In 1969, to help mark the 50th anniversary of the Grand Canyon National Park, the Arizona Department of Economic Planning and Development ("Department") issued a two-medal series of commemorative pieces, each available in bronze and silver. This post discusses the first of the series' medals - focused on the Park itself.
The Grand Canyon was designated a National Park on February 26, 1919 (it was among the first 15 National Parks to be established in the US); the Canyon was previously designated as a National Monument in 1908. The Canyon was carved over millions of years by the waters of the Colorado River and is ~277 miles long and covers 1,901.972 square miles. The National Park is located in northwest Arizona.
The Department commissioned artist-sculptor Don Dow (1923-1992) of Phoenix, AZ (at the time) to create the designs and models for the medals. Dow was a prolific medallist, with over 30 pieces in his portfolio. (I'll be posting other of his works in the future.)
The 35 millimeter (~1-3/8"), high-relief medal was struck by the Medallic Art Company (New York) in bronze and 0.999 fine silver. The silver medal was edge-numbered; mine is numbered "6851" which suggests a fairly large mintage for the silver piece - likely between 7,000 and 9,999. The bronze medal did not have a preset mintage limit or edge-numbering.
The obverse of the medal presents a view down the Grand Canyon into the valley known as "Bright Angel Amphitheatre."
Grand Canyon - Bright Angel Amphitheatre
(Image Credit: Pierce, C.C. (Charles C.), 1861-1946, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.)The Great Seal of Arizona is presented on the medal's reverse. Per the web site of the Arizona Secretary of State:
The state's key enterprises at the time [circa 1912]; mining, ranching, farming and climate; are symbolized on the face of the seal. In the background of the seal is a mountain range with the sun rising behind mountain peaks and at the right side of the mountain range is a storage reservoir (a man-made lake) and a dam. The sun and reservoir represent Arizona's dry and sunny climate. In the middle of the seal are irrigated fields and orchards to represent farming; and, in the lower right side we see ranching represented in the form of grazing cattle. To the left, on a mountainside, is a quartz mill with a miner with a pick and shovel. The Latin inscription "DITAT DEUS" above the central elements on the Seal translates as "GOD ENRICHES."
The Bronze version of the medal had an issue price of $2.00; the 0.999 fine silver, $8.00. The medals were sold at Arizona banks at the time, as well as via mail order directly from the artist.
1969 Grand Canyon National Park 50th Anniversary - Bronze
1969 Grand Canyon National Park 50th Anniversary - Silver
For more of my topics on commemorative coins and
medals, see:
Commems Collection.
Posted 11/03/2022 6:34 pm
