White metal. 32mm. 12.5g. Plain edge. Unsigned. Some have suggested this medal to be the work J.S. and A.B. Wyon, but the wreath appears a bit crude. Victoria University was founded in Cobourg, Ontario in 1836 by the Methodist Church. According to the University’s website, it was established “by royal charter from King William IV” and “federated with the University of Toronto in 1890. It comprises Victoria College, an arts and science college of the University of Toronto, and Emmanuel College, a theological college associated with the United Church of Canada.”

The rarity of this medal is under-appreciated, perhaps because it turns up so infrequently. A copper example from a “broken die” was offered as lot 885 in S.H. and Henry Chapman’s February 1896 sale, where it was described as “Very Rare.” The mention of the broken die may explain why an envelope sold alongside the Joffre copper piece stated that the dies were destroyed after only 75 pieces were struck (we cannot corroborate that statement). The Hunter and Hendler examples of Leroux-1853 were in copper, not white metal. Tellingly, this medal was omitted from R.W. McLachlan’s Canadian Numismatics (1886) and from P.N. Breton’s 1912 reference. It was missing from Jeffrey Hoare’s Sale 6 (2/1988). LeRoux provided a rating of R.6.

This is the only white metal example we have been able to locate. Nickel-grey surfaces exhibit a bit of field reflectivity, but not much.

Ex: Nicolet Seminary (Champagne Auctions, 5/2017), lot 325; Michael Joffre Collection of Canadian Historical Medals (Geoffrey Bell Auctions, 4/2022), lot 352.