Owner Comments:
Early strike, sometime between 1886 and 1917.
The obverse depicts a portrait right of the 16th president, splitting the words Abraham and Lincoln, which appear vertically along the left and right borders, respectively.
The reverse bears an ornate banded wreath of oak and laurel. Within the wreath appears a nine-line inscription: Inaugurated / President / of the / United States / March 4, 1861. / Second Term / March 4, 1865. / Assassinated / April 14, 1865. Below the inscription are sprays of pine and cedar, stems encircled by a serpent biting its tail, the Egyptian symbol for mortality.
The Philadelphia Mint began striking the Lincoln medals during the second half of 1886.
In addition to different finishes, a minor design difference distinguishes the original medals from the modern restrikes. Morgan's full surname appears on the truncation of current strikes. The original medals do not bear his surname. It is most likely that "Morgan" was not placed on the dies until after he became chief Mint engraver in 1917, after the death of his predecessor Charles E. Barber.