Great Britain: National Rifle Association Shooting Award
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Form:
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Circular
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By:
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G.G. Adams (obverse) |
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Date:
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1860 onwards |
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Ref:
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BHM: 2692; Eimer: 1542; Laidlaw: 0368;
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Variations:
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| Size | Metal | Mass | Value |
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| 47.8 mm | Silver | 52.1 gm | $35 | | 47.6 mm | Bronze | 37.2 gm | $15 |
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Edge:
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Plain.
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Obverse:
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Long bowman standing left and rifleman standing right. On the right end of the exergue line signed: "G.G. ADAMS" (on earlier medals). In exergue: "SIT PERPETUUM". Vertically upwards on left: "1300 1500" and downwards on right: "1860".
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Reverse:
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Within a laurel wreath tied with a ribbon at the bottom: "THE NATIONAL / RIFLE / ASSOCIATION / 1860".
Other designs exist for different shooting competitions.
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Notes:
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The National Rifle Association (NRA) held the first marksmanship competitions in London on Wimbledon Common in July 1860, the date shown on the medal. In 1890, the village of Bisley was chosen as the new location for the NRA Championships where the events are still held.
The bronze medal shown is for for the Junior Imperial Challenge Shield. The medal is dated 1910, the inauguration year of the annual competition. Sponsored by Raymond W. Ffennell (born Schumacher), honorary Colonel of the Witwatersrand Rifles. Colonel Ffennell was a wealthy South African who made his money in gold mining. He was an ardent imperialist and believed that every boy throughout the British Empire should learn how to shoot a rifle. By the start of the Second World War the Junior Imperial Challenge Shield had become one of the largest sporting events in the world attracting more than 25,000 entrants.
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