101123 | UNITED STATES. St. Louis, Missouri. George Engelmann bronze Medal.

101123  |  UNITED STATES. St. Louis, Missouri. George Engelmann bronze Medal. Issued 1906. Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Academy of Science of St. Louis (51mm, 61.11 g, 12h). By M. Seidel.

 

1856 SEMI–CENTENNIAL 1906 / GEORGE ENGELMANN, FIRST PRESIDENT, bust facing slightly right, head turned slightly left / ACADEMY OF SCIENCE OF ST. LOUIS / FOUNDED IN 1856 / HUMANÆ SCILICET SCIENTIÆ ET POTENTIÆ, emblems of ethnography and botany: Native American shield and spear, antlers, ruler and compass, tusk, hammer, fir tree, shell, and flower. Edge: Plain.

 

Choice Mint State. Brilliant glossy brown surfaces, with great relief and expressiveness on the obverse.

 

Born in Frankfurt am Main in Germany, George Engelmann first came to the United States in 1832, eventually establishing a medical practice in St. Louis. When it became prosperous enough to allow financially, he returned to his native Germany for a visit, becoming married while there. Upon his return to the United States, he struck up a close friendship with botanist Asa Gray—bringing forth Engelmann’s interest in the subject. In addition to his medical practice, he spent increased time traveling the fledgling nation about which little had yet been studied. Accordingly, his contributions to the knowledge of North American flora are immense, with some of those aspects conveyed on this medal that commemorates his founding and leadership of the Academy of Science of St. Louis.