Hello! I found this coin in my late father's collection. No amount of internet sleuthing has been successful. I would appreciate any info offered. Thank you!
Heironymus means "Saint" roughly Translated. Comes O Ripaltae may mean "Come Repent" Roughly. I would guess it is a religous token of sorts. It looks old. Any idea what it is made from?
The softness of the details and the "mushy" aspect of the lettering make it look as though it was cast. That's a slight red flag to me, though it being cast doesn't automatically make it a modern fake. Some early medals and jetons were cast rather than struck, as @Iosephus will attest. Early 18th century would be the latest I would estimate the date, if it turns out to be authentic. It has more of a late-16th or a 17th century appearance to my eye. PS- Aha! Look here. It seems my gut instincts were reasonably sound. The original would've been a bronze Italian Renaissance medal from Mantua, circa 1510-1520. This piece you have here, which appears to be in a pewter-like white metal, probably cast, is therefore highly suspicious. But again, that doesn't mean it's worthless. It does look old. Could it be from around the same time and place as an original? I don't know, but I rather doubt it. Still... it's neat. Probably a copy, but an older copy. And it might have some value in its own right, though likely not nearly as much as the one in the link above. (I don't have a premium account with ACSearch, so I couldn't see what the auction hammer price on that piece was. Anyone?)
Wow. Thank you all for responding. Very interesting history. Hopefully I can use this new info to attempt to value it and find someone who would appreciate owning it. Again, thank you all for your expertise and taking the time to answer
As @lordmarcovan pointed out, it is a Renaissance medal (or later cast thereof) from Mantua, c. 1510. The original medal was also cast, but the softness and lack of detail would seem to indicate a later cast for this piece. Lead was often used to make workshop trials, but also to make copies for study. In the obverse inscription, Hieronymus does not mean saint, but is simply the Latin version of the sitter's (Girolamo Andreasi) first name. The swan and star on the reverse are from the Andreasi family coat of arms.
