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Medal: Charles VIII

Italian or French

model 1485–95 (possibly cast 19th century)

Not on view

Depicted on the obverse is Charles VIII (1470 – 1498), king of France (1483 – 98); on the reverse is Hercules wrestling the Nemean Lion. The medal is possibly a nineteenth-century aftercast, given the even and dull wear on the surface of both sides. The medal could have been made in 1485 – 91, referring to the wars that ended the union between France and Brittany. A more plausible occasion was the invasion of Italy by the French troops in 1495, as the reverse presents the king as alter Hercules, fighting the Nemean Lion, and with the text Pacator (peacemaker).

Medal: Charles VIII, Bronze (Copper alloy with warm brown patina)., Italian or French — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Medal: Charles VIII, Bronze (Copper alloy with warm brown patina)., Italian or French

Medal: Charles VIII, Bronze (Copper alloy with warm brown patina)., Italian or French

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Title: Medal: Charles VIII

Date: model 1485–95 (possibly cast 19th century)

Culture: Italian or French

Medium: Bronze (Copper alloy with warm brown patina).

Dimensions: Diam. 5.7 cm, wt. 65.28 g.

Classification: Medals

Credit Line: Robert Lehman Collection, 1975

Accession Number: 1975.1.1247

Chronology

France, 1400-1600 A.D.

The Robert Lehman Collection XII: European Sculpture and Metalwork

The Robert Lehman Collection XII: European Sculpture and Metalwork

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The Met

Robert Lehman Collection at The Met

The Robert Lehman Collection is one of the most distinguished privately assembled art collections in the United States. Robert Lehman's bequest to The Met is a remarkable example of twentieth-century American collecting.