SPAIN, Reino de España. Carlos IV, 1788-1808. Medal 1801 (Copper, 40 mm, 25.63 g, 12 h), on the Augusta Union and the coin minting inventions. By J. P. Droz. Madrid. UNION AUGUSTA. Conjoined busts of Charles IV and Maria Luisa to right. Rev. ✱J•P•DROZ INVENTOR DEL METODO DE MULTIPLICAR LOS TROQUELES.✱ / 1801 in five lines EVITANDO / EL FRAUDE / DILACION Y GASTOS / IDENTIFICA / LOS SIGNOS. Edge insciption: ACUNA SUPERFICIE Y CANTO A UN SOLO GOLPE. Bramsen 187. Julius 1035. Clashed dies and stained, otherwise, extremely fine.


This medal was created for presentation and promotional purposes, showcasing the coining press developed by J. P. Droz (1746-1823), a Swiss medallist and mint master in France and Great Britain, which struck the obverse, reverse, and edge in a single operation. This was an extraordinary technical innovation that brought coin production to a new level of professionalism and made counterfeiting far more difficult. Droz’s promotional medals of this type proved successful: in 1803, the Spanish mints adopted his presses.