GERMANY. Süddeutschland. Medal (Gilt Bronze, 101 mm, 126.63 g, 11 h), on Gaius Mucius Scaevola. By an unknown artist from Southern Germany, no date, cast in the 17th century. Lars Porsena seated in a tent with soldiers around, before him the captive Mucius Scaevola thrusts his hand into a flaming brazier, a tented encampment beyond, with cannon and roadway leading to city. Rev. Engraved floral ornaments, description 'Deutsche / Arbeit / XVI [...] / [...] 703' on an old vignette and written inventory number 39. in red. Bange 1492. Bekker 270. Molinier 703. Thewalt 1189. Weber 149,1. An impressive 17th century artifact. Very minor flan cracks and with old tooling, otherwise, extremely fine.



Gaius Mucius, later known as Scaevola (‘Left Hand’ in Latin), is a legendary figure from early Roman history. In 508 BC, as the Etruscan king Lars Porsenna laid siege to Rome, Mucius volunteered to assassinate him and end the threat. He slipped into the enemy camp but mistakenly killed the king’s scribe instead. Captured and brought before Porsenna, Mucius warned that many Roman youths were sworn to kill him and were already hidden in the camp. When threatened with torture, Mucius thrust his right hand into a fire, letting it burn without showing pain. This particular scene is depicted on our medal. Astonished by his courage, Porsenna freed him, sought peace, and ended the siege. Mucius earned the name Scaevola for losing the use of his right hand and was awarded land by the Roman Senate. His story became a powerful symbol of Roman virtue.

During the German Renaissance, this scene was a very popular motif. In addition to the famous painting ‘Mucius Scaevola before Porsenna’ (1531) by the distinguished Renaissance artist Hans Baldung Grien, an unknown medallist also drew on the same episode to create the striking medal we offer here. The model was most likely produced in the second quarter of the 16th century and belonged to the medal series ‘Ancient Heroic Tales’.

The legend remained highly popular well into the 20th century - so much so that both the young Rousseau and the young Nietzsche are known to have attempted to reenact his act of burning the right hand.