Printing plates for the Charles Edward Anthon medal 1884 (by Lea Ahlborn). Unique item!

Copper plates (obverse and reverse) for the Anthon 1884 medal, mounted on hardwood base. For printing of the medal in numismatic journal/medal catalogue. Size 68 x 68 mm. Thickness 23 mm. Unique item!

Motif designed by Lea Ahlborn year 1884, signature under the portrait. (Lea Ahlborn was a Swedish printmaker and sculptor, she en-graved the dies for three of the Society's (ANS) early medals).

Picture 1-2:The both printing plates (obverse and reverse) from two different viewes.
Picture 3:Obverse side, mirrored (with computer's help) to make it easier to read it, and understand how the final print looked like.
Picture 4: Reverse side, mirrored.
Picture 5: Extract from the article "Medallic Art of the American Numismatic Society, 1865–2014", by Miller, Scott H, New York 2015, showing the corresponding medal in reality.

Obverse plate: Bust of Anthon, left; around, CHARLES EDWARD ANTHON, LL.D.; signed below bust, LEA AHLBORN.

Reverse plate: Five-line inscription within a wreath composed of oak (left) and laurel (right), the junction covered by the seal of the Society, below which is the date 1884: BORN IN / NEW YORK CITY / DEC. 6. 1822. / DIED AT BREMEN /JUNE 7. 1883. Around, PRESIDENT AMERICAN NUMISMATIC AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY 1869–1883.

THE CHARLES EDWARD ANTHON MEDAL 1884
The corresponding rare medal is referenced to as "ANS 0000.999.3361", only 100 medals were struck (15 medals in silver and 85 in bronze).

This medal was struck in memory of Charles Edward Anthon, who was first elected president of the Society to fill the unexpired term of Frank H. Norton after he resigned from office on April 25, 1867. Anthon resigned on May 9, preferring to retain the office of Corresponding Secretary. He was again elected and served as president from March 26, 1868, until March 24, 1870, and from March 27, 1873, until his death on June 7, 1883.

The first notice to the membership concerning the Anthon medal was in a letter from Secretary William Poillon dated December 29, 1883, in which he wrote that a suggestion had been made to strike a medal in memory of Charles E. Anthon, "for many years the active president of our Society, and identified during a large part of his life with the progress of numismatics in this country". In an effort to ascertain whether or not there was sufficient interest in such a medal, subscriptions were requested for a bronze medal of about 40 American measurement (2½ inches), to be designed by Lea Ahlborn of the Swedish Mint; the price was set at $5.

CHARLES EDWARD ANTHON (11822-1883)
Anthon, Charles Edward (1822-1883), member American Numismatic Society (ANS), editor of the American Journal of Numismatics, cataloger for Edward Cogan beginning in May, 1870, with the John Allan collection.

He was born in New York City in 1823. Graduated from Columbia College in the class of 1839 at age sixteen. After some years spent studying abroad in Europe, he returned to the United Sates and accepted the position of chair of history at St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland.

Professor
In 1852, he was appointed professor of history and belles-lettres at the New York Free Academy (now the College of the City of New York) and remained in this position until shortly before his death in 1883. He received an honorary degree of Master of the Arts by Columbia University in 1853, and received a Doctorate of Laws from the University of the City of New York in 1866. While there he was curator of the coin collection of the Free College of the City of New York.

Coin collector
In 1865, he became a coin collector and began studying numismatics. He became a member of the American Numismatic Society (then known as the American Numismatic and Archaeological Society) in December of 1866, and was nominated as President of the Society in 1868. He would remain as the Society's president until his death in 1883 (except for a three year period from 1870-73).

In 1867 he won some coins at the Mickley Sale. A noted scholar of numismatics he was particularly known for his work on medallic art and the Gloriam Regni coins of the Franco-American colonies. He was an avid numismatist having a five-sectioned coin cabinet for which he wrote a list with prices intended to be published in five bound volumes. However, he died on June 7, 1883 in Bremen, Germany, where he had gone to recuperate from an extended illness. His obituary is published in American Journal of Numismatics, July 1883, pp. 22-23.

President of ANS
As an officer of the ANS, he also played an important role in continuing and expanding the Society's publications program through his work as editor of the American Journal of Numismatics. He maintained the scholarly integrity of the journal, and increased the length and frequency of this publication at a time when others were in support of changing its content to meet the concerns of collectors, and in favor of limiting the number of volumes issued each year.

After the first three November sales by Bangs and Company in 1882 never completing the fifth list. This last list was drawn up by George Cogan when Bangs completed the last two sales in May and October, 1884.

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