NOVEMBER 2018 MEDAL SELECTIONS FROM NUMISMAGRAM

Big Bertha Medal

100421 | AUSTRIA-HUNGARY. Alexander Freiherr von Krobatin bronze Medal. Issued 1916. World War I series (65mm, 108.85 g, 12h). By A. Hartig.

K. u. K. KRIEGSMINISTER GEN. OBST. FRH. v. KROBATIN, uniformed bust left / Heavy mortar siege howitzer ("Big Bertha") left, manned by two soldier; forest and mountaintop in background. Edge: Plain.

Hauser 7559; Wurzbach 4773. Choice Mint State. Yellow-bronze surfaces, with a charming underlying luster and a few light spots. An impressive piece displaying the large "Big Bertha" howitzer.

The Minenwerfer-Gerät, a 42cm siege howitzer better known by its nickname, the "Big Bertha," was an extremely large piece of artillery utilized by the German and Austro-Hungarian armies during World War I. Weighing nearly 50 tons, the hefty howtizer could only fire 8 shells per hour, but could reach a distance of nearly six miles.

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Suez Canal Medal

100433 | FRANCE & EGYPT. Compagnie Universelle du Canal Maritime de Suez silver Medal. Dated 1869. The Opening of the Suez Canal (42mm, 47.98 g, 12h). By O. Roty.

L'EPARGNE FRANÇAISE PRÉPARE LA PAIX DV MONDE, Progress, holding branch and torch, seated right on bundled package; overflowing cornucopia below; to right, Industry standing left; implements of manufacture to outer right; outline of canal in background / COMPAGNIE VNIVERSELLE DV CANAL MARITIME DE SVEZ / AU CENTRE LE / 17 NOVEMBRE / 1869 / LE CANAL MARITIME / A ETE OUVERT / A LA / GRANDE NAVIGATION in seven lines. Edge: «cornucopia» ARGENT.

Divo 606; Peltzer 2409. Mint State. Charming matte surfaces with an attractive old cabinet tone; a few lightly scattered hairlines.

Formed in 1868, the Compagnie Universelle du Canal Maritime de Suez was held primarily by French private investors, with some capital coming from Egypt as well. Shortly after its opening, the Khedive of Egypt and Sudan, Ismail Paşa, faced severe debt in his realm, and was forced to sell his shares of the company to the British government. For the next 80 years, the French and British held all of the shares of the canal company, and the British used this foothold to increase their influence in Egypt. In 1956, however, European control of the canal zone came to pass, as Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal and restricted Israeli usage. The Suez was also a key issue in the Arab–Israeli wars of 1967 and 1973, before finally returning to regular usage under Egyptian control. The original compagnie finally became defunct following its merger with Lyonnaise des Eaux, which resulted in the formation of Suez S.A.

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Bosphorus Bridge Medal

100425 | TURKEY. Bronze Medal. Dated 1973. Commemorating the Opening of the Boğaziçi Köprüsü (Bosphorus Bridge) and the 50th Anniversary of the Republic (75mm, 165.90 g, 12h). By A. Kumuk.

BAYINDIRLIK B KARAYOLLARI G MD 17 BÖLGE BOǦAZIÇI KÖPRÜSÜ AÇILIŠ HATIRASI, view of the suspension bridge with the Hagia Sophia below in foreground; star and crescent in sky / CUMHURIYETIN 50 YILINDA / ASYADAN AVRUPAYA, view of Europe, western Asia, and northern Africa, with an inset zoom view of the Turkish Straits; star, polylobe, and floral scrolls in exergue. Edge: Plain.

Cf. Sincona 13 (16 October 2013), lot 3034 (for a similar, yet inferior, example which realized a total of ChF 360 [after buyer's fee]). As Issued. Enchanting bronzing, with layered hues. Very rare.

Officially known as the 15 Temmuz Şehitler Köprüsü (15 July Martyrs Bridge), the Bosphorus Bridge is the first of three suspension bridges crossing the Bosphorus Strait, and was opened for traffic on 30 October 1973, one day after the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Turkey. Its construction marked the first such bridge to cross the Bosphorus since the time of the Persians, some 2,400 years prior.

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Zdeněk Michael František Burian silver Medal

100462 | CZECHOSLOVAKIA. Zdeněk Michael František Burian silver Medal. Dated 1984. Commemorating the Life of the Famous Painter, Illustrator, and Palaeoartist (40mm, 31.35 g, 12h). By L. Havelka.

1905 + 81 Z • BURIAN, bare head right / Tyrannosaurus Rex advancing right, head left. Edge: Plain.

Gem Mint State. Most attractively toned, with hints of goldenrod, sea foam green, cobalt and burnt sienna throughout, along with an alluring underlying tone.

Born in 1905 in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Zdeněk Burian would come to play an important role in the development of palaeontological art and reconstruction. Through the government run Czechoslovakian publishing house, Artia, his work, especially on dinosaurs, reached a western audience beginning in the 1950's and 1960's, and offered a vivid, lifelike picture into the prehistoric world. It's hard to imagine the dinosaur "craze" of the 1980's and 1990's without him.

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