43a

Lr. 674 — McGill University Elizabeth Torrance Medal. 1864. 22K Gold.

Currency:CAD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:1,800.00 CAD Estimated At:6,000.00 - 6,500.00 CAD
Lr. 674 — McGill University Elizabeth Torrance Medal. 1864. 22K Gold.
SOLD
4,300.00CAD+ buyer's premium (860.00)
This item SOLD at 2022 Apr 28 @ 18:36UTC-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-164, Breton-121. 45mm. Weight unknown. Encased in lucite. Edge engraved FRANK BREADON COMMON MAY 11 1917. Signed J.S & A.B. WYON. Design as last, but struck in gold and named. Frank Breadon Common (1891-1969) of Montreal graduated from McGill University with a B.A. in 1913. He received his M.A. in 1914 and was the Torrance gold medallist in the McGill Faculty of Law in 1917. He went on to enjoy a distinguish career in business and law. Common listed in the 1927 issue of Who’s Who in Canada and was a member of the prestigious Mount Bruno and Seigniory clubs. He is buried at Mount Royal Cemetery.
The Elizabeth Torrance medal is extremely rare in gold. A named example was sold as lot 441 in Jeffrey Hoare Auctions’ February 1988 Torex Sale #6. The listed weight was 53.2g and the purity 22 karat (AGW 1.5664). Another named example was offered as lot 1455 in the Jeffrey Hoare Auctions’ October 1995 sale of the Saul Hendler Collection. Although others likely exist, this cataloger can find no record of one offered at auction, certainly none in the last 25 years.
This piece is encased in lucite and exhibits pristine, high-contrast surfaces with rich lemon-gold colour and gorgeous orange-peel texturing in the fields. The inscription is strong. A fresh-to-market example.
Ex: Retained by the family of Frank Breadon Common; purchased by Michael Joffre in November 2021.
From the Michael Joffre Collection of Canadian Historical Medals.