• Title
  Item 04: Medal commemorating George, Lord Anson's defeat of the French at Finisterre and his circumnavigation of the globe, 1747 / engraved by Thomas Pingo
• Call number
  SAFE/R 644/Item d
  
• Level of description
  item
• Date
  
  1747
• Type of material
  Medals
• Reference code
  1195424
• Physical Description
  1 medal - bronze - 4.3 cm diameter
  
• ADMINISTRATIVE/ BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY
  
  Admiral George, Lord Anson (1697-1762) was a famous and successful British naval commander. On 3 May 1747, British ships under Anson encountered and fought a convoy of French battleships at Finisterre off the Spanish coast, capturing nine vessels. The victory won him great acclaim and he was raised to the peerage. However, his fame was earlier founded on a voyage (1740-44) in which he circumnavigated the globe as commander of the Centurion. The trip was one of hardship; only one ship completed the voyage, while nearly 1400 men died from disease or starvation. The capture of a Spanish treasure ship in the Indian Ocean in 1742 changed the character of the voyage, creating Anson's fortune and a triumphant return to England.
  
  This medal, commissioned from Thomas Pingo (1692-1776), assistant engraver at the Royal Mint, after the victory at Finisterre, commemorates both the battle and the voyage.
  
  Reference:
  http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/cm/g/gold_medal_of_admiral_george_a.aspx
• Scope and Content
  1 bronze medal in velvet and silk lined presentation box:
  Obverse : the bust of Lord Anson crowned with a laurel by Victory surrounded by the legend 'George Lord Anson Vict. May III MDCCXLVII
  Reverse : the legend 'Circumnavigation' with Victory standing on a wyvern and the names of other members of the ship's crew.
• Access Conditions
  
  Access via appointment
• General note
  
  Keyword subjects:
  Digital order no:Album ID : 1319134
  Part of the papers of George Ernest Morrison at MLMSS 312 -
• Creator/Author/Artist
  Pingo, Thomas (1692-1776)
  
• Name
  Anson, George Anson, Baron, 1697-1762
  
• Subject
  Medals--Great Britain.
  
• Open Rosetta viewer
  IE759328

View Media Files

1.

2.

Show more