An unusual uniface medallic shell or cliché featuring the distinctive head of Britannia wearing a Corinthian helmet, from the series of designs associated with James Mudie's National Medals.
The obverse is inscribed BRITANNIA and signed J. MUDIE D. at the lower right.
This Britannia design was engraved by Paul Joseph Raymond Gayrard and was used on more than one medal within Mudie's celebrated National Medals series, issued in 1820 to commemorate British achievements during the Napoleonic Wars.
Unlike a conventional solid two-sided medal, this example is formed from an extremely thin piece of white-coloured metal. The reverse shows the corresponding incuse/negative impression of the Britannia design, consistent with a uniface medallic shell or cliché.
Early 19th-century uniface cliché strikes from Mudie's National Medals series are documented; however, the precise date and circumstances of manufacture of this particular example have not been established, and it is therefore being offered as an interesting medallic study piece rather than claimed as an original 1820 issue.
The Britannia obverse was paired with several different reverses in the Mudie series, so it is not possible to assign this surviving uniface piece confidently to one particular BHM/Eimer medal number.
Details • James Mudie National Medals Britannia design • Signed J. MUDIE D. • Britannia design engraved by Paul Joseph Raymond Gayrard • Approximately 40mm diameter • Weight: 5.54g • Maximum overall relief thickness: approximately 1.9mm • Non-magnetic • White-coloured metal – exact composition untested • Uniface shell / cliché construction • Positive relief obverse with corresponding incuse impression to reverse • Early 19th-century design; exact date of this particular piece unconfirmed
Condition An unusual surviving piece with good detail remaining to the Britannia portrait. The reverse/incuse surface has extensive oxidation, blistering and granular corrosion, with considerable age-related deterioration. There is also wear, oxidation and surface marking to the obverse and around the rim. The piece has deliberately not been cleaned or treated.
Please study all photographs carefully as they form an important part of the description, particularly regarding the unusual thin construction and condition.
An interesting research piece for a collector of British historical medals, James Mudie's National Medals, Napoleonic-era medallic art, clichés, proofs or early 19th-century exonumia.