The Royal Automobile and Associated Clubs (RAC), bronze prize medal 1908, by Sir Hubert Herkomer for Pinches


Obv: a nude female above in centre, to left a seated man holds an instrument, to right a seated woman beside a wheel, their outstretched arms holding hands, SKILL and INVENTION at top

Rev: oak and laurel wreath around space for award inscription, ROYAL AUTOMOBILE & ASSOCIATED CLUBS MEDAL around


Condition: Good very fine

Diameter: 76mm

References: Pinches p142; Forrer VII/445; An example of this medal was exhibited at the New York International Medallic Exhibition of 1910; see also the article by Philip Attwood in The Medal (February 1984, pp 9-12), in which this medal is discussed at length.

Notes: Sir Hubert Herkomer was a member of the Royal Academy and founded his own art school in Bushey, Hertfordshire. This medal is a scarce and attractive association item from the earliest days of the motor car. Attwood ends his article: "The attractive composition formed by the three bodies with their outstretched arms, the strong symmetry offset by the wheel on the right and the crowns lying in the foreground, and the expressive texture which gives to the medal an almost unfinished appearance, make it a worthy effort by a committed motorist."

Price £185