A, Authentic, Athens 1896 Olympic Games, " Participation Medal " Very Rare
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:715278 | Featured Refinements: Olympic Participation Medal |
| UPC: Does not apply |
Athens 1896 Olympic Games Bronze Participation Medal
Guaranteed Genuine(This is just the first of a long and lighly Collectable Line of Olympic Participation medals awarded to athletes, judges and other officials at virtually all the modern Olympic and Winter Olympics. I have seen poor quality fakes of this medal and many other OPMs being offered for sale on Ebay by sellers in Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus and elsewhere. Please rest assured that this and all my other items are ga...uranteed to be Genuine!!!)
A Genuine, Authentic, Athens 1896 Olympic Games, "Participation Medal", Extremely Fine, in Excellent Condition. Medals like that, were given to dignitaries, officials and VIP visitors who attended the 1st International Olympiad of the modern era, which took place in Athens, Greece between 6 - 15 April, 1896. The blue box shown in the photos is not the original case, but it will be given to the winning bidder for Free as a gift.
SPECIFICATIONS: Bronze Commemoration Medal. Each medal weighs roughly 58.5 gr. It has a diameter of 50 mm and a thickness of 4 mm. The total quantity of Commemorative Medals produced (Bronze and Gild Bronze medals) was 20, 000 pieces and they were presented in a leather case. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:Athens 1896 Olympic Games Participation Medal This item is a piece of History !!! Description of Athens 1896 Olympic Participation Medals During the Athens 1896 Olympic Games, the organising commitee presented to dignitaries, official guests and leading figures who assisted in the organisation of the event, Participation Medals, in Commemoration of the 1st International Olympiad of the modern era. The medal was designed by renown artist Nikiforos LYTRAS, one of the biggest Greek painters of the 19th century and also a professor at the Athens School of Fine Arts (ΣΧΟΛΗ ΚΑΛΩΝ ΤΕΧΝΩΝ).
The medals were minted by Willhelm Pitnner, in Vienna, Austria (W. Pittner, Wien). The "obverse" of the Athens 1896 Participation Medals depicts a female figure (representing Ellas), clad in an Attic peplos and seated on the ruins of ancient monuments. She holds a laurel wreath in one hand and a sceptre in the other. In the background is the Parthenon on the Acropolis "emitting light" towards all directions. The reborn Phoenix on the figure's right symbolizes the rebirth of the Olympic Games after an interruption of more than 1, 500 years. On the figure's left is the inscription 776 BC - 1896 representing the year that the Olympic Games were born in antiquity and the year that the Olympic Games were "resurrected" in the modern era. On the "reverse" is the engraved inscription in Greek language: ΔΙΕΘΝΕΙΣ ΟΛΥΜΠΙΑΚΟΙ ΑΓΩΝΕΣ ΑΘΗΝΗ'ΣΙ 1896 (International Olympic Games Athens 1896), surmounted by a star and surrounded by an olive wreath (kotinos).
