Netherlands '1653' Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp — Memorial medal commemorating his death VF-

Netherlands. Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp — Memorial medal commemorating his death at the Battle of Ter Heijde, 1653. Lead, after a design attributed to Wouter Muller.

Obverse: Three-quarter bust of Tromp facing right, wearing armour and the badge of the Order of St Michael, surrounded by a laurel wreath.

Legend: MART. HARP. TROMP. R. L. AD. V. HOL. ZE. WES.

Reverse: An engraved naval scene showing two large sailing warships, with further vessels in the background, surrounded by a cursive Dutch inscription. The inscription of this type laments Tromp’s abandonment in times of danger and records his death on 10 August 1653. It is not fully legible on the present example.

Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp was killed during the Battle of Ter Heijde, also known as the Battle of Scheveningen, in the First Anglo-Dutch War. The portrait and commemorative verse honour the admiral while expressing a critical view of the circumstances surrounding his death.

A closely corresponding lead example, measuring 65 mm, is preserved in the National Maritime Museum, Royal Museums Greenwich, inventory MEC0350. The museum describes a cast portrait in high relief with an engraved naval reverse. A related silver example is held by the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, inventory NG-VG-1-850, attributed to Wouter Muller.

The design commemorates events of 1653; the precise casting date of the present specimen has not been established.


Lead.
Weight: 88.15 g.
Diameter: 66 mm.

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