Posted 12/31/2013 9:16 pm
"Pontifex Maximus" is Latin for "greatest pontiff" or "high priest" - it originally was a title the Emperors of Rome held, since they were the highest official of the old pagan Roman religion as well as Emperor. Emperor Gratian renounced the title in AD 382; Pope Leo I annexed it for the Papacy sometime around AD 450.
Just because it is a papal medallion does not mean it is made of solid silver. Con artists and swindlers are just as capable of making cheap silver-plated religious medals as they are of making silver-plated fake coins. The way the silvery layer has worn away from the high points of the second piece (Pius XII) indicates this is not made of solid, high-purity silver. Here is a second medal with the same "immaculata regina universi" reverse type, only that one's for John XXIII. It states the composition is "Cu" - copper. It's currently selling for 5 euros.
"immaculata regina universi" is Latin for "Immaculate Queen of the Universe". The "mintmark" is an "MA" monogram, presumably the artist's signature.
On the first medal, "Lorioli" is the name of a large Italian medal-making company; their website is only in Italian. The biography page on that website indicates that Giuseppe Pirrone, whose name also appears on the medal, was a medallist and sculptor who lived 1898-1978; besides countless medals, mostly religious, he also designed the Vatican City coinage for 1967 and 1968. None of which helps tell you whether or not this particular medal is silver, but I strongly suspect it is.
Just because it is a papal medallion does not mean it is made of solid silver. Con artists and swindlers are just as capable of making cheap silver-plated religious medals as they are of making silver-plated fake coins. The way the silvery layer has worn away from the high points of the second piece (Pius XII) indicates this is not made of solid, high-purity silver. Here is a second medal with the same "immaculata regina universi" reverse type, only that one's for John XXIII. It states the composition is "Cu" - copper. It's currently selling for 5 euros.
"immaculata regina universi" is Latin for "Immaculate Queen of the Universe". The "mintmark" is an "MA" monogram, presumably the artist's signature.
On the first medal, "Lorioli" is the name of a large Italian medal-making company; their website is only in Italian. The biography page on that website indicates that Giuseppe Pirrone, whose name also appears on the medal, was a medallist and sculptor who lived 1898-1978; besides countless medals, mostly religious, he also designed the Vatican City coinage for 1967 and 1968. None of which helps tell you whether or not this particular medal is silver, but I strongly suspect it is.
Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis
, but sometimes the fake is worth more, usually not thou.
