Enfilade

A lunchtime lecture at the Society of Antiquaries:

Yvan Loskoutoff, The Medallic History of the Sun King
In-person and online, Society of Antiquaries of London, 7 November 2023, 1–2pm

The Sun King and his councilors considered his medals as the summit of his propaganda. The reason is simple: they thought that, like Roman coins, the medals would last more than other media to perpetuate the royal memory. More than 300 were coined to celebrate the great events of Louis XIV’s reign (1638–1715), and a luxurious folio book was printed by the Royal Press in two editions of 1702 and 1723 (the lecturer being happy to own a duplicate copy of king George III, 1702, he might bring it to show, provided there are no customs problems). A group of about ten scholars, writers, and artists—the so-called Small Academy—looked after the medals and the book. From 1694 to 1702, they gathered twice a week in the palace of the Louvre dealing only with this subject. The proceedings of their meetings are preserved in the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. This lecture will address the Small Academy, the medals, and the book. Most medals were inspired by Imperial Roman coins. Some of them deal with events in relation with the United Kingdom (which produced satirical medals as an answer). A set of the medals is owned by the British Museum and another one by the Duke of Northumberland. Presently the leading specialists on the subject are English: Sir Mark Jones FSA for the medals and Professor James Mosley (Reading University) for the book. Professor Loskoutoff has directed two volumes on the subject in which they participated (Presses Universitaires de Rouen et du Havre in 2016 and 2023).

Presented both online and in-person at Burlington House, the event is free and open to the public. Please reserve tickets here.