FRANCE. Jean-Louis Pascal Bronze Plaquette, 1897. Paris Mint. UNCIRCULATED.
Weight: 139.5 gms; dimensions: 70x60mm. By JC Chaplain. Obverse: Portrait of Pascal facing left in long, projecting beard and flowing hair, bow tie, JEAN-LOUIS PASCAL, ARCHITECTE. MDCCCLXXXXVII above; Reverse: Heavy oak tree at left, encircled with vines, branches stemming from roots reaching up from the earth below, and long, heavily leafed branch above projecting right. Rolling hills in background, two figures walking uphill, one with stick, both waving handkerchiefs past two abstract colonnaded structures set into the hills, toward a tall dome with two smaller domes in the distance with beams of light radiating upwards, with French inscription: "Sheltered by its shadow and nourished by the sap", ABRITÉS PAR SON OMBRE ET NOURRIS DE SA SÈVE 1872 1879 in center. Jean-Louis Pascal (1837-1920), a French architect educated at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, and winner of the Gran Prix de Rome in 1866 (after winning two second prized in 1859 and 1864), for his architectural designs. Pascal served as an inspector of the works of the Paris Opera designed by Charles Garnier (whose portrait was also executed by Chaplain in an 1895 medal; included in this collection). In 1872, Pascal succeeded his former master Charles-Auguste Questel as the head of his workshop at the École des Beaux-Arts, where he trained many of the leading French architects of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was awarded the gold medal in 1914 by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Among his more well-known commissions was the ("old" Richelieu) Bibliothèque National de France in 1875, including its iconic oval room and grand staircase, after the death of Henri Labrouste (d. 1912). Elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts in 1890, he was later made a Commander of the Legion of Honor in 1903. He also served as a member of the jury for the 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris, whose jury prize medal Chaplain also designed (included in this collection).
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From the Stephen R. Parks Collection of Medallic Arts.

Estimate: $75.00- $150.00