30

Lr. 641— Prince of Wales Visit to Canada Medal. 1860. Silver.

Currency:CAD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:225.00 CAD Estimated At:750.00 - 850.00 CAD
Lr. 641— Prince of Wales Visit to Canada Medal. 1860. Silver.
SOLD
1,500.00CAD+ buyer's premium (270.00)
This item SOLD at 2022 Apr 28 @ 18:25UTC-4 : AST/EDT

Buyer’s Premiums will be added on all items as per the Terms & Conditions of the sale. Invoices will be emailed out after all sessions of the Toronto Coin Expo Spring Sale have concluded.

McLachlan-137, Breton-174. 48mm. 43.5g. Plain edge. Signed J.S. WYON. Design as the preceding lot. Scott Miller explains the way these medals were distributed at the ceremony for the opening of the Victoria Bridge in “Medallic Memorials of the Visit of the Prince of Wales to North America in 1860,” published in Canada’s Money: Coinage of the Americas Conference (1992):

“Despite the presence of the Prince and the usual complement of dignitaries, the laying of the last stone was not a very impressive affair. The visitors were taken by special train to Point St. Charles, the entrance at the Montreal side. After the Prince patted the bed of mortar, the final granite stone was lowered from the scaffold into place. Although the arrival of the Prince was met with great enthusiasm, the crowd was silent after the stone was laid, so that the Times correspondent likened it to the laying of a tombstone over the grave of 15 million pounds. The Prince then went by car to the middle of the bridge where he drove the final silver rivet. Afterward, the Prince was presented with a gold medal to commemorate the occasion, and his suite with similar ones, but in silver.

“Besides its use as a commemorative by the Grand Trunk Railway Company, the Prince of Wales appears to have obtained a number of specimens for his personal use.”

This is a rare silver medal in as-struck condition. The fields are fully prooflike, contact-free, and lightly blanketed in natural gold, blue, and lavender patina. Eye appeal is outstanding. Struck on a thin 2.5mm planchet. A red cotton pouch and old ticket accompany the lot.
Ex: Toronto Coin Expo Sale (Geoffrey Bell Auctions, 5/2013), lot 765.
From the Michael Joffre Collection of Canadian Historical Medals.