Medal - Daniel Morgan Cowpens Comitia Americana

The dies for the original Morgan medal were made in Paris and gold medal for Morgan was struck from them. There were also a very small number of pieces made in silver and copper. Today there are three known examples in silver (One of which is in the Massachusetts Historical Society collection as part of the set that Thomas Jefferson brought back with him when he returned from Paris.) and seven copper pieces are known.

The gold medal was passed down through members of the Morgan family until it was stolen and never recovered from a Pittsburg, Pennsylvania bank. At the request of the Morgan family, Congress passed a law in 1836 that authorized the Federal Government to have a replacement made in Paris from a set of copy dies. The silver medal from the Massachusetts Historical Society set was sent to Paris and J.J. Barre made a new set of dies. Barre’s copy was so close that it is very difficult to tell the difference between the original medals and the new ones.

The Comitia Americana (American committee) medals were a set of pieces that were awarded to heroes of the American Revolutionary War. All but one of the medals was made by the French in Paris.

One of the most beautiful of the medals was awarded to General Daniel Morgan for his victory at the Battle of the Cowpens on January 17, 1781.