schutzenfester

I recently bought a few shooting medals from a dealer and since I purchased four I qualified for a quantity discount, so I picked up the new Richter set, which is quite amazing and worth every penny.

 

I'll list all the medals eventually but for tonight here are two of the same medal with a slight variation.

Both are Richter catalog #420, dated 1905, from Fribourg. These are silver, 33mm, with 858 struck.

 

The first came in the display case, and is extremely toned and never cleaned. It is signed "HOLY FRERES" on the obverse, the same as the one in the Richter catalog.

 

 

The second has very little toning, and may have been lightly cleaned at one time. This one is signed "Holy Frs", I wonder how many were produced like this?

 

 

More as I find the time.....

Nice medals hiho.

Die variations are not entirely unusual with Swiss shooting medals. There are a number of examples of medals with die variations. More than likely R420's die broke or became unusable and a second die had to be utilized and its reverse was slightly different. Again, not too unusual but having the 2 different die varieties is a plus.

And I see you got a Ricther book. I hope you enjoy the book, as you stated it is very nice and an excellant reference.

I will be interested in seeing the other 2 you procured.

My Father and I are going to have an auction on our web site beginning at 7:00 PM CST, May 23 and ending at 8:00 PM CST, June 1. It will be for one schützenfest medal this time. We will try to have an auction of one to multiple schützenfest items every other Friday after this first auction and always ending the following second Sunday. Mostly medals but occasionally other schützenfest items will be auctioned.

There is more detailed information regarding the auction as well as other schützenfest related information at the web site.

If you have any interest please go to our site. A link to the site is in my signature.

Thank you.

Can you help me purchase the Martin reference first while I save up for the Richter?

 

PLEASE...

My Father has normally had Martin books in the past but when I asked him about one for you he told me he did not have any at this time. I will look around at some of my sources and see what I can find... if I can find.

I'm going to see if my local library has either (they have a pretty decent numismatic reference section) and then probably will buy the Martin reference (if I can find one) with an eye to one day acquiring the Richter set. Maybe convince my library that the Richter set should be on their buying list so I can look it over first.

 

Do you know where these can be purchased and about what they cost? I have had no luck finding any for sale online.

 

Very nice medals you posted by the way, with great detailed photos.

hiho,

A Richter set is not too easy to find but I can get one from the author. With the devaluation of the US dollar to the Swiss franc the set might cost including shipping in the $175-185 range

Thank you for your reply.

 

This is a most impressive display, especially the cups which can easily stand on their own as works of art. Am I correct in thinking that the 2 cups which feature a standing bear as the stem are from Bern?

 

I think the cups must be particularly rare and for so many to be present, this must be a highly advanced collection. My compliments to you (I assume these are yours) on a remarkable achievement.

 

What is a "König" prize? A grand prize reserved for the "king" of shooting competitions?

The picture was taken two years ago when my Father and I were in Switzerland for an auction. We traveled to Bern to the Schützen Museum where I took the above photo and many more. I am lucky to have that many in my personal collection but my Father who has been collecting for over forty years has exponentially more.

The bears as the stems on the couple of cups you asked about are from Bern.

The König was the "king" of the shoot and many times was awarded some type of special award including silvered laurel wreaths.

Below is a watch we recently aquired. Extremely rare to find in such immaculate condition. Many times you can find a Schützenfest watch in great condition but this one is like new including the original case and paperwork.

Thank you for the information.

 

According to Forrer, Eugene and Alfred Jacot-Guillarmond were watch case engravers (father & son) who resided in Le Locle.

 

Together, they produced a medal struck at the works of Huguenin Freres in 1888, on the inauguration of a monument at Le Locle to Daniel Jean Richard (1665-1741) who was the founder of the Neuchatel watch industry (signed E. Jacot)

 

Alfred also made a "Cantonal Rifle Meeting" of Vaud at Yverdon, 1899 (which sounds like another shooting medal).

 

I notice that this company, like Holy Freres, were watch case manufacturers. Is this generally true of the engravers of shooting medals, or just a coincidence?

Medals are the most prevalent award of Schützenfests although there were many other types of awards. Pokals and Bechers being another award. These are ornate goblets, cups and small cups.

Watches were also a popular award, although a little more rare they were prevalent thus the reason why watch case makers were also engravers of medals.

Before a schützenfest, the 'committee' would go around to local and regional shop keepers and ask for donations for the schützenfest.

These could be on the form of money, silver services, watches, clocks, rifles, wappensheibe, pottery, etc. Medals, Cups, and watches were the most common type of award for the higher prizes although many other type were given out and there were König prizes and special prizes.

Scottishmoney,

You do have a good memory, the 1895 Winterthur was up for auction at the Satcks auction but the one I have pictured is from my collection and I have owned it for many years.

On a side bar; is the crawling bug just a gif? It is cool.

We picked up a few medals from the recent Stacks auction I'm happy to say. The following medal was aquired by my Dad at a recent Spink auction. It is a beautiful one of a kind gold medal from Frauenfeld.

1890 Federal Schützenfest Thurgau, Frauenfeld

Metal: Gold

Mintage: 1 (there are 3 silver and 3 bronze examples)

Weight: 67.3 gm

Engraver: Stefano Johnson, Milano

Here's another nice medal, it is somewhat common.

From the 1895 Federal Shoot in Canton Zurich, Winterthur

Metal: Silver

Size: 45mm

Mintage: 5,060 examples

-There were 44 examples in Gold, 3,710 examples in Bronze and even a rare Gold plated Bronze version.

Engraver: Georges Hantz, Genf / H. Wildermuth, Winterthur

Here is another medal: Cantonal shoot in Binningen, Basel 1893

Mintage: 705 examples

Metal: Silver

Size: 45mm

Engraver: Franz Homberg, Bern / Karl Jauslin, Muttenz

1887 Federal Schützenfest in Geneve

Mintage: 39,030 (high mintage for Swiss shooting medals, making this medal relatively common) But a beautiful example of a Schützenfest medal

Metal: Silver (there was also 12 example in Gold, and 4,354 examples struck in Bronze)

Size: 45mm (the most common size for schützenfest medals although many different sizes are struck for various medals)

Engraver: H. Bovy, C. Richard, E. Lossier of Genve

I thought I could post a couple of schutzenfest medals:

Exercices Arquebuse et Navigation, 1899, Geneve

Year: 1899

Metal: Silver

Size: 51mm

Quite rare with 5 pieces minted

Engraver: Hugues Bovy

hiho,

If I could only have one reference then I would purchase the Richter set. It has more content and the pictures are in color opposed to black and white as in Martin's. If cost is a deciding factor then Martin would be the way to go. Richter is the "new bible" of schutzenfest medals and rightly so.

hiho,

As you know, you have a 1906 Vaud, Nyon Cantonal Schützenfest medal with a mintage of 400 pieces. It is 33 mm in size and is silver. Silver was the only metal this particualr medal was made in.

It is R1610 (Richter) and M964 (Martin)

The engraver is Alfred Jacot-Guillarmond of Le Locle

It's value would range (conditon range of EF to Pristine UNC) from approx. $70 - $150.00

You have a nice example of this schützenfest medal.

hiho,

I am not positive but I bellieve Holy Freres was a prolific Swiss engraver, male.

I hope you will be able to help me.

 

Many years ago, I bought a small group of shooting medals.

 

A scan of one of them is shown below. I do not own a copy of Martin or any later works, so my remarks below are taken from my old notes about this piece.

 

The medal is from Bern (Langenthal) 1899. It is silver and apparently of the type of Martin-151. The bear is as shown in Martin, but the other side is not. The Swiss Miss has her hair braided differently and the names of both Munger and Homberg appear in the field (while only Homberg appears on the Martin piece) and it does not have "Bern" on it like the Martin illustration does.

 

I will be grateful for any information you might be able to offer. Thanks!

Hello,

Your medal is R239b (M151 variation). In the Martin book, Martin pictures the rare M151

R239c that only 5 examples were minted and in my 25 years and my Father's 40+ years of collecting, we have never seen that particular example. In the new Schützenfest Medals 'bible' by Jürg Richter the medals are identified as R239b (your's) and R239c.

R239b: 850 examples, 30mm and is relatively common in terms of shooting medals and has a market value of $40-120 dollars depending on condition.

The Martin example shown in Martin is the one that only 5 examples are known and is thought to be a proof strike but my Father and I have never seen so that can't be substantiated. Many shooting medals have proof-like surfaces but proof dies (as we know them today) were not normally used. Although there are many shooting medals that can rival today's proofs.

Variations of shooting medals are somewhat common. There are of course the same medal in different metals and there are at times variations of a medal in the same metal, such as the M151 (R239), sometimes even 4 variations and these usually in the silver examples.

I hope this helps with your question.

Rod

Everyone has posted some very nice medals. I am very happy to see that schützenfest medals have been gaining interest in the community . If anyone has any questions or if I can help in any way please do not hesitate in asking. I've been collecting schützenfest medals for over twenty years and my Father has been collecting them for over forty.

1. Your first medal is M666 (Martin catalog) or Richter 1250 (the new Swiss Shooting medal bible, Richter catalog)

Federal Schützenfest of 1890, Frauenfeld, Thurgau

45mm

AU - 119 examples

AR - 5760 examples

BR - 4500 examples

WM - 24 examples

Engraver: Hugues Bovy, Genf

M666, Kr228, Str. 1513-1517

This is a comon medal with a market value of $25.00 to $35.00

2. Your second medal is M567 or Richter1167

Cantonal Schützenfest of 1891, Ebnat-Kappal, St. Gallen

45mm

AU - 1 example

AR - 700 examples

BR - 600 examples

Engraver: Hugues Bovy, Genf / J. Stauffacher

M567, Kr184, Str. 1314-1316

The market value for this medal is $40.00 to $60.00

3. Your third medal is a common German shooting medal with market value between $15.00 to $25.00

Was able to pick up 11 rolls (at face value) of 1964 Kennedy Halves that were in my local bank's vault since 1964 in a box. There were more rolls total but I was able to get 11 for myself. I feel very lucky to have part of a "hoard" even as small as this one...

My latest purchase is Jurg Richter's book: "Die Schützentaler und Schützenmedaillen der Schweiz"

This is the new "Bible" of Swiss Shooting Medals and replaces the 1971 Jean Martin catalog/book.

It is the definitive book of Swiss Schützenfest Medals.

Thanks Ian

Hi,

Can you tell me how to post pics right into the post rather than as a thumbnail that requires clickinh to see larger?

Thanks

Hello everyone,

I am very happy that there is interest among this site regarding Schützenfest medals.

For many years the "bible" of Swiss shooting medals was a book/catalog by Jean L. Martin called 'Les médailles de tir suisses' or 'Die Schützenmedaillen der Schweiz' or 'Swiss shooting medals', it was published in Lausanne 1972. This publication was the most comprehensive catalog available on Swiss shooting medals. It contains over 1150 medals with obverse and reverse pictures. All pictures are actual size, black and white photos. The book is hardcover 8.5 X 11.75 inch format and approximately 3/4 inch thick. This book/catalog is currently out of print and very difficult to obtain. Only 2,000 published.

Jean Martin also published a book/catalog of Swiss Shooting Watches and one of Swiss Shooting Cups and as you can imagine the cups and watches are as beautiful and are rarer than the medals. I am able to obtain these books on a very limited basis. These books are in German.

Just last year a very knowledgeable Swiss gentlemen by the name of Jürg Richter published the new "bible" of Swiss shooting medals called 'Die Schützentaler und Schützenmedaillen der Schweiz. It is 405 pages long, slightly larger than the Martin book and contains much more in terms of quantity of medals than the Martin book as well as going well into the 1950's when Martin stopped in the 30's.

I can obtain this book also. This book is in German.

Jürg Richter also published at the same time a book/catalog of Shooting Jetons called 'Die Schützenjetons der Schweiz', this book is also a comprehensive catalog of Swiss shooting Jetons. Also in German.

Both of the Richter books are the most complete and comprehensive references of Swiss Shooting Medals and Jetons to date!

As you may already know Delbert Krause also published a book of Swiss shooting medals in 1965. Although it is a nice book, it is lacking in terms of completeness, although it is in English. Please keep in mind that the language barrier is small when using these books. Most all information can be readily obtained regardless of the language.

Another book similar in size and content to the Krause book is 'Schweizer Schüzentaler and Medaillen' by Kurt Käppeli; this book is in German. It does contain more medals than Krause but still pales in comparison to the Martin or Richter books. May be able to obtain.

If you desire any more information or are interested in obtaining any of these books please let me know.

The two pictures below are from the Martin catalogs...

I will post further info regarding books about shooting medals yet this weekend.

Hello Ian,

I collect anything schützenfest primarily shooting medals but jetons were also part of Schützenfests so I collect them too. They are not as detailed in regards to the engraving or artistry but nevertheless are collectible.