Firefighter's Medal with Case
date: label: date made
content: ca 1866
name: label: maker
content: Tiffany & Co.
notes: label: Description
content: A blank version of the James Gordon Bennett Medal in a leather case originally presented to a deserving firefighter of the city of New York through the Board of Trustees - T. Bailey Mason and others. The obverse of medal shows Neptune coming out of the sea on a shell, pulled by a horse, handing a key to a female figure (possibly Fame) holding a speaking trumpet and standing on a cliff edge. Her feet are surrounded by a fire hose, a bucket, a hook, and a ladder. With her left hand, which holds the trumpet, she gestures toward a steam engine pulled by horses in the far right background. Steam and/or smoke borders the right edge of the medal. A winged figure representing Fire, who holds a torch in each hand, is vanquished at the bottom below the cliffs.
label: Description
content: The reverse of the medal is inscribed on the outer border: "ENDOWED BY A FUND CONTRIBUTED BY JAMES GORDON BENNETT." Inside this inscription is a wreath of leaves, with a crossed axe and trumpet with ribbon at the bottom. Inside is the inscription: "PRESENTED / to / [blank space] / IN APPRECIATION OF / MERITOUS PERFORMANCE / OF DUTY AS A FIREMAN / [blank space] / TRUSTEES" There are two spaces left blank for further engraving of the name of the individual to whom this medal would be presented.
label: Description
content: The medal is in original case, made of leather and lined with green velvet. The exterior of the case is brown, and inscribed in the top in gold lettering is: "T. Bailey Meyrs. / Trustee of the Bennett Medal" A decorative gold medal band is painted around the exterior of the box.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view (case)
place: label: place made
content: United States: New York, New York City
topic: label: Subject
content: Fire Fighting
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Fire Fighting and Law Enforcement
label: Exhibition
content: Always Ready: Fighting Fire in the 19th Century
label: Exhibition Location
content: National Museum of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Estate of Cassie Mason Myers Julian-James
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: CL.033771
label: accession number
content: 70138
label: catalog number
content: 33771
objectType: label: Object Name
content: medal
label: Object Name
content: case
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: velvet (part: case material)
label: Physical Description
content: leather (part: case material)
label: Physical Description
content: cardboard (part: case material)
label: Physical Description
content: bronze (part: medal material)
label: Measurements
content: part: case: 3 in x 3 in x 1/2 in; 7.62 cm x 7.62 cm x 1.27 cm
label: Measurements
content: part: medal: 1 1/2 in; x 3.81 cm