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1279 In Honor of Mathias Wilhelm von Fischer, 1804. Silver Medal, 42mm. 27.7g. By Loos, Berlin. Draped
bust of the Riga merchant left, flanked by his vital dates 1747 - 1803. Rev. Minerva welcoming two young
girls led by woman before the Fischer Institute — created by Fischer as an orphanage for girls (Iversen
DCXXI, p. 25-26, Forrer III, p.463). Some friction hairlines. About Uncirculated.
$400
1280 Virtuti Militari Medal, 1792. Gold. Oval, 43 x 34mm. 19th Century restrike. Collector’s mark of Count
Emeryk Hutten-Czapski within the oval of the “R” in the SAR monogram, and apparently struck to
his order (Cf.
Ordery I odznaczenia polskie
, Puchalski/Wojciechowski, p.31, 27;
Polskie Ordery I Odznaczenia
,
W.Stela, p.11-22).
Exceedingly rare.
Uncirculated.
$20,000
Ex Morton & Eden Sale, London, November 27, 2013, lot 84. Comes with tag.
On May 18, 1792, a Russian army of nearly 100,000 men invaded Poland to crush the May Third 1791 Constitution.
After his troops’ success in the June 18 Battle of Ziele
ń
ce, the Polish commander, the king’s nephew, Józef Poni-
atowski, pushed for the issuance of a military award, using the Austrian “Praemio Virtuti Bellico Constituto” as a
model. The Warsaw mint began producing the oval medals within a week, June 25, and ceased production on August
30. It is believed, it made 290 to 440 silver and 65 to 95 gold medals.