NNP

Goldsmith.  An artisan who worked, designed or dealt in gold objects; an early maker of medallic items, and later of decorations. The first makers of medals, other than

the original sculptors, were goldsmiths. Italian Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571), primarily a goldsmith of the Renaissance, designed and engraved the dies for both coins and medals. French goldsmiths created religious medallic plaques, often by reppousé; these same craftsmen also executed medals portraying Roman and Byzantine emperors.

The medallic products of early goldsmiths could be classed as jewelry items (or some of their jewelry objects were highly medallic) there was no precise demarcation between the two classes. Both were highly decorative and often gem encrusted.

Later goldsmiths, particularly in Germany, prepared medals and plaquettes from wood models (see stechstein), embellishing them as they saw fit. Goldsmiths borrowed designs wherever they could find them, particularly the antique and Renaissance. While not considered plagiarism, the ease with which they reproduced Renaissance items effectively spread the appreciation of Renaissance art. Among the goldsmith/medalists were Hans Reinhard (c1510-1581), whose specialty was to affix small cast figures onto a medallic base (his Dreifaltigket Medal bore affixed curls on the bearded king and a figure of Christ on the cross).Goldsmiths, and later, royal jewelers were the manufacturers of many decorations, neck chains, collars and breast stars.

Goldsmiths participated in advancing coinmaking technology in another way, by their improvements in rolling mills. They needed small machines to roll thin sheets of gold and layered gold (rolled gold) for their work. Later rolling mills were built for coin strip based on the rolling machine technology that goldsmiths had developed for their gold work.

In the 16th century goldsmith centers flourished in Augsburg and Nuremburg, in Germany, were mints and engravers were also located. Each aided the other in working talent and the exchange of technical information.

Some notable goldsmiths related to the numismatic field include:

Caradosso, Cristofano (c 1452-1527) Italian

Cellini, Benvenuto (1500-1571) Italian

Hilliard, Nicholas (1547-1619) English

Hoffman, Jakob (active 1551) German

Jamnitzer, Wenzel (1508-1585) German

Laune, Etienne de (c1519-83) French

Leoni, Leone (1509-90) Italian

Martin, Sir Richard (1534-1617)  British

Maslitzer, Hans (fl 1538-74) German

Reinhard, Hans the younger (c1510-1581) German

Siries, Louis (c1686-c1766) Italian

Vianen, Paul Van (died 1613) Dutch

Weiditz (c 1500-1559) German

References:                                                                                                                             

E3 {1902-30} Forrer, passim.

NE42 {1884} Junge, passim.

excerpted with permission from

An Encyclopedia of Coin and Medal Technology

For Artists, Makers, Collectors and Curators

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY D. WAYNE JOHNSON

Roger W. Burdette, Editor