Auction of Rare George Washington Relic
An ornate gold medal depicting an eagle, commissioned by George Washington as a symbol of the ideals of the Revolutionary War and later presented to the Marquis de Lafayette, is to be sold at auction later this year.
Sotheby's auction house made the announcement Thursday, on the 250th anniversary of the birth of Lafayette. The gold and enamel medal - showing an eagle surrounded by a laurel wreath - is estimated to bring up to $10 million at the Dec. 11 sale, it said.
After Washington's death, the medal was presented to Lafayette by Washington's family; it was consigned to the auction by Lafayette's great-great granddaughter, Baronne Meunier du Houssoy, of France
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Sotheby's auction house made the announcement Thursday, on the 250th anniversary of the birth of Lafayette. The gold and enamel medal - showing an eagle surrounded by a laurel wreath - is estimated to bring up to $10 million at the Dec. 11 sale, it said.
After Washington's death, the medal was presented to Lafayette by Washington's family; it was consigned to the auction by Lafayette's great-great granddaughter, Baronne Meunier du Houssoy, of France