Numismatic Guaranty Company® (NGC®) is proud to have certified a rare first-place Olympic medal from the 1924 Summer Olympics, which were held in Paris a century ago. The medal was submitted to NGC for certification during this year’s Summer Olympics, also being held in Paris.
The medal will be displayed at Fanatics Fest NYC, being held at the Javits Center in New York City on August 16-18, 2024. It will be showcased at Booth #2225, which is operated by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®), an affiliate of NGC that grades sports cards and other pop culture collectibles.
NGC authenticated the first-place medal, graded it NGC MS 65 and encapsulated it in an NGC Oversize Holder, which accommodates its impressive diameter of 55 mm. The medal is silver with a coating of gold, as are the current Olympic first-place medals that are commonly referred to as "gold." This particular medal realized $46,279 when it sold uncertified at an RR Auction sale in January 2024.
Designed by Andre Rivaud, the obverse of the medal shows a victorious athlete extending a hand to a fallen competitor. The scene is placed above the now-famous Olympic rings, which had been in use for about a decade and were first included on Olympic medals in 1924. The reverse shows sporting equipment and a harp, echoing hopes for peace following the devastation of World War I on Europe.
"NGC is always excited to have the opportunity to grade an Olympic medal," said Ben Wengel, Senior Vice President of World Coin Grading. "Elite collectors can feel the thrill of victory knowing that their rare numismatic collectibles are certified with NGC’s expert determinations of authentication and grade, which are backed by the NGC Guarantee."
NGC’s expert grading team has certified some of the greatest medals in existence. They include a Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine, a Congressional Gold Medal awarded to President Harrison and a Gold Robbins Medal that Neil Armstrong took along on the historic Apollo 11 moon mission, which realized more than $2 million at a Heritage Auctions sale in 2019.
NGC has graded other rare Olympic medals, including:
- a Greece 1870 Zappas Olympics Gold Victor’s Award graded NGC SP 63 that realized $150,000 at a Heritage Auctions sale in May 2022
- a Greece 1896-dated 1st Modern Olympics Silver Medal graded NGC UNC Details that realized €40,000 (about $48,400) at a sale presented by A. Karamitsos in April 2021
- a Germany 1936 Berlin Olympics Gilt Silver 1st Prize Medal graded NGC MS 61, which was certified by NGC after it realized $44,400 in a Heritage Auctions sale in February 2020
About Numismatic Guaranty Company (NGC®)
NGC is the world’s largest and most trusted third-party grading service for coins, tokens and medals, with more than 60 million collectibles certified, including a 1787 Brasher Doubloon that sold for a record $9.36 million. Founded in 1987, NGC provides an accurate, consistent and impartial assessment of authenticity and grade, backed by the comprehensive NGC Guarantee, which gives collectors greater confidence. To learn more, visit NGCcoin.com.
NGC is part of the Certified Collectibles Group® (CCG®), whose mission is to empower collectors with services that ignite passion, create value and build community. With more than 90 million collectibles certified across a wide range of categories, CCG’s four brands – NGC, Paper Money Guaranty® (PMG®), Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®) and Authenticated Stamp Guaranty® (ASG®) – are synonymous with trust and expertise in their hobbies.
Classic art deco. We need more of that artistic infusion today!
East Coast Guru,
Art Deco, one of the most strikingly original and memorably fabulous art styles in history.
Or could that perhaps be worded as strikingly memorable and fabulously original? When it comes to art, everyone’s opinion has individual validity.
The 1924 Olympics was the one featured in the movie “Chariots of Fire”. Is there any information about who won this medal?
REB, I think it’s a shame that the winning athlete’s name and event isn’t inscribed on the Olympic medal. Next, that it’s only gold plating over silver. Then to grade and slab it just seems crass and cheapens it IMO. But then NGC has done the same to the Nobel prize, with the engraved name on it.
Major D, From what we’ve been able to observe at the Paris Olympics no medal presented to an athlete is ever 100% guaranteed to remain in that winner’s possession what with all the changes of mind that have been taking place among the judges and within the Olympic Committee itself, so engraving names might not be the best of ideas. As for the actual metal content of the “Gold” medal, that has in fact been gold plating over solid silver since the beginning of the modern Olympics. The current cost of making pure gold medals at a weight of roughly… Read more »
Kaiser, I know the same could be said for Super Bowl rings in that some show up in pawn shops when an athlete is down-on-their-luck. But engraving the name makes it real and personal, and much more meaningful, IMO. Take the Stanley Cup for instance– it’s much more esteemed by the winners. You make a good point about the expense, especially for the team sports like basketball and soccer.
Unless I’m missing something, I’m surprised that the medal’s provenance is so sketchy or completely lacking. It seems connecting the piece to the actual winning athlete would improve the value.
REB,
I’m sure there are innumerable possibilities here and therefore countless answers and/or solutions. It is conceivable the provenance has been lost to the fog of time so there is in fact no way to produce it now. Another take on this would be that buyers don’t mind “blank” medals because in the case of little-known or entirely forgotten athletes the winner’s name would mean nothing to the interested parties, i.e., the medal itself is the draw.
REB, I agree. At the very least it seems the medals could be stamped with a medal number, with a corresponding log to indicate what athlete received each number and for what event. And when one ended up at auction, it would help to trace its origin/authenticity and transfer history.
Major D,
I think with the concept of the stamped medal number you’ve hit upon the seemingly ideal solution for the striking of a balance between the necessity of engraving each Olympic medal correctly with its winner’s name in the midst of all of this massive event’s hustle and bustle circumstances and the concurrent understandable desire to be assured of having assigned each such award to one particular athlete for subsequent identification and provenanace purposes. Good thinking!
I found it ironic that an athlete could win gold after having the highest combined score by a bunch of judges (e.g. gymnastics and diving) only to find that the medal itself is graded only a 65.
Major D,
Spoken like a true numismatist! 🙂
By the way, the mint has pictures of the Olympic hand over medals on their website. Very nice. I would buy one if available
And there is a picture of the silver flowing hair medal on the mints website. The gold version is still AWOL. Not sure I want to buy the flowing hair medal. No denomination, not reeded, sort of dull without it.
East Coast Guru,
No need for me to continue to dwell on how much it annoys me that the Mint can’t pair Silver Coins instead of Silver Medals with the Gold Coins, but regardless of my feelings about that this legal bind the Mint is in is a crying shame.
That being said and for the umpteenth time at that, ever since I read CaliSkiers extremely erudite three part essay regarding the Congress-Mint coin making relationship which deals with this very point I’ve been able to ease up on my concerns regarding this in fact non-critical dilemma.
East Coast Guru,
According to the US Mint’s website those metals were for handing out to the big muckety mucks in the course of the official handover of the Olympics from Paris to Los Angeles.
E 1,
It looks like you’ve been censored on the previous article.
All that is left is dreamy Genie..
I never even had a peek at the old Liberty coin renderings? Hmm.
How is this possible given the multitude of women’s underwear/swimwear/sport wear ads showing just as much, if not more skin on this very site?
I guess you need to pay up to show the same things that those ads show?
Rick,
The ice cold hard facts here are that ads are ads and comments are comments and the twain shall rather apparently never meet. Another one bites the dust!
Warning: Lengthy post! (1st attempt held up in “Awaiting approval” mode. 2nd attempt by dividing into 2 consecutive posts) East Coast Guru, Kaiser Wilhelm, others, the light bulb just illuminated and got “hot”! Look out! I’d never put the 2 together for some reason until now. LOL Congress and the US Mint are trying to avoid the “pitfalls” of the past! The main reason the Mint is only allowed/Legislated to do Ag Medals without a denomination(31 U.S. Code § 5112(?) ), is because if they were allowed or ordered to monetize them, producing a limited amount, creating possible higher demand,… Read more »
Continued Below excerpt from the CRS(Congressional Research Service) titled: Commemorative Coins Background, Legislative Process and Issues for Congress” Updated 4/26/24. This provides potential supporting evidence or a speculative example that if the Gold coins were to be issued with an ccompanying silver coin, vs silver medal, we’d have an even larger glut of silver coins, than what is already being offered by the Mint. “In 1939 Congress stopped authorizing new coins because a glut of commemorative coin on the market had caused their value to decline and the US Treasury became concerned that so many coins might facilitate counterfeiting. These… Read more »
Continued, Part 3 A couple of pages amongst the many. I found interest in: Pg 6 of the report lists Congressionally proposed, potential Commemorative’s for 2025-2028. Fig 1, Pg13 “Figure 1. Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee Design Elements”: 16 Bullet points on what they assess and are looking at or for, when a given con design is submitted for review. Although the 25 pages seems somewhat lengthy(?), this report has “literally”. everything from A-Z, regarding the US Mint Modern Commemorative Coin Programs operation, Congress’s role, the processes, top to bottom, with answers to all that you’ve ever wondered and wanted to… Read more »
CaliSkier,
In my considered opinion that three part commentary of yours is already without a doubt an extremely useful and quite welcome addition to our little library, or encyclopedia if you will, with its timely injection of relevant and interesting facts and figures for use here at coinnews.net.
In a personal context, it has provided me more than a little relief by helping me to at least some extent deal with my long term obsession regarding the Gold Coin-Silver Medal conundrum by allowing me to better grasp why this situation may have come to be in the first place.
Just received an email from RCM on “Unlocking the full potential of a new 3D approach” promoting the howling wolf “coin”. Perhaps a sun dial or an obelisk is next?
I’d be in on the sun dial, put it in the rock garden.
Rick,
Or use that coin to gain admission to the future Stonehenge Amusement Park.
Major D,
You know me well enough to grasp that it takes a bit to throw me off kilter, but I will happily confess this depiction of that RCM coin fits the bill. What in high heaven?
Wow, that “Awaiting approval” hang up was one “hard egg” to crack! Must have been something in the excerpt I copied that the AI didn’t like? Here’s the link to the CRS report I spoke of.
https://sgp.fas.org/crs/misc/R44623.pdf
CaliSkier,
You’ve just got to stop providing these links to content so interesting that once I arrive to check out the available info I end up being stuck there until I’ve read it all!
You’re welcome DaveSWFL, East Coast, Kaiser, others, for the COTY link provided in the previous thread. I also was quite drawn in by the reverse and circling alphabets on that Cameroon(coin) award in the, Most Historically Significant Category for their 2000 Franc CFA, Silver “Sumerian Civilization” coin. The simple blue and gold colorization on the obverse really adds a nice contrast and makes the design “pop” IMO. Overall, the coins chosen are really neat and fun to look at and “take in”, what’s being offered globally, with coins! For those that’d like to take another peek, that may have missed… Read more »
CaliSkier,
I have to admit I was surprised, although I don’t know why I should have been, that ALL of the coins selected by the committee were each perfect in their category.
Rick thanks for sharing the details on your PCGS 1976 Silver Kennedy Half MS69, gem of a coin! Was this one of the coins you personally restored/dipped or did you have PCGS do the conservation/restoration to remove the water spots? Based on the value of the coin, I’m guessing you had the “Pro’s” perform the task?
I had PCGS do the restoration. From what I’ve observed over the course of 5 coin restorations(3 PCGS, 2 NGC)is that they do not dip the coins, but instead apply a special coating to the surface of the coin. It appears to be a special ‘oil/petroleum’ type product much the same as what they use on restoring/preserving old copper coins. Some of the water spots remain, but are greatly subdued by the ‘special treatment’ provided. Just a non expert opinion here…
Another comparison/analogy to the coin restoration ‘treatments’, and as silly as it sounds(hides spots & renews)…
Is that in a way the coin comes back looking refreshed with a very subtle sheen similar to when you put some “Tire Shine”(lightly)on your car tires lol
Kaiser Wilhelm said, previous thread: “Thanks for the link. I actually studied that entire lineup of PCGS coin holders!” I’m glad you found interest and value in this historical point of reference, re: PCGS slabs/holders, as well of the evolution of their labels. (PCGS Museum of Coin Holders)
CaliSkier,
Indeed I did. I have been an avid consumer of knowledge in general ever since I can remember, and I find those areas I know the least about to be among the most interesting of all to explore.
Wow, look at this manic display of emotional instability and insecurity. When one’s personality trait(s) becomes so overly rigid, that it causes them to malfunction, and they don’t know or think or are unaware that they are malfunctioning – then their condition is considered pathological. Someone needs to research this topic for themself before they scare everyone away.
My manic instability is coin addiction. I need a bit of a check & balance when I see more coin checks being written than any other checks, by a lot! Yikes, but I’m having fun!
Rick, My stability is coin collecting. I find it hard to take open advice from someone who does not collect, buy, restore, or transact in coins. Someone that just mass babbles on and on, all for the sake of looking for an argument. And it is not just on this site. I have witnessed countless pathetic arguments of his around the web. However, no one ever contests his statements. Mainly because no one wants to be drowned in loud columns of yelling text and insults – then not ever concluding the true answer. I guess this is the problem with… Read more »
E1, Good point you made. Coin collecting (“the great coin escape”!)is good stability & therapy for the individual, and in a group setting like this one. We all enjoy coin talk and it’s free speech here too, remember the Larry Flynt case. My advice is to try to ignore what seems to be a predictable cycle and I’ll leave it at that. Just remember that you’re trust has been broken with the individual(s), but it’s important to carry on as best you can(which you do!). That’s what I’ve done after losing trust and a cordial demeanor is best in the… Read more »
Here’s a coin pic from my phone(I’ve got lots to keep me occupied!). It’s for you and VinnieC. The previously toned Libertads(in flips for years)cleaned up nicely after a skinny dip..
E 1,
The mind is a mysterious place. It’s likely not even The Shadow knows what goes on there.
Actually, the Olympic gold medals were solid gold, although reduced in size, through the 1912 games. The advent of WWI killed off the solid gold, resulting in the current sterling/plated medals. See Wikipedia entry for gold medals.
Personally, I’ve had the opportunity to actually hold and inspect an Olympic gold medal, from the 2012 games. The young lady who won 3-position smallbore rifle brought her medal to a match my wife & I attended. The edge inscription had the event, not the person’s name. I can see the advantage thereof, when controversies arise – as they already have this year.
Sam-I-m,
Many thanks for the further elucidation regarding Olympic gold medals, most especially the info regarding those from the early days when real gold was employed.
Sam-I-am, thanks for the information about the edge inscription providing the event. Knowing the year and event makes it easier to nail down the athlete- but not for a team sporting event. I still think having a stamped number on the medal with a published log linked to the athlete it was given to could be something easily done. And for team sports, the coach could provide info to the Olympics as to which athlete received each number.
Major D- I have no doubt that what you propose is entirely do-able. I think we have all seen that IOC is much like the USM; they do whatever they want to, because they are the 600-lb gorilla in the room. I’ve noticed they never seem to own up to their mistakes. Further, it seems technologically possible to score the “judged” events by computer and mo-cap. Certainly if Hollywood can do so, why not the Olympics? This could be used for gymnastics, diving, skateboarding, freestyle BMX and many others that NBC in their wisdom chose NOT to broadcast , unless… Read more »
Good points on a medal privy, judging, and greedy PPV for programming.
I’ve lost respect for the Olympics for failing to properly filter out people that carry the XY chromosome from participating in an event that is meant only for people who carry the XX chromosome.
Rick,
The Russians and Chinese with their in your face big time doping programs are no help either. Remember the “good old days” of the East German Olympic “female athletes” who looked like The Incredible Hulk?
Sam-I-am,
I was thinking myself how I miss the straightforward ABC Olympic coverage!