The Storming of the Bastille 14th July 

Paris was in a state of high agitation in the early months of the French revolution. In Spring 1789, the Estates-General refused to dissolve, transforming itself instead into a constituent National Assembly. In July, King Louis XVI called in fresh troops and dismissed his popular Minister, Jacques Necker. On the morning of July 14, the people of Paris seized weapons from the armoury at the Invalides and marched in the direction of an ancient Royal fortress, the Bastille. After a bloody round of firing, the crowd broke into the Bastille and released the handful of prisoners held there.

The storming of the Bastille signalled the first victory of the people of Paris against a symbol of the "Ancien Régime"

The Fête de la Fédération held on July 14, 1790, celebrated with great pomp the first Anniversary of the insurrection. Celebration of the anniversary was revived at the end of the Nineteenth Century after years of neglect.

Today, the festivities of July 14 are as popular as ever. In Paris, the traditional military parade on the Champs-Elysées is a meticulously planned spectacle, and

 

An interesting silver medal celebrating the 100^TH Anniversary but struck in Lima, South America. What was the link between France and Peru? Were there ex pats or immigrants or perhaps it was a political movement 

 

 

 

Smoke Farthings at Whitsun (Pentecost)

In mediaeval times there was an annual farthing tax on households which had a chimney, which was paid towards the upkeep of the local cathedral. On Whit Monday people walked in a procession to the local cathedral, or if that was far away to the main church in the vicinity, and they paid what was known as the Whitsun Farthing. Amersham in Buckinghamshire was one of the designated local churches for people to process to, but the inhabitants in nearby Chesham resented going all the way to Amersham. In 1454 they petitioned the Bishop of Lincoln to allow them to hold their procession to the parish church in Chesham instead. This was agreed provided they contributed 16 pence annually to the upkeep of the cathedral. After the Reformation the tradition was to collect farthing donations at a special Whitsun service for the upkeep of church buildings generally. This ancient tradition continued in Amersham and Chesham until 1960. In 1957 Christ Church Waterside in Chesham, collected 14,640 farthings; and Amersham parish collected 15,092 farthings. After 1961 when farthings were no longer legal tender the tradition died with it.

There are also references to Whit Farthings for Worcester Cathedral in 1656 and Southwell Cathedral in London in 1906.

 

 

A Mars a Day

The theme of the meeting today was Mars, which is suitable for the month which is named after the Roman God. Many of us of a certain age in England associate the word with the delicious chocolate bars. It was first manufactured in 1932 in Slough. It is not named after the planet or the god but a man called Forrest Mars, Sr.

The advertising jingle, “A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play" jingle was associated with the confectionary from the late 1950s through to the mid-1990s. It was reintroduced a few years ago.During the football World Cup in 2006 Mars rebranded its bars with the word "Believe" in support of the England team.

The god Mars features on many ancient coins. In ancient Roman religion and mythology, Mars was the god of war and also an agricultural guardian, a combination characteristic of early Rome. He is the son of Jupiter and Juno, and was pre-eminent among the Roman army's military gods. Most of his festivals were held in March and in October, the months which traditionally began and ended the season for both military campaigning and farming.

The union of Venus and Mars held greater appeal for poets and philosophers, and the couple were a frequent subject of art. The wild animals most sacred to Mars were the woodpecker and the wolf, which in the natural lore of the Romans were said always to inhabit the same foothills and woodlands. A stylised "spear and shield of Mars" is also the symbol for the planet Mars and male gender.

 

Do Coins have a Future?

Centuries ago, probably more than two thousand years ago, an invention was changing the way people did everyday business. If you wanted to buy some wine and food that cost a sheep and you did not have the right payment on you, perhaps you would hand over a cow and apologise you had nothing smaller. The dealer would offer you nine chickens in change and count them laboriously in front of you.

The invention was money which was pieces of metal which had an agreed value. Someone must have thought they needed a special to show they were genuine and the value. Coins were easier to carry than goods for barter and you do not have to keep them alive.

Nowadays the reverse is happening. Most transactions are done with a plastic card or tapping your telephone. Coins are disappearing along with high street banks and ATMs to get cash. However over a million people in the UK do not have a bank account and then add those who have an account but prefer cash and the people who temporarily are not able to access their accounts which equals a lot more.

Will this mean the end of coins and more worryingly the end of coin collectors? Probably not as old coins will still be collected and collectors want commemorative coins.

 

 

 

 

 Happy New Year

 

Three wise men of Cologne

On June 9, 1164, Frederick I issued a certificate conferring the ownership of the relics of the Three Magi to the Archbishop of Cologne which were transferred to the Cologne Cathedral on July 23, 1164. In medieval times, the possession of such a relic was a strong argument for the German king to be the only true emperor and thus of higher rank than all the other European rulers. The fact that Frederick I owned their relics underlined heaven’s appreciation for him. The possession of those relics brought lots of pilgrims to Cologne.

  

City of Cologne. Gold strike at 4 gold florins from the dies of the Dreikönigstaler [Three Magi taler], no year (around 1620). Extremely rare. Very fine. Estimate: 50,000 euros. From Künker auction 313 (October 9, 2018), No. 3724.

 

The coin shows the key scene of Saint Ursula’s legend, as it has been established since the 13th century. In the centre of a boat going up the river Rhine towards Cologne, we see Saint Ursula, wearing a crown. To her left, elaborately dressed, is Prince Aetherius. He had promised to get baptized after the three years’ waiting period. Together with his bride-to-be, he had gone on a pilgrimage to Rome, where the two of them were joined by Pope Cyriacus. We see him with a tiara and a processional cross to Saint Ursula’s right. The coin depicts the moment of the attack by the pagan besiegers of Cologne: While the prince protectively covers his body with his arms, the holy virgin is praying to God, supported by the brave pope who brings the Christian message to the land of the unbelievers.

Diocese of

Cologne. 1688 Vacancy of the See. Reichstaler 1688. Very rare. Extremely fine. 4,000 euros. From Künker auction 313 (October 9, 2018), no. 3634.

During the French occupation, the relics of the Three Magi were evacuated to the free town of Deutz. Only after Napoleon’s Concordat with the Catholic Church, they returned to their usual place on January 6, 1804.

Source

https://www.kuenker.de/en/information/presseinformationen/aktuelle-mitteilungen/206

Accessed 02 01 2024

 

images by kind permission of Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co. KG, Osnabrück“. Lübke & Wiedemann KG, Leonberg“  owner of the coin images

http://www.kuenker.com

 

The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday, 18 June 1815.

The fiftieth anniversary was not celebrated as Britain and France were on good terms and no-one wanted to offend them.

The hundredth anniversary fell during the First World War and so there were other priorities although the hundredth anniversary of Trafalgar was marked.

A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armies of the Seventh Coalition. One of these was a British-led coalition consisting of units from the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Hanover, Brunswick, and Nassau, under the command of the Duke of Wellington.  The other was composed of three corps of the Prussian army under the command of Field Marshal von Blücher (the fourth corps of this army fought at the Battle of Wavre on the same day). The battle marked the end of the Napoleonic Wars.The Marquis of Anglesey and the Charge of the British, AE by Mudie (1820)

Pistrucci's electrotype medal (1840s)

Wellington death 1852 (obv)  

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Charles Riley, Coins & Medals

 

Catch! A coronation medallion fit for a king.

At the coronation following the Restoration commemorative medallions were distributed to the congregation. The diarist Samuel Pepys recorded that “medals [were] flung up and down by my Lord Cornwallis of silver, but [Pepys] could not get any. Another witness, Elias Ashmole, noted medals, “flung abroad… medals both of silver and gold… as a princely Donation or Largesse…” 

 

Bust of Charles II  crowned in royal ermine robes, wearing collar and George of the Garter. On the obverse Charles II in royal robes, holding the sceptre, is seated on a throne; Peace, hovering over him, places the crown upon his head.  The inscription reads

EVERSO . MISSVS . SVCCVRRERE . SECLO . XXIII . APR . 1661.

Inscription translation: Sent to support a fallen age, 23 April, 1661.

Illustration by kind permission of Charles Riley, Coins & Medals www.charlesriley.co.uk