Définition

• Wood Medal.  A medallic item made of wood usually pressed between dies. An unusual composition for medals, the first wood medals were made in Germany in the 18th century. German artists also used wood to make models for medals, which were carved from a hardwood (usually boxwood) that could be used for casting a medal exact size, or reducing to cut a die.
  American wood medals.  A series of six wood medals were made as a set for the American Centennial Exposition of 1876. They were made by cutting black walnut into 1-inch thick disks cut against the grain; they were steamed for a long time until the wood softened, and finally pressed between dies much like a waffle iron where they remained until they dried.
  The set of six Centennial Exposition medals had a common centennial celebration reverse, three bore portraits, one of Washington; these were of 2 1/2-inch diameter, along with one that size of Independence Hall. Two larger ones, 3-inch size, bore expo buildings. Philadelphia coin dealer John W. Haseltine, who had a part in their issuance, sold a boxed set of six for $1.50. The items, though popular, did not receive critical acclaim:  an editorial comment in the American Journal of Numismatics by historian James Hammond Trumbull, stated "Wood is nonmetallic, and consequently these pieces are nonmedallic." Other than a 3 1/2-inch wood medal issued for the Columbian Exposition of 1892-3, not much was done in wood after this.
  A somewhat different process of hardening a paste wood composition was used for making portrait medallions in France in the 1850s. These are called bois durci.
  Wood models.  Models for medals were made by carving fine-grained boxwood in the 16th and 17th centuries (called stechstein in Germany). And in the 20th century oversize models for medals have been cut in wood (as the obverse model of the Westchester County Coin Club Medal).
  Cataloging wood medals.  Most numismatic terms are used for describing wood medals except for the wood that has dried and cracks have appeared. These are called separates.

  excerpted with permission from

  An Encyclopedia of Coin and Medal Technology

  For Artists, Makers, Collectors and Curators

  COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY D. WAYNE JOHNSON

  Roger W. Burdette, Editor

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