102727 | RUSSIA & SWEDEN. Peace of Nystadt (Uusikaupunki) white metal Medal.

102727  |  RUSSIA & SWEDEN. Peace of Nystadt (Uusikaupunki) white metal Medal. Issued circa 1770-1825. Commemorating the end of the Great Northern War (59mm, 53.91 g, 12h). By S. Judin.

 

CONCORDI PACE LIGAMUR ("we are joined in harmony through peace..."), Noah's Ark sailing left across Gulf of Finland; in background, city views of St. Petersburg (to left) and Stockholm (to right), joined together under a rainbow; above, dove flies left, with branch in beak; in three lines in exergue, NeopoLI / post beLLI In septentrione / DILVVIVM ("...at Nystadt, after the flood that was the northern war"); Ю (artist's signature = Yu [for Judin] to extreme left in water) // M.O. P.F. / Principi / PETRO I / Nomine et factis stupendis / MAGNO / Russorum Imperatori / PATRIQUE / Post vicennales triumphos / SEPTENTRIONIS PACATORI / hoc ex auro vernaculo / Numisma / D.D. ("to prince Peter I, great in both name and deeds, emperor and father of the Russians, after twenty years of triumphs, the peacemaker of the north, this base metal medal is offered by decision of the Senate"). Edge: Somewhat beveled as made. Cf. Diakov 57.7 (bronze). Mint State details. Planchet slightly bent—very likely from the manner of manufacture; highly lustrous and enticing, and rather scarce; a few stray marks upon the reverse are noted for completeness.

 

Following studies in Europe, Peter the Great returned to his native Russia with a desire to modernize his nation and turn her into a regional power upon the seas. Previously, Sweden had established herself as a dominant empire within the Baltic, but Peter's successful campaign of various allies ultimately saw a Russian victory in the Great Northern War, albeit after some 20 years. With victory secured through the Treaty of Nystadt, Russia added to her territorial holdings around the Baltic, further establishing her as a serious broker in European affairs going forward. This medal, designed by Samuel Judin sometime in the later half of the 18th century, revives an earlier type designed at the time of the Treaty. It alludes to the war as the biblical flood, with Noah's Ark sailing under a rainbow, along with a dove overhead, indicative that the longstanding stryfe was finally over. Interestingly, the chronogram on the obverse contains a mistake, as it adds up to 1720, rather than 1721. Of note, the "N" in NeopoLI need not be capitalized, and the "I" in septentrione should be.

 

Chronograms served as an innovative way to bear a date without using numbers. Each capitalized or larger letter in the legend is to be treated and added as a single roman numeral.

 

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Upload: 1 March 2024.