MORE ON THE VALUE OF A MEDAL OF HONOR

Last week’s article titled “What is the value of a Medal of Honor?” was more than just an interesting diversion for me. Although the original Forbes article was a bit vague on the states where the key players in the story resided, due to its name I correctly guessed that the Pejepscot Historical Society is located in Maine, and I was absolutely certain that the town of Duxbury where the medal was found is the Massachusetts town where I grew up.

The First Parish Church Fair where the Civil War-era Medal of Honor medal was found is an annual summer event that has probably been held since the beginning of time. I remember many years ago picking up a large 19th century engraving for $1 and on another occasion finding a first edition of “Six Crises”, Richard Nixon’s first book, for 50 cents or maybe a dollar; I am sure that similar bargains are still to be had, perhaps with a slight adjustment for inflation. Although I live only a couple towns away I have not made it to the fair in recent years, mainly due to the fact that the real action seems to occur earlier than I can accommodate on a Saturday morning. I am torn between pride in my hometown being the source of this lost treasure, and the knowledge that maybe I could have been the one to discover it.

A little research confirms that the questions about the value of a Medal of Honor and whether or not one can be sold are complicated matters with little reliable precedent. It is clearly legal to own a MOH, but perhaps not to sell it. It is, however, apparently legal to gift a MOH. In the case of the MOH stashed away in a book that was sold at the church fair, I would contend that the seller and buyer were dealing in the book itself and the medal was an unknown and unexpected bonus (I am still not sure how you can stash a medal in a book and not notice it a mile away, but the Forbes story did not address those difficult logistics). In that scenario, the MOH was a gift or perhaps found or abandoned property that had been transferred without any financial consideration.

If a dollar value had to be assigned to a MOH, I wouldn’t even know where to start. This MOH was from the Civil War, and almost half of all MOHs ever bestowed were awarded during that conflict. At that time it was the only decoration for valor available, and the qualifications were obviously less stringent as evidenced by the fact that hundreds were rescinded in the early 20th century when a review of all previous Medals of Honor was undertaken to identify those that were awarded for any reason other than “distinguished service”. All of this would seem to somewhat diminish the importance of a Civil War MOH, but then again, the MOH awarded to Joshua Chamberlain was for his actions in an important battle at Gettysburg.

There was allegedly an auction in recent years of the presentation box and certificate that accompany a MOH (those can be sold without restriction), and after the auction the MOH itself was “gifted” to the high bidder; that auction supposedly ended at just under $30,000. Even if this unattributed anecdote found on the Internet is accurate, there are so few, if any, comparables that it would seem impossible to confidently assign a monetary value to a Medal of Honor, assuming a transaction convoluted enough to circumvent the relevant laws could be devised.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: WHAT IS THE VALUE OF A MEDAL OF HONOR? (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n38a21.html)

Wayne Homren, Editor

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