Sir Francis Chantrey
1846
Medium
Silver
Dimensions
Diameter: 2 1/8 in. (54 mm)
Classification
Medals and Plaquettes
Culture
British
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Assunta Sommella Peluso, Ada Peluso, and Romano I. Peluso, in memory of Ignazio Peluso, 2000
Accession Number
2000.323.6
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This silver medal, created by British medallist William Wyon in 1846, offers a refined profile portrait of Sir Francis Chantrey, one of Britain’s leading sculptors of the early nineteenth century. Wyon, renowned for his work at the Royal Mint and his mastery of neoclassical portraiture, captures Chantrey’s dignified features with crisp detail and subtle modeling. Such medals served as lasting tributes to distinguished figures, blending the precision of coin engraving with the commemorative spirit of sculpture. Measuring just over two inches in diameter, the piece exemplifies the intimate scale and technical virtuosity of the medal tradition. Struck in silver, it highlights the material’s association with prestige and permanence, allowing the portrait to endure as both an artistic object and a historical record. Wyon’s careful attention to line and relief transforms a simple profile into a statement of cultural esteem. Today, this medal stands as a quiet witness to the close relationship between sculpture and the decorative arts in Victorian Britain, preserving the likeness of an artist through the skilled hand of another.
About the Artist
William Wyon · 1795–1851
British, Birmingham 1795–1851 Brighton