France: Memorial to Napoleon on the Island of St Helena
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Form:
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Circular.
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By:
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Antoine Bovy |
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Date:
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1840 |
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Ref:
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Laidlaw: 0061;
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Variations:
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| Size | Metal | Mass | Value |
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| 40.9 mm | Silvered Bronze | 36.0 gm | $85 | | 41.5 mm | Bronze | 39.2 gm | $75 |
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Edge:
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Plain
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Obverse:
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Bareheaded bust of Napoleon in uniform, left. Signed: “A. BOVY.” below the truncation. The legend: “NAPOLEON EMPEREUR”.
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Reverse:
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A view of Napoleon’s Memorial on St Helena. The legend above: “MEMORIAL DE STE HELENE” and below between ornamental stops: “5 MAI MDCCCXXI . PARIS 16 DEC. MDCCCXL”.
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Notes:
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St. Helena is a small island in the South Atlantic 2000 km west of Southern Africa. After Napoléon's defeat at the the Battle of Waterloo, he was taken to the island in October 1815 where he resided as a captive in Longwood House until his death on 5 May 1821.
This medal was struck under Louis-Philippe of France to commemorate the return, in 1840, of Napoleon’s body to his Motherland from St Helena where he had died in 1821. Rupert’s Valley, his temporary place of burial in St Helena, became French territory and a memorial to Napoleon was erected on the grave site.
The engraver Antoine Bovy (1795-1877) was born in Geneva but moved to Paris in 1824 where he worked in Pardier's Art Shop. During his career he produced some 200 engravings for coins, medals and jettons.
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