Lot 6320
Robert Wilhelm Bunsen – the Royal Society's Humphry Davy Gold Medal, the first to be awarded in 1877
Orders and Military Collectibles until 1918 | A108m | Live auction | 1240 Lots
Hammer price € 23,000
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Medal in solid 21-carat gold. Fine relief profile with a portrait of Davy, punch cutter „A. B. JOY Sc. N. MACPHAIL F." On the opposite side, the English dedication for Bunsen and Kirchhoff in relief and the award year „1877". The edge dented, signs of age and handling. Diameter 75.7 mm, weight 203 g. In the original red presentation case, the interior lined in violet velvet and silk (somewhat warped, the leather cover on the outside scuffed, blue ribbon under the medal torn), hinge and clasp intact. Also includes an original, handwritten postcard addressed to „Prof. Bunsen akadem. Laboratorium in Heidelberg" (contents not related to the award). This decoration dated 1877 is mentioned on p. 242 in Georg Lockemann's 1949 biography of „Robert Wilhelm Bunsen". A copy of the relevant extract is enclosed with the lot. The Davy Medal is the United Kingdom's highest award for scientists in the field of chemistry and has been awarded annually by the Royal Society of London since 1877. Conferred on Bunsen and Kirchhoff, the medal in this auction is made of solid gold and is truly sensational as it was the first ever to be awarded.Provenance: Consigned directly from the family estate.
Condition: II Questions about the lot?
