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Ruler:
Victoria (1837-1901)
(Struck in the name of)
Ruler:
V. R.
(With the title of)
Artist:
Wyon, Benjamin
Issuer:
Board of Trade
Mint:
London
The Sea Gallantry Medal was the first official medal rewarding civilian gallantry at sea. Designed by William Wyon, it was instituted by the Board of Trade in 1855, and is awarded by the sovereign of Great Britain on the Board's President's recommendation. It is awarded in silver and bronze, and in its initial size as seen here was not intended to be worn, although this piece bears the remains of a suspension at the top indicating that the recipient did attempt to wear it. In 1903 the medal was reduced in size so that it could be worn in uniform. This example of the medal was awarded to Henry (or "Harry") Meader, one of the crew of the Ramsgate lifeboat who set out to rescue the crew of the wrecked Indian Chief off Clacton Sands on the night of 5th/6th January 1881. This justly famous rescue became the subject of a poem by William McGonagal, but the reader may think Meader's medal a more ageless tribute to his bravery.
History note: From a collection bequeathed by Mr McKee to the Art Fund, which has allowed various museums to make selections from it
Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (2005-05-21) by McKee, John
Production date: AD 1881
Inscribed around edge HENRY MEADER WRECK OF THE "INDIAN CHIEF" ON THE 5th - 6th JANUARY 1881
Object composed of bronze Diameter 57.0 mm Die Axis 0 degrees Weight 98.14 g
Inscription present: Head of Victoria, wreathed, left, with inscriptions around
Inscription present: Man kneeling left on raft supporting recumbent seaman lying head left, with woman and child left also on raft behind to right, behind raft a man seated left on broken spar waving signal with right hand to distant lifeboat sailing right through heavy seas
Accession number: CM.6241-2007
Primary reference Number: 156624
Stable URI
Owner or interested party:
The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department:
Coins and Medals
This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:
The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Sea Gallantry Medal" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/156624 Accessed: 2024-12-22 16:42:19
To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:
{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/156624
|title=Sea Gallantry Medal
|author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-12-22 16:42:19|publisher=The
University of Cambridge}}
To call these data via our API (remember this needs to be authenticated) you can use this code snippet:
https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/objects/object-156624
To use this as a simple code embed, copy this string:
<div class="text-center">
<figure class="figure">
<img src="https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/imagestore/cm/cm18/CM_6241_2007_281_29.jpg"
alt="Sea Gallantry Medal"
class="img-fluid" />
<figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Sea Gallantry Medal</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
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