elverno Posted May 14, 2009 Report Share Posted May 14, 2009 1790 Confédération etc. à Lille, France. Hennin 137 - Details - 26mm In 1790 there was a nationwide movement creating "federations", essentially departmental militias or national guards that were open to a fairly wide section of society. This brought in part of the middle-class to a quasi-military, quasi-political movement at a level that they were previously unable to participate in. They held a large number of gatherings all over the country and commemorated them with medals (I've collected a few of them, look under 1790) most of which could have been worn on a string or ribbon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frank Posted May 14, 2009 Report Share Posted May 14, 2009 Great piece. I really like these transitional designs between 1789 and 1793, when the king was still around but the old symbols of the monarchy were being replaced by Greek or Roman elements. The motto is transitional --"La Nation, la Loi et le Roi"-- and the militiamen here are taking their oath not on a Bible or before the monarch but on a pagan altar. And on the obverse there's one little fleur-de-lis at the bottom, overshadowed by the larger Phrygian bonnet at the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
constanius Posted May 14, 2009 Report Share Posted May 14, 2009 1790 Confédération etc. à Lille, France. Very nice in deed, mine has remarkably similar imagery but includes a female in classical dress (and you have already spotted my weakness there) with the bonus of a walled citadel/city on her head. LINK TO TOPIC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elverno Posted May 14, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2009 In a word, wow! I think the woman with the castle on her head represents a city (go figure). I've got other medals with females with such hats and they're invariably identified as Paris, Rome and etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
constanius Posted May 17, 2009 Report Share Posted May 17, 2009 More proof re 'babes in classical dress' LINK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.