102933 | GERMANY. Baptismal silver Medal.

102933  |  GERMANY. Baptismal silver Medal. Issued circa 1850 (32mm, 12h).

 

SELIG WER GLAUBT UND GETAUFTIST (blessed is he who believes and is baptized), the baptism of Jesus: Christ kneeling left outside of the River Jordan, with arms crossed over chest, being baptised by John the Baptist to left, holding cruciform staff with banner; radiant dove above // ER / LEITE DICH / AUF DIE / RECHTE BAHN / ZUM / ANDENKEN / AN DIE / H. TAUFE (may He guide thee on the right path in remembrance of thy holy baptism) in eight lines; all within ornate border with three flowers in each spandrel.

 

GPH –. PCGS SP-64. Deeply toned and extremely brilliant, with charming obverse relief that allows the design to stand out.

 

While one may now purchase a silver round, usually struck to the weight of one ounce and with a variety of religions-themed designs, as a gift for a child upon said child's baptism or confirmation, the practice is in no way modern. In 18th and 19th century Germany in particular, the practice was commonplace, with mints in Nürnberg and, later on, the Loos workshop in Berlin, striking countless tokens and medals to be used as baptismal gifts. While the Nürnberg issues tended to verge upon actual coinage, such as the multiple and fractional gold ducat agnus Dei—or Lamb of God—issues, or billon kerzendreier that had more of an ecclesiastic token status, those later from the Loos workshop were fully in the medallic realm, with the firm mixing and matching various obverse and reverse dies with numerous Biblical scenes—many of which dealt with the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan. Even beyond the production of baptismal-related medals, the Loos workshop was heavily active in other religious-themed medals, with many touching upon parables throughout the Bible. This medal's maker remains unknown, differing from many others signed by workshops like the aforementioned Loos and Drentwett.

 

Upload: 15 April 2025.