STONE MOUNTAIN DISTINGUISHED SERVICE MEDAL

Here is an image of my 1926 Stone Mountain Distinguished Service Medal. The diameter is 40mm, Bronze and the edge is stamped Medallic Art Co NY. Designed by Augustus Lukeman.

It is my understanding that 29 medals were struck in gold and given to the 29 girls that sold the most Stone Mountain half dollars during the Harvest Campaign. A loop was added to the top and their names were engraved on the reverse.

These medals were featured in the May 1927 edition of The Numismatist magazine.

I have a few questions,

First, were these 29 Medals actually struck in gold or were they gold plated?

My second question, which pertains to my piece and is my primary focus in researching this medal, is whether or not any other Bronze examples were struck. In speaking with David Hill, Librarian at the ANS, he does not have any record of this medal actually being ordered in Bronze, but he was able to provide me with the specs for the proposed medal.

Also, I haven’t been able to find any other examples of this medal in Bronze in any auction archives. I would love to know if anyone else knows of other examples, or has any history on the piece.

My initial thoughts are that my piece may be some sort of prototype.

Because it is Bronze and the documented examples, which were given to the 29 young ladies, were gold, and the fact that the cartouche of my example is not engraved, I am wondering if maybe this was simply a prototype which was cast as an example for the Stone Mountain Confederate Monumental Association for their review and approval?

These are simply my thoughts, as I have not been able to find any other examples or documentation relevant to my medal.

Here is a better image of the medal in the ANS collection; this was sent to me by David Hill:
http://numismatics.org/collection/1940.100.2071

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web