NNP Encyclopedia data is provided in cooperation with Whitman Brands, based on catalog data organized by the Greysheet Identification System (GSID).
Entry Details
PCGS Number: 9450 Coin Date: 1925 Denomination (Short): Medal Denomination (Long): Medal Variety: Norse American Variety 2: Thick Desg: MS Composition: Silver Strike Type: Business Coinage Type: Classic Commemorative Coinage Years: 1892-1954 Mint Location: Philadelphia Fineness: 0.9 Designer: James Earle Fraser Edge: Plain Obverse Description: Viking warrior in horned helmet with sword and shield advances from dragon ship, inscription NORSE AMERICAN CENTENNIAL above, dated 1825 - 1925 in the field. Reverse Description: Dragon ship sailing right under four-line inscription, AUTHORIZED BY / CONGRESS OF THE / UNITED STATES / OF AMERICA with date of Leif Erikson's discovery below, A.D. 1000. General Notes: The 1925 Norse medal is an unmonetized octagonal-shaped silver piece honoring the centennial of the Norwegian ship <i>Restauration</i> arriving in America. The ship carried many Norwegian who went on to lead successful lives in their new homeland, with a great number of these immigrants settling in Minnesota. The piece was intended by its Congressional champion, Ole J. Kvale, to be a commemorative half dollar, but with so many already commemoratives already approved during the year, a medal became the likeliest option for authorization. Variations of the medal were struck at the Philadelphia Mint.
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Some 33,750 were struck on thick planchets and a scarcer 6,000 were produced on thin planchets. The medal enjoys great crossover appeal with both coin collectors and medal enthusiasts, in part because it has numismatic origins as a piece intended for the traditional commemorative series spanning from 1892 through 1954 but, obviously, was realized as a medal. PCGS #: 9450 NGC ID: 28N9
