Theodore Roosevelt: Official St. Gaudens Inaugural Medal. ...

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Theodore Roosevelt: Official St. Gaudens Inaugural Medal. The rarest and most desirable of official presidential inauguration medals is the one produced in 1905 by Tiffany & Company and designed by Augustus St. Gaudens. The collaboration between President Roosevelt and St. Gaudens is best exemplified by the production of the high-relief $20 gold piece which the President suggested and approved. It is considered the most beautiful American coin ever produced. It is therefore fitting that the Roosevelt inauguration medal should be designed by St. Gaudens, America's foremost sculptor and struck by the prestigious firm of Tiffany & Company. The medal is 73.6 mm., cast bronze, edge marked with the maker's name, Tiffany & Co., About Uncirculated. Designed by Augustus St. Gaudens and modeled by Adolph Weinman. The obverse features a stern portrait of TR to the left, his name above and formal title below. In the right field is the Latin, AEQVVM/ CVIQUE, an approximation of the Roosevelt campaign slogan "A Square Deal". The reverse portrays an imposing American eagle perched on a rocky crag. The legend above reads: WASHINGTON D.C. MARCH IV MCMV. To either side of the eagle is the motto: E PLURIBUS UNUM.

125 of these medals were cast by Tiffany. Members of the Inaugural Executive Committee received 82 of them. President Roosevelt received 35 to distribute. St. Gaudens got 5 and 3 were given to prominent libraries. The offering of this special inaugural medal is a significant event for both political collectors and numismatists. The combination of its rarity, one of our most popular Presidents, our foremost sculptor and the renowned Tiffany & Company is a combination hard to resist.