CNG 102, Lot: 1567. Estimate $300. Sold for $550. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

temp. HANOVER. Edward Vernon. 1684-1757. Brass Medal (38mm, 20.10 g, 6h). Capture of Portobello. Dated 1739. THE · BRITISH · GLORY · REVIV · D · BY · ADMIRAL · VERИOИ ·, Admiral Vernon standing slightly right on tablet with ornament below, holding baton and sword; behind, canon to right; in background, ship under sail right; stippled background / HE TOOK PORTO BELLO WITH SIX SHIPS ONLY, three ships under sail right and three ships within harbor of Portobello; in exergue, NOV · 22 · 1739. MI 538/119; Eimer –; cf. Adams & Chao PBvi 11-P and note; Betts 236. EF, dark brown surfaces with traces of brass undertones.

From the J. Eric Engstrom Collection.

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.