YALE UNIVERSITY ELIZABETHAN CLUB MEDAL

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V20 2017 INDEX E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 20, Number 30, July 23, 2017, Article 34

Diana Plattner of Coin Update published an article July 21, 2017 about a medal recently created by Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) member Heidi Wastweet. -Editor

Medallic artist and CCAC member Heidi Wastweet has completed a new work for Yale University's Elizabethan Club. The medal, to be given in recognition of extraordinary service to the club, is not available for purchase—which is unfortunate, because it is truly delightful.

Founded in 1911, the Elizabethan Club (affectionately called “the Lizzie”) is dedicated to “the appreciation of literature and the arts and of the social intercourse founded upon such appreciation.” Tea is an afternoon ritual, and over cups of the club's own blend the conversation flows, often swirling around the collection of rare original manuscripts housed in the club's vault. These include Shakespearean folios, one of the three known 1604 copies of Hamlet, and first editions of books such as Milton's Paradise Lost and Spenser's Faerie Queene. Since its founding more than a century ago, the club has become home to scores of such treasures, along with such items as a lock of Byron's hair and a life portrait of Queen Elizabeth I.

Ms. Wastweet was among several medalists invited to submit designs for the medal, and she visited the club personally to do her research. On her website she writes that she was struck by “the combination of deep history and lighthearted sense of humor.” She also noted that, for its own publications, the club uses a clean and contemporary typeface and presentation. “I sought to portray that balance of reverence with jest,” she writes, “and old with new”:

My winning design is based on the club's insignia, Queen Elizabeth's Falcon badge… There are several versions of the falcon but I wanted to offer a completely original, creative interpretation rather than a copy of any existing one. The falcon is modeled after the white Gyrfalcon, favored by Royal English falconers. The third Tudor rose and scepter are replaced by a Lizzie tea cup as a cheeky reference to the daily tea tradition. The handwriting in the background is precisely traced directly from a letter in the club's collection, hand signed by Queen Elizabeth in 1595…

The reverse side of the medal, featuring the massive vault door mechanism, is decorated with the Queen's cypher with room for engraving each recipient's name.

The recipient of the first medal was Stephen Parks, the club's retired librarian and “dedicated defender of the vault.” Himself a collector, Mr. Parks was awarded his silver medal on June 24, 2017. On her Facebook page Ms. Wastweet wrote, “Such a pleasure for me to witness that ‘wow' moment when he first sees his medal!”

Struck by the well-known Medallic Art Company, the silver medal is 3 inches in diameter and weighs 10 ounces. In addition to Mr. Parks's medal, an additional 20 copies were struck and set aside for future recipients.

A marvelous medal, and a shame it can't be purchased. Perhaps many years from now one will come on the aftermarket. I've always enjoyed Heidi's delightful work -Editor