372, Lot: 644. Estimate $100. Sold for $130. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee. |
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temp. HANOVER. Edward Vernon. 1684-1757. Æ Medal (40mm, 17.12 g, 5h). Capture of Portobello. Dated 22 November 1739. THE · BRITISH · GLORY · REVIV · D · BY · ADMIRAL · VERИOИ, Vernon standing left, holding baton; cannon to left; to right, ship under sail right / HE TOOK PORTO BELLO WITH SIX SHIPS ONLY · ·, six English ships entering the harbor of Portobello; two Spanish ships further in; in exergue, ИOV · 22 · 1739. MI 538/120; Eimer –; Adams-Chao PBvi 5-E; Betts 221. VF, brown surfaces, irregular edges.
Porto Bello was a major naval base in the new world from which Spanish forces frequently harassed British shipping in the Caribbean. After famously claiming that he could take the city with a mere six ships, Admiral Edward Vernon successfully captured the settlement following a two-day siege.