Arthur Storch. 1910.
EROEF - FNVUNG / DES■ZO - OLOG● / GAR - TENS / MVEN - CHEN / ★ 1 9 1 0★ (opening of the Zoolog[ical] Gardens Munich 1910). "Hawk-eagle and snake". Cast bronze, verdigris patina, 73.9 mm, 143.17 g. Vorzüglich+ (extremely fine+). Rare.
Obverse: On conifer branch, hawk-eagle perched, to right, with snake writhing in talons. Inscription V. —— Z.G. (V[erein] Z[oologischer] G[arten] - Association of the Zoological Gardens) left and right, respectively; artist's monogram ligatured AST･ lower left; slightly concave field, relief images and letters; raised rim.
Reverse: Growing upwards at center from pearled ground-line stylized
Robinia(?) with drooping branches across upper field; five-line title inscription divided by tree trunk; year date in exergue; relief images and lettering; raised rim.
Cf: Habich, Georg. 1909/10. "Eine Medaillen-Konkurrenz" in Kunst und Handwerk 60, p. 235: no. 436, 437.
Cf: Köcke, Ulrike. 1975. Katalog der Medaillen und Plaketten des 19. und 20. Jahrhunderts in der Kunsthalle Bremen, pp. 142 - 143, ills. 154, 155 (see note below).
Cf: Salaschek, Sunhild. 1980. Katalog der Medaillen und Plaketten des 19. und 20. Jahrhunderts im französischen und deutschen Sprachraum in der Hamburger Kunsthalle, I (text): p. 393: no. 1625; II (Studien und Tafeln): pl. 116.
Cf: Heidemann, Martin. 1998. Medaillenkunst in Deutschland von 1895 bis 1914. Die Kunstmedaille in Deutschland, Band 8, pp. 320, 470: no. 1057-01).
Köcke (p. 143) refers to a variant reverse for this medal illustrated in Bernhart, M.,
Die Münchener Medaillenkunst der Gegenwart, 1917, pl. 54: 365, but this is a misunderstanding. The reverse of the medal shown in Bernhart's image 365 is in fact the reverse of image 367, depicting a Black Rhinoceros on the obverse. Both sides of the rhinoceros medal are shown and labeled in Heidemann (p. 470: 1057-05) Vs and 1057-05) Rs).
Most descriptions of this medal label the bird as a "
Harpyie" (i.e. Harpy Eagle
Harpia harpyia), but that is clearly not the species depicted. It is, rather, a generic hawk-eagle or another crested eagle-like raptor, but it is impossible to be more accurate.
The
Verein Zoologischer Garten München e.V. [
eingetragener Verein] (Association of the Zoological Garden, Munich, registered association) was founded in February 1905, and opened the Zoo to the public 1 August 1911. In 1909 and 1910, Arthur Storch designed a series of eleven medals of various sizes, depicting different animals, to commemorate the inauguration. The present medal is one of the largest of the group.
