Post Your Commemorative Coins/Medals That Present Bad History

Indeed. A good example of bad history.

If you're after some foreign medals, there are three that come to my mind.

In 1804, Napoleon had medals struck to commemorate his successful invasion of Britain. The medals were even pre-emptively stamped "Made in London". Of course, no such invasion ever occurred and Britain remained happily un-French. Royal Museum Greenwich example.

There are medals commemorating the coronation of king Edward VII on 26 June 1902, including the official government-issued medal for the occasion. However, if you check the history books you will see that Edward VII was actually crowned on 9 August 1902. The reason for the "wrong date" is interesting: the king came down with acute appendicitis a few days before the ceremony. Back in 1902, appendicitis was invariably fatal, but they decided to attempt an experimental surgical procedure. The procedure was a resounding success (and appendix removal is now a routine procedure), but the king was still recovering from the surgery on the scheduled coronation date, so the ceremony was postponed a couple of weeks until he recovered fully.

Souvenir-hawkers had medals made and sold in 1936 for the upcoming coronation of King Edward VIII, scheduled for 12 May 1937. Example. However, as history records, Edward VIII chose to marry a divorcee rather than remain King of England, and abdicated in December 1936, leaving these medals commemorating a non-existent event. Edward's replacement, his younger brother George VI, was crowned on the originally scheduled day of 12 May 1937, so it's possible to acquire medals celebrating the "coronation" of two different kings on the same day.

nice Sap! very interesting trivia!

Next up is a US half dollar with a minor dating issue as a result of the actions of Congress.

The coin bill for the 1936 Landing of the Swedes Half Dollar was authorized/approved in 1936. The Swedes landed in present-day Delaware in 1638, and established Fort Christina within what is today the City of Wilmington. This would make 1938 the logical 300th Anniversary year for a commemorative coin.

The bill that became Public Law, however, stipulated that the commemorative coin needed to bear the date of the year it was authorized vs. the event's actual anniversary date. This meant a coin dated "1936" for a 300th Anniversary that took place in 1938. The coin's reverse design, however, includes the anniversary dates of "1638-1938" so the 1936 coin date is more of a minor element of confusion vs. a major error in the anniversary's narrative.

Semi-Bad History!

1936 Landing of the Swedes in Delaware



For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more details about the 1936 Delaware half dollar, see: Commems Collection.

Oh my.

Time for a trip to Elgin, Illinois to assess the 1936 Elgin, Illinois Centennial Half Dollar.

The Elgin is yet another example of a US commemorative coin that plays fast and loose with dates. Though authorized, minted and distributed in 1936, it was actually in 1935 that Elgin celebrated the centennial of its founding. Also, the "1673" date on the coin has no relation to Elgin, it marks the year in which Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet traveled the Mississippi River and passed through what is now the State of Illinois.

Bad History!

1936 Elgin, Illinois Half Dollar



For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including more details about the 1936 Elgin half dollar and its anniversary date issues, see: Commems Collection.

Nice example, commems.

Nice addition, commems.