102588 | GREAT BRITAIN & SWEDEN. Björn Borg pentagonal enameled bronze Medal.

102588  |  GREAT BRITAIN & SWEDEN. Björn Borg pentagonal enameled cast bronze Medal. Issued 1981. Commemorating his five consecutive Wimbledon men's championships (81mm x 77mm, 150.20 g, 12h). By F. Rich.

 

Head left, wearing headband; all over BJORN / BORG in two lines in background; around, headshots of Borg celebrating with his trophy for each of five different years // FIVE CONSECUTIVE YEARS MENS SINGLES CHAMPION / WIMBLEDON 1976–1980, bird's-eye view of Centre Court, with various spectators (some of whom hold parasols) looking upon the court, which is enameled brightly in green. Edge: Plain.

 

The Medal 2 (1982), p. 8; De Beeldenaar –; Svensk Numismatisk Tidskrift –. Essentially as made. Deeper brown recesses, with lighter hues upon the higher points; full enameling on the tennis court. Great relief between the convex and concave nature. Incredibly rare, with an unknown, but almost certainly miniscule, number of examples produced. Seemingly unpublished save for its brief mention in the second issue of The Medal.

 

Before the likes of Sampras, Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic would come to dominate men's tennis, Björn Borg left an awe-inspiring impression upon a sport that had not seen anything like it. Not only did he win six titles at Roland Garros (the French Open), four of which were consecutive, he won five consecutive titles at Wimbledon, taking it each year from 1976 through 1980. Though retiring rather shockingly at the age of just 25, he amassed an incredible winning resumé in a brief career. In Mark Jones's article in issue 2 of The Medal, he mentions this design as making an appearance at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition in 1982, writing that "Fred Rich's 'Bjorn Borg', which won the Royal Society of Arts medal bursary in 1981 was, unfortunately, shown with the less impressive, portrait side up–concealing the highly original reverse, with its bird's eye view of the Centre Court, surrounded by a forest of intent heads and highlighted by silver inlaid in bronze." Despite Jones's take on this medal's obverse, its intriguing and highly interesting nature, both obverse and reverse, cannot be understated. Only its sheer rarity can rival its enigmatic design, as this cataloger has been unable to trace any other mentions of the type, for sale in the past or otherwise.

 

Upload: 15 January 2024.