101487 | Claude Martin [Artist's Proof] octagonal bronze Plaque.

101487  |  FRANCE. Claude Martin [Artist's Proof] octagonal bronze Plaque. Issued 1909. Commemorating the pioneering Dentist, Prosthetist, Maxillofacial Surgeon (63mm x 50mm, 97.48 g, 12h). By H. Nocq at Arthus-Bertrand in Paris.

 

Bust right in frock coat; Dr. Cl. MARTIN de LYON in exergue / Martin standing slightly right, performing dentistry upon patient seated left in reclined chair; dental tools on table to left; in background, wall featuring various facial prosthetics and masks; ART DENTAIRE & PROTHESE in exergue. Edge: «triangle» BRONZE EPREUVE D'AUTEUR 6.

 

Science Museum Group online coll. #A676345. Choice About Uncirculated. Olive-brown surfaces, with a slight matte nature; a minor stain is noted on the obverse. Already a rather interesting and haunting piece owing to the somewhat macabre nature of the faces in the background on the reverse, this specimen is that much more captivating in that it is one of the artist's proofs presented to the medallist (epreuve d'auteur), this being #6.

 

Claude Martin was a medical doctor and dentist during the late 19th to early 20th centuries, specializing in facial prosthetics and jaw reconstruction. His 1893 dissertation defense in Lyon featured photographs of the results of his interventions in prosthetics, with some of the masks and molds displayed on the back wall on the plaque's reverse.

 

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