.

Reverse:

The reverse of this medal depicts the allegorical figure of peace draped in a tightly fitting gown gazing to her left upon an olive branch held high in her left hand. Her left shoulder and breast are exposed. In her right hand, she holds a lit torch which she uses to burn a pile of items designed to symbolize arms. Within this pile, one can clearly discern several flags, swords, trumpets, and a rifle with a fixed bayonet. A plume of smoke exudes from the pile just above the lit torch. On the ground to her left appears an open sack, out of which falls a large pile of coins, fruit, and a caduceus. It is clear from the design that she is standing by the seaside, as the shore is broken with distant waves leading to an open sea. A three-masted ship flying the Union Jack is depicted close to the shore. Two other ships appear in the distance to her left and one in the far distance to her right. The edge of the landscape marked on the right with engraver’s details “C . H . KUCHLER . F”. In exergue appears “PAX UBIQUE M D C C C II.”. The reverse legend “TRIUMPHIS POTIOR.” appears wrapped around the innermost rim just above the allegorical figure of peace. All of this is contained within a slightly raised inner rim, which is superseded by a substantially wider rim of greater relief.

Edge: Plain

Size: 48mm

Notes:

Despite the relatively low mintage of just 204 pieces, examples of this medal come up for sale with some frequency. That said, a considerable number of them could not accurately be described as uncirculated. To further complicate matters, those that are technically uncirculated are often not well preserved. This example is an exception to the rule, but it is not without its own set of limitations. There are numerous notable die polish lines throughout both sides, but an in-hand inspection makes these less noticeable. So far, this is the best-preserved specimen I have come across, and in my opinion, is far superior to the medal that once resided in the Watt Jr. Collection. Although I wish it were closer in preservation to the other Soho medals in this collection, it is likely towards the top of conditional rarity. It seems fitting that this medal has been seemingly lost among medal enthusiasts, given the general disposition towards the very event it was designed to depict. It is interesting to note the 1850 sale of the Soho Mint describes this medal as “On The Peace, 1802”, but this does not correspond with the modern titles used by Pollard (1970). It is also curious to note that one pair of dies, a punch of the reverse, and a steel collar for this medal appeared as lot 224 in the sale. That said, there is no telling if this lot ever came up for auction, and if it did, there is no way of ruling out the possibility that Matthew Piers Watt Boulton did not have his agent purchase it for him to retain. I do not know of any restrikes of this medal, but that does not preclude their existence. That said, restrikes would only increase the available supply, which one would assume would also correspond to an increase in well-preserved specimens offered. As previously noted, this does not seem to be the case.

References:

Pollard, J. G. (1970). Matthew Boulton and Conrad Heinrich Küchler. The Numismatic Chronicle, 10, 259-318.

Tungate, S. (2020) Matthew Boulton and The Soho Mint: copper to customer. Worcestershire: Brewin Books.

Vice, D. (1995). A fresh insight into Soho Mint restrikes & those responsible for their manufacture. Format Coins, Birmingham, 3-14.

Interesting Links:

https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/articles/peace-of-amiens/

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07075332.2021.1972027