bronze medal awarded to William Bond and Son at the Great Exhibition of 1851
Date: dated 1851
Inventory Number: 1998-1-1362
Classification: Medal
Dimensions:1.1 x 9 x 9 cm (7/16 x 3 9/16 x 3 9/16 in.)
in case: 12.3 x 12.3 x 2 cm (4 13/16 x 4 13/16 x 13/16 in.)
Accessories: dark brown leather case with two small bronze hook fastenings and royal blue velvet lining
DescriptionThis struck-bronze medal was made for the Great Exhibition of 1851. The face of the medal was designed by William Wyon, official engraver to the Royal Mint. The back of the medal was designed by H. Bonnardel and engraved by Joseph François Domard.
On the front of this medal, there are overlapping portraits of Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, as indicated in the Latin inscription around the edge of the medal. Albert was the president of the Society of Arts at this time, which sponsored the 1851 Exhibition. The dolphins and trident, both symbols of the Greek god Poseidon, also allude to the naval power of the British Empire.
The back of this medal is decorated with iconography that celebrates Britain's industrial and commercial glory, including a ship's prow, an anchor, and a machine with gears, echoed in the Latin inscription around the edge, which translates as, “For there is a certain republic in the great world." Also pictured on the back are three allegorical figures that stand in front of a throne. The central figure is Britannia, who wears a royal crown and a toga. There are flags from all the nations behind her, to indicate the international scope of the exhibit, and she crowns two figures who stand below her with laurel wreaths. These figures are Mercury, the god of trade and profit, who is identifiable by his helmet and caduceus staff with snakes. He shakes hands with an allegorical figure of Industry, as if to indicate their union in the exhibition, if not Britain herself.
The medal is stored in a brown leather case with a white satin and blue velvet lining.