Item number: A2802

Year: AD 1939

Material: Bronze-Gilt

Size: 30.5 x 30.5 mm

Weight: 19.6 g

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2020

This is a gilt bronze token issued in AD 1939 to commemorate the Golden Gate International Exposition, held on the newly constructed Treasure Island, an artificial island located within San Francisco Bay. The exposition was organised to celebrate the recent completion of two major infrastructural projects in California: The Golden Gate Bridge and the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge.

The obverse of the token features a silhouette composition centred on the Tower of the Sun, the landmark structure of the exposition located on Treasure Island. The design is set against a backdrop of waves from San Francisco Bay and the distant Golden Gate Bridge at sunset. The year of the event, “1939,” is inscribed in the upper right portion of the sky, with “SAN FRANCISCO BAY” positioned prominently in the centre. Encircling the outer edge of the token is the title of the exposition, “GOLDEN GATE INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION,” along with the token’s serial designation, “PAT D-110016.”

The reverse of the token presents a bird’s-eye view of San Francisco Bay, with Treasure Island prominently at the centre of the composition. To the left side of the token, a PBY Catalina seaplane is depicted soaring above the island, with the exposition’s landmark Tower of the Sun clearly visible below. In the foreground to the right of Treasure Island lies Alcatraz Island, historically infamous as California’s maximum-security prison. In the distant background, the Golden Gate Bridge spans the bay, connecting San Francisco’s southern shore to Marin County to the north, while the sun is shown setting gradually into the Pacific Ocean. The upper portion of the reverse bears the inscription “TREASURE ISLAND.”

Treasure Island was an artificial island constructed by the City of San Francisco between AD 1936 and AD 1937, using silt dredged from San Francisco Bay, to commemorate the completion of both the Golden Gate Bridge and the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. The island was designated as the site for the AD 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition. Held from February 18 to October 29, AD 1939, the exposition featured a variety of distinctive exhibition halls and structures, most notably the 400-foot Tower of the Sun, which, along with other remarkable attractions, successfully drew large numbers of visitors from across the region. Owing to the exposition’s popularity and public acclaim, it was held again in the following year.

物件編號: A2802

年代: 公元 1939 年

材質: 黃銅鍍金

尺寸: 30.5 x 30.5 mm

重量: 19.6 g

來源: 福君錢幣 2020

這是一枚公元1939年，以位於舊金山灣內的新興人工島金銀島為會場地點，慶祝幾年前竣工的加州重大工程：金門大橋和海灣大橋的「金門國際博覽會」，其發行的黃銅鍍金代幣。

代幣正面是位於金銀島上的博覽會地標「太陽塔」，以舊金山灣的浪濤和遠方夕陽西下的金門大橋共同組成的剪影。右上角的天空打印舉辦年份「1939」以及正中央的地名「SAN FRANCISCO BAY 」(舊金山灣)。代幣外圍則是此次的博覽會名稱「GOLDEN GATE INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION」和代幣的流水號「PAT D-110016」。

代幣背面則是以鳥瞰角度，以金銀島為中心的舊金山灣風景圖。代幣的左邊有一架盤旋在金銀島上空的PBY卡特琳娜水上飛機，並且能清楚看到島上的地標太陽塔。金銀島右前方是同樣在海灣內的島嶼，即加州惡名昭彰關押囚犯的惡魔島。而在遠方能看到銜接南岸舊金山和北岸馬林縣的金門大橋，和逐漸落入太平洋的落日。代幣背面上方打印地名「TREASURE ISLAND」(金銀島)。

金銀島是舊金山市政府為慶祝金門大橋和海灣大橋落成，而在公元1936至1937年間以舊金山灣清出的淤泥填造出來的人工島，並且作為公元1939年金門國際博覽會場址。公元1939年2月18日至10月29日，博覽會開幕期間，高達400英尺的地標太陽塔和其他極具特色的展館和設施，皆成功吸引各地的民眾前來參觀。由於博覽會大受好評，於隔年又再度舉辦一次。