Item number: M472

Year: circa AD 1795

Material: Gold

The results after XRF testing

Size: 113.0 x 38.2 x 2.1 mmm

Weight: 27.4 g

Provenance: Spink 2025

This object represents a Cologne variant of the gold military merit medal originally instituted by the Electorate of Mainz.

The obverse of the medal features a highly ornate, court-style interlaced monogram at its centre, readable as ‘MF’ or ‘FM’, which represents the official initials of the Prince-Elector who presided over the defence against the invading French forces. Positioned directly above the monogram is an exquisitely rendered German electoral hat (Kurhut), symbolising the sovereign authority of the Electorate. The entire central motif is closely encircled by two laurel branches tied with a ribbon at the base, representing military merit and glory.

The upper portion of the reverse depicts the winged goddess of victory, Victoria, flying amidst clouds; her right hand is extended, holding a laurel wreath of supreme honour which she is poised to place over the inscription below. Cast at the centre is a clear, four-line inscription in German capital letters reading ‘DAS / VATERLAND / SEINEM TAPFERN / VERTHEIDIGER’, which translates as ‘The Fatherland to its Brave Defender’. Positioned precisely at the lowermost section of the medal is a finely detailed panoply of arms (Armaturen), incorporating crossed military colours, a side drum, cannonballs, and gun barrels.

During the mid-1790s AD, as the French Revolutionary Wars engulfed continental Europe, the Catholic electorates along the Rhine formed a tight military defensive line in response to the relentless advance of the French Revolutionary armies. As the French forces penetrated the frontiers of the Holy Roman Empire, the German princes sought to foster a sense of national cohesion among native soldiers and the local militia (Landsturm); breaking with the tradition of swearing allegiance solely to the individual monarch, they invoked the concept of the ‘Fatherland’ for the first time.

物件編號: M472

年代: 約公元 1795 年

材質: 黃金

XRF分析結果

尺寸: 113.0 x 38.2 x 2.1 mmm

重量: 27.4 g

來源: 斯賓克拍賣行 2025

這是一枚美茵茲選侯國所頒的金質勇氣勳章的科隆版。

獎章正面中央為極其華麗的宮廷風交織花體字母，讀作「MF」或「FM」，代表著當時主持防衛、抵抗法軍的選帝侯君王之官方縮寫。字母正上方飾有一頂精緻的德意志選帝侯冠（Kurhut），象徵著選侯國。整個中央圖案的外圍則由兩支在底部以絲帶繫結的月桂枝葉緊緊環繞，代表軍功與榮光。

背面上半部描繪了一位在雲端展翅飛翔的勝利女神（Victoria），她右手向前伸出，手持一枚象徵最高榮譽的月桂花環，正準備將其冠於下方的銘文之上。中央鑄有四行清晰的大寫德文銘文：「DAS / VATERLAND / SEINEM TAPFERN / VERTHEIDIGER」，意為「祖國致其英勇的捍衛者」。章體最下方則精細地堆疊著交叉的軍旗、軍鼓、砲彈與槍管等戰場武器符號（Armaturen）。

公元1790年代中期法國大革命戰爭席捲歐陸，面對法國大革命軍隊的步步進逼，德意志萊茵河沿岸的各天主教選侯國結成緊密的軍事防線。當時法軍攻入神聖羅馬帝國前線，德意志諸侯為了激發本土士兵與地方民兵（Landsturm）的民族凝聚力，打破了以往僅效忠君主個人的傳統，首次借用「祖國」這一概念。