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'Dangers Averted' medal: CM.YG.1401-R

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Current Location: In storage

Titles

'Dangers Averted' medal

Maker(s)

Ruler: Elizabeth I (1558-1603)
Maker: Hilliard, Nicholas

Entities

Categories

Description

From the reign of Elizabeth I (1558-1603) notable successes of the Royal Navy were occasionally celebrated by commemorative medals, which gave great scope for images of ships in sail and naval battles. In Elizabeth's own reign, England was twice threatened with a Spanish invasion. The defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 was marked by the issue of this superb gold medal, attributed to the famous painter and goldsmith Nicholas Hilliard (1547-1619). It shows a bay tree (believed to be a protection from storms) on an island representing Britain, with ships in the distance.

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Given (1936) by Young, W, MA

Dating

Production date: circa AD 1588

Components of the work

Object composed of gold Diameter (max) 59 mm Diameter (min) 51 mm Weight 100.63 g

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: CM.YG.1401-R
Primary reference Number: 226257

Audit data

Created: Monday 21 January 2019 Updated: Monday 29 April 2024

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Coins and Medals

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "'Dangers Averted' medal" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/226257 Accessed: 2025-12-05 05:22:53

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{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/226257 |title='Dangers Averted' medal |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-05 05:22:53|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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        <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">'Dangers Averted' medal</figcaption>
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