Coins, Paper Money, Tokens and Historical Medals

FRANCE, Olympic Games, Paris, 1924, a trial silver-gilt Winner’s Medal by B.H. Mayer after G. Cassioli, Victory holding olive crown, incuse legend, rev. male athlete carried on the shoulders of team-mates, edge stamped b.h. mayer pforzheim 990, 55mm; NETHERLANDS, Olympic Games, Amsterdam, 1928, a trial silver-gilt Winner’s Medal by B.H. Mayer after G. Cassioli, similar, edge stamped b.h. mayer pforzheim 990, 55mm (cf. GV p.86, 1) [2]. About extremely fine and of the highest rarity; in orange gilt-blocked fitted cases £1,000-2,000

It is thought that these pieces were executed by Mayer as trials prior to the company being awarded the contract to manufacture the official medals for the winners in the 1936 Olympics, of which 960 medals were struck and on which the obverse legend is raised. The designs on both medals were originally conceived by the Italian sculptor, Prof. Guiseppe Cassioli, and selected by the IOC as the permanent Olympic medal in 1928, the inscription changing to correspond with each subsequent Games