A Thanksgiving That Wasn’t

An 1872 UK “National Thanksgiving” medal by Wyon actually commemorated a March 1872 service in St. Paul’s Cathedral, attended by Queen Victoria, that celebrated the recovery of the Prince of Wales from typhoid. This piece from the Goldberg’s January 2014 sale, lot 3238, is described as “Great Britain Medal, 1872 BHM-2928; Eimer-1618. Bronze. 77 mm. By J.S. & A.B. Wyon. Victoria. Prince of Wales, National Thanksgiving. Londonia inviting Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales to enter St. Paul's Cathedral, Britannia standing nght. Reverse. A view of the interior of St. Paul’s with congregation, royal arms to left and those of the City of London to right.” The medal realized $588 on a $200 to $250 estimate. Link to Goldberg auction sale catalogs on Newman Portal: https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/auctioncompanydetail/7