Defeat of the Spanish Armada

CNG 85, Lot: 1558. Estimate $400. Sold for $1400. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

TUDOR. temp. Elizabeth I. 1558-1603. Æ Jeton (29mm, 7.65 g, 3h). Defeat of the Spanish Armada. Dated 1588. (rosette) HOMO · PROPONIT · DEVS · DISPONIT · (Man proposes; God disposes), four figures kneeling left in prayer; ·1588· below / + HISPANI · FVGIV’T · ET · PEREV’T · NEMINE · SEQVETE (The Spaniards are put to flight and perish with no man in pursuit), ship under sail right, breaking up. MI 147/116; Eimer 60. Good VF, attractive brown surfaces.

From a California Collection of British Historical Medals.

An important - though sometimes overlooked - area of numismatics, medals have served important political and social roles. They present a combination of art, history, and, at times, propaganda, to specific individuals, as well as the general public. Beginning intermittently in the mid-fourteenth century, medals were produced in England and, by the time of Charles I, became a regular feature of the Royal Mint. During the reign of Queen Victoria, they were extremely popular and were struck to commemorate a wide variety of contemporary worthies and events. These historical medals provide a unique perspective on various British events and personages from a contemporary viewpoint, if now seemingly arcane and trivial. Produced by some of the most skilled engravers of the time, they often contain intrinsic and precise detail in order to convey the subtlest allegory. Classical Numismatic Group is pleased to offer the following California Collection of British Historical Medals, which presents to both expert and novice the chance to bid on interesting and important pieces of history.

A counter made following the defeat of the Spanish Armada, the obverse represents the gratitude which the English felt, ascribing their deliverance to God. The reverse conveys the circumstances under which the Armada met its destruction. Having been badly beaten, the Spanish admiral fled northward – though not pursued by Lord Howard because the English lacked ammunition – only to come upon a fierce storm in which the entire Spanish fleet perished.