Duval Janvier, Medallists thumbnail 1
Duval Janvier, Medallists thumbnail 2
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Duval Janvier, Medallists

Plaquette
1902 (made)
Artist/Maker
Charpentier, Alexandre-Louis-Marie (artist)
Place of origin
Paris (made)

Struck medals can be made in large numbers. Each medal is formed mechanically by the force of two engraved metal dies pressing the image on to a blank disc of softer metal held between them. Struck medals are generally designed in low relief and have crisp, sharp outlines. The obverse of this Art Nouveau plaquette in celebration of the company Duval Janvier (Die Sinkers) shows a man operating a striking machine.

Object details

Categories
Sculpture
Coins & Medals
Plaques & Plaquettes
Object type
Plaquette
TitleDuval Janvier, Medallists (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze, struck, plaquette
Bronze
Casting
Brief description
Plaquette, bronze, of Duval Janvier - Die Sinkers, by Alexandre Louis Marie Charpentier (1856-1909), France, 1902
Physical description
Obverse: Octagonal plaquette with rectangular, lowered ground, half-naked figure of man standing to push the arm of a balancier (machinery used when producing struck medals). In the background there is related machinery, possibly Janvier's reducing machine. At the bottom right, set in a circle in a blank field, appears 'Duval Vivier'. The monogram ALMC appears to the left of the figure.

Reverse: Reduced versions of the obverse image appear three times, from top left to bottom right and increasing in size each time. Incuse inscription: 'Reduction et Frappe de Médailles' - spaced among the images with 22 Rue de Montmoreney Paris.
Dimensions
  • Maximum height: 5.28cm
  • Maximum width: 6cm
  • Weight: 94.5g
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'DUVAL VIVIER' [and] 'ALMC' (obverse)
  • 'Reduction et Frappe de Médailles' [and below] 22 Rue de Montmoreney Paris' (reverse)
Credit line
Given by Mrs J. Hull Grundy
Object history
Given by Professor J. Hull Grundy and Mrs. Ann Hull Grundy, in 1978.
Subjects depicted
Man
Balancier
Machinery
Summary
Struck medals can be made in large numbers. Each medal is formed mechanically by the force of two engraved metal dies pressing the image on to a blank disc of softer metal held between them. Struck medals are generally designed in low relief and have crisp, sharp outlines. The obverse of this Art Nouveau plaquette in celebration of the company Duval Janvier (Die Sinkers) shows a man operating a striking machine.
Bibliographic references
  • Jones, Mark. The Art of the Medal. London, 1979, p. 130, ill. no. 345
  • Vandenbrouck-Przybylski, Melanie, ' 'These should without delay be represented in our museum' Nineteenth- and twentieth-century French medals at the V&A', The Medal, No.61, Autumn 2012, pp. 21-37, fig. 17
  • Fisher, Wendy, French Medal Design in the Art Nouveau and Art Deco Periods, London: The Victoria and Albert Museum, 2000.
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
A.32-1978

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Record createdJanuary 22, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O89888/duval-janvier-medallists-plaquette-charpentier-alexandre-louis/
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