1893 Medal Eglit-1 Brass 25mm World's Columbian Expo

Coin Details

Auction Record

$115 MS64 09-02-2021 Stack's Bowers

Description

This small brass medal from 1893, cataloged as Eglit-1 in H. Joseph Levine's reference on World's Columbian Exposition medals, measures 25 millimeters in diameter and represents one of the most compact souvenirs produced for the fair. The World's Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago from May through October 1893, celebrated the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas and drew over 27 million visitors to its gleaming White City along the Lake Michigan shoreline. At just 25mm, this brass piece was sized for easy pocket carry and affordable sale to fairgoers of modest means. The Columbian Exposition generated an enormous variety of commemorative medals, tokens, and souvenirs — Levine's Eglit catalog documents hundreds of distinct types produced by private manufacturers, concessionaires, and exhibitors. Brass was among the least expensive metals employed for these souvenirs, making pieces like Eglit-1 accessible to working-class visitors who traveled to Chicago by the newly expanded railroad network. The 1893 fair introduced millions of Americans to electric lighting on a grand scale, the Ferris wheel, and cultural exhibits from 46 nations. Small medals like this one served as tangible mementos of an event that profoundly shaped American popular culture and urban planning ideals.

Rarity Notes

Common brass souvenir medal produced in quantity for sale to Columbian Exposition fairgoers. The small 25mm format and inexpensive material suggest large production runs. Surviving examples appear regularly in the marketplace.

Cross References

Eglit-1; PCGS #735783