Need Help In Identifying This Old Medallion (Id: Likely Catholic Religious Medal)

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Author	Replies: 7 / Views: 2,036
BTV Digger New Member United States 30 Posts	Posted 07/14/2018 11:26 am Hi folks. I live in northern Vermont and often dig early American/Colonial sites up here. A few months back I dug this early medallion which appears to be made of pewter or lead. It's about 2 inches in diameter and heavily worn, so I can't make out any of the partial words which run around the edge of both the obverse and reverse of the medal. They may be latin. What I can make out is front shows a man standing with a staff, and the back has Christ on a cross with figures standing to his left and right. I know it's old, perhaps Jesuit or early Catholic? All the other relics/coins from this site are from the 1780-1850 time frame typical of an early Vermont homestead. A thorough online search hasn't provided much help, so hoping someone with deeper knowledge here may have some insight. Thanks! John Report this Post to the Staff

chafemasterj Pillar of the Community United States 6514 Posts	Posted 07/14/2018 11:39 am The man might be a Roman soldier holding a spear. Check out my counterstamped Lincoln Cent collection: http://goccf.com/t/303507 Report this Post to the Staff
MeadowviewCollector Pillar of the Community United States 4409 Posts	Posted 07/14/2018 5:23 pm I'd suggest putting a piece of paper over each side and using a pencil/colored pencil or maybe even a crayon in an attempt to see if that helps make the legends stand out any. -MV Report this Post to the Staff
Dorado Bedrock of the Community Canada 24885 Posts	Posted 07/15/2018 6:09 pm To the Forum. Report this Post to the Staff
chafemasterj Pillar of the Community United States 6514 Posts	Posted 07/16/2018 09:19 am Taking a rubbing from both sides like Meadowview suggested is a really good idea. That can really help putting visual pieces together. I think figuring out at least some of the words will be key. I've done various internet searches but to no avail. Check out my counterstamped Lincoln Cent collection: http://goccf.com/t/303507 Report this Post to the Staff
jbuck Moderator United States 187702 Posts	Posted 07/16/2018 11:15 am to the Community! Coin Collector Since 1978 Avatar Old Avatar 7070 Eisenhower Australia Canada World CCF Members on eBay CCF eBay Search Engine Report this Post to the Staff
Sap Moderator Australia 16808 Posts	Posted 07/16/2018 6:34 pm I would assume it to be a Catholic religious medal. The man standing in the top picture is holding a long cross, so this is almost certainly meant to be John the Baptist, as he is always depicted holding such a "long cross" in Catholic iconography. 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 Report this Post to the Staff
BTV Digger New Member United States 30 Posts	Posted 07/16/2018 11:08 pm Thank you all for the advice, and yes, I'll try using the paper rubbing method to see if I can bring out a few of the words. Sap - thanks so much for pointing me in the right direction! It's most definitely John the Baptist on the obverse and his nativity on the reverse after seeing nearly identical imagery online. John Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 7 / Views: 2,036

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