MORE ON THE BUFFALO BILL CENTER PEACE MEDALS

Two rare Jefferson peace medals that have been part of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West collection for decades have been confirmed as authentic artifacts from the 1804 Lewis and Clark expedition.

One is a large Thomas Jefferson "shell" medal — a hollow medal assembled from silver outer pieces. It is one of only three of that size carried by the Corps of Discovery from 1804 to 1806. The other is a 2-inch Jefferson shell medal, one of 16 of that size carried by the expedition.

Historical research suggests the large medal might be the one presented to a Mandan chief known as Black Cat during an October 1804 council. The smaller medal could be linked to Cameahwait — Sacagawea's brother — a Shoshone leader the expedition met in 1805.

These identifications have not been described as final but have a high likelihood, according to professional numismatist Lawrence Lee, who was hired to sort out the authenticity and historical background of the High Plains Museum's collection of 33 peace medals.

Four of the rarest medals are now on display in the Rendezvous Hall of the Center of the West. Later, a more permanent location will be developed for these historically significant artifacts.

Lewis and Clark took 89 peace medals of varying sizes on their 1804 Discovery Corps expedition, but only three of the largest-sized medals, which were reserved for the most important American Indian chiefs of the time.

Peace medals were meant to signify an agreement between nations to maintain peace, and were in common use before the Corps of Discovery by countries such as France, England, and Spain.

"Medals were given as a source of reciprocity," Hunter Old Elk, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West's Plains Indian curator, told Cowboy State Daily. "They only ever gifted these to the highest and revered leaders of a tribal community. Mostly the chief, or the military leader, and then they were passed down through families."

The medals were framed as gifts of peace and friendship. They were meant to replace any peace medals given by other countries.

Lee was also able to verify two bootleg, fur trader medals, which he said are also rare.

"Private individuals were giving out lookalike medals," he said. "These were diplomatic medals. They were supposed to be the sign of a treaty between one nation and another nation. When you get fur traders giving these out, they don't have that level of government authority."

Congress passed a law in 1844 to ban that practice, Lee said.

"What they did then was predate all their medals to 1843," he said, adding, "There's only seven known of them."

To read the complete article, see:
Buffalo Bill Center Confirms It Has Rare 1804 Lewis & Clark Expedition Peace Medals (https://cowboystatedaily.com/2026/09/13/buffalo-bill-center-confirms-it-has-rare-lewis-clark-expedition-peace-medals/)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
LIKELY LEWIS & CLARK INDIAN PEACE MEDALS (https://www.coinbooks.org/v29/esylum_v29n36a11.html)

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