SINCONA Auction 96
SINCONA British Collection - Part 6
(British Gold and Silver Medals)
Bid
| Starting price | 100 CHF |
| Opening bid | 100 CHF |
You have to be logged in to place a bid
Description
Elizabeth I. 1558-1603. Cast Silver Medal 1601, 3.67 g. Cast Silver Pattern or Medallet. Distress Relieved. Unsigned. Bust of Elizabeth, crowned in rich dress. VNVM . A . DEO . DVOBVS . SVSTINEO . Rv. Her monogram, crowned and dividing date. AFFLICTORVM . CONSERVATRIX . Plain edge. 24.7 mm. Eimer -. MI i 177/177. Gutes sehr schön / Good Very Fine.
Purchased from S & B, Great Missenden, January 1997, lot M1.
The relief of distress primarily refers to the passing of the Elizabethan Poor Relief Law (1601), a landmark act designed to address poverty and social welfare in England. This law formalized a system of poor relief, which had been developing throughout the Tudor period, as economic hardship, population growth, and local crises increased the number of poor people in need of assistance.
It created the first nationwide, legally enforced system of poor relief in England, reduced vagrancy but was often harsh on those deemed "undeserving" and became the foundation of England’s welfare system, remaining largely unchanged until the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834.
This piece has been called a small medal, a counter, and sometimes a pattern for a copper coin, as there is a similiar piece with a similar bust and monogram of the Queen, but with the inscription THE . PLEDGE . OF . A . PENNY . 1601.