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From:
Medals of the U.S. Mint, the first century, 1792-1892, by R.W.
Julian.
The
Field medal is singular in nature because it was awarded twice, something
a little out of the ordinary for Congressional medals. Perhaps the
intrepid Field, for all the troubles he had gone through from the elements
and business rivals, deserved more than one medal.
After
the Congressional resolution of March 2, 1867, matters were to move rather
quickly. Joseph Goldsborough Bruff of the Treasury Department, who
prepared the original design, finished it by late July and within a few
days it was on the way to the mint. (He was Supervising Architect
of the Treasury Department at that time.)
Although
Bruff produced a fairly detailed drawing for his design, William Barber,
then an assistant engraver, asked for a sitting with Field in New York
so that the likeness might be as perfect as possible. In September,
1867, Barber went to New York and carefully sketched Field. Barber
returned quickly to the mint and began work on the proper models.
After
Barber's return matters moved with due artistic speed - that is to say,
slow. The models were reduced on the newly-arrive Hill Engraving
Machine, which had just been purchased from an English firm. This
was appropriate, as Field's cable linked Great Britain and the United
States.
The
dies were finished by late in April, 1868, and the first gold medal struck
about two weeks later, after all the lengthy preparations had been made. There was some delay also with respect to a proper case. On May 15th, 1868, the gold medal was sent to the Treasury and received
the next day by Treasury Secretary Hugh McCulloch.
J.J.
Knox, the Comptroller of the Treasury and a numismatist in his own right,
wrote the mint officials that "a slight defect on the knuckle of
the forefinger of the hand holding the wreath" had been found and
needed correction. For some unknown reason the medal was then put
in an obscure Treasury Department safe and forgotten.
By
late in 1868 Field had begun to wonder where his medal was and said as
much to those in a position to find out the reason for the delay.
The Treasury officials could not find the first medal and ordered another
one struck. This was sent to Washington on December 17th, 1868,
and duly presented to Field. The first gold medal seemed to have
vanished.
Suddenly,
in late March or early April, 1874, someone found the first gold medal
and sent it to Philadelphia for melting. Field received news of
his first medal being found, probably through the newspapers, and asked
to have it also. After a jeweler tested the first piece to make
sure it was pure gold, Field paid the government its gold value and received
the first gold medal. The value of the fine gold in the first one
was $553.90 (26.79 ounces).
The
Field medal went on public sale about 1869 or 1870. A number of
aluminum medals were struck in November, 1868, possibly in part for Field
himself.
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Obverse: Hand issuing from clouds about to
place a laurel wreath on the head of Cyrus Field (to left) itself on a base
of clouds.
HONOR AND FAME ARE THE REWARD above a scene of ships sailing from two partial
globes labelled AMERICA and EUROPE; the two continents are further connected
by a chain at the bottom. Exergual legend INDOMITABLE PERSEVERANCE
AND ENDURING FAITH ACHIEVED THE SUCCESS. In small letters towards
bottom J.G. BRUFF.D. and BARBER F. The whole is surrounded by a border
in the form of a cable. |
Reverse: Ornate border, American
shield, thirty-one stars in the form of a star, branches, and a globe
labelled EUROPE and AMERICA within and around the legend BY RESOLUTION
OF THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES above inscription MARCH 2, 1867,
TO CYRUS W. FIELD OF NEW YORK FOR HIS FORESIGHT, FAITH AND PERSISTENCY
IN ESTABLISHING TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION BY MEANS OF THE ATLANTIC TELEGRAPH
CONNECTING THE OLD WITH THE NEW WORLD.
Size 103 mm
Engraver William Barber |
The images are from the bronze
replica (Mint #625) issued by the United States Mint of the gold medal
awarded to Cyrus Field in 1868.
The original medal was 103mm in diameter; the replica is 76mm.
Thanks to Rich Hartzog of World
Exonumia for supplying the historical information on the medal.
Click here to visit Rich's
exonumia website. |
Randy Cole shares this photograph of his
103mm bronze replica of the Field medal, shown with the 76mm version for
comparison. The larger medal is 14mm thick, about twice the thickness of
the 76mm medal.
Randy also maintains a website
on the Vibroplex series of telegraph keys. |
The text of the Congressional
Resolution:
Saturday,
2 March 1867
A Resolution
presenting the Thanks of Congress to Cyrus W. Field.
Resolved
by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America
in Congress assembled, That the thanks of Congress be, and they hereby
are, presented to Cyrus W. Field, of New York, for his foresight, courage,
and determination in establishing telegraphic communication by means of
the Atlantic cable, traversing mid-ocean and connecting the Old World
with the New; and that the President of the United States be requested
to cause a gold medal to be struck, with suitable emblems, devices, and
inscription, to be presented to Mr. Field.
SEC. 2. And
be it further resolved, That when the medal shall have been struck,
the President shall cause a copy of this joint resolution to be engrossed
on parchment, and shall transmit the same, together with the medal, to
Mr. Field, to be presented to him in the name of the people of the United
States of America.
SEC. 3. And
be it further resolved, That a sufficient sum of money to carry this
resolution into effect is hereby appropriated out of any money in the
treasury not otherwise appropriated.
14 Stat.
574
In Britain, Punch was rather less complimentary:
The Electric Medal
The American Parliament has passed a resolution of thanks to Mr Cyrus Field, for having made the Electric Telegraph between England and the States, and has ordered a Gold medal to be struck, in honour of Mr Field’s single-handed feat. This is quite right. Punch would be the last man to deny that “alone Field did it”. We are not quite sure whether he let the water into the space called the Atlantic Ocean, but we know that he invented electricity and telegraphy, and after years of solitary experiments, perfected the Cable which is now laid. He carried it in his own one-horse gig from Greenwich to Ireland, and having previously constructed the machinery for paying it out, launched the Great Eastern by his unaided efforts, lifted the rope on board, and consigned it to the deep with his own hands. Mr Field tied on the Newfoundland end with great neatness, and then ran on with the continuation, and never sat down, nor even blew his nose, until he despatched the first message. Therefore, the medal is his, and the reverse also. But in concession to the ignorant prejudices of the world, might not just the most modest space, say the rim, bear in faint letters the names of Gisborne, Glass, Elliot, Anderson, Canning, and one or two more, who stood by, with their hands in their pockets, and saw the smart Cyrus perform the Herculean task. Anyhow, we do give the ground on which this end of the Cable rests. But we would not press the request, if it would hurt American feelings.
[Punch, March 16,1867]
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