Boer War

This is the Nilsson plaque of 1900, a French-made bronze plaquette honouring Paul Kruger, president of the South African Republic (the Transvaal), made during the Second Boer War.

The language is actually Dutch, not German or Flemish. "Eendragt maakt magt" is old Dutch spelling for "unity makes strength", the national motto of Kruger's republic. "Président" (with the accent) and "Déposé" (registered design) at the bottom right are French, because it was made in Paris.

The mintage of the Medallion is as follows:

800 Medallions in Bronze were struck
200 Medallions in Sliver Plate were struck
4 Medallions in solid Silver were struck

The 4 medallions in silver were issued to the following people

1. President Paul Kruger
2. Mr Cheminais (Who was the distributor)
3. Messrs. Sevin & Rey (Who were the publicists)
4. Mr Svante Nilsson (Who was the Artist)

Medallion Details

METAL: Made in Silver/Silver Plate/Bronze
MEASUREMENT: Height 50mm, Width: 40 mm, Uniface
The bust of President Kruger slightly to the front facing left, in a circle. An oak branch with a ribbon tied to the stem. In the top corner the inscription: "PRESIDENT/KRUGER" and in the left bottom corner "EENDRACHT MAAKT MAGT" (Unity is Strength) "Depose" in small letters in the right hand corner.
Artist: Beneath the bust on the left the artists name "S.Nilsson" is engraved.
OCCASION: The plaque was, through the initiative of M Cheminais, an industrialist, sold through the good offices of Messrs, Sevin & Rey. Mr Felix Rey, brother of the latter, presented a silver specimen to President Kruger in Dijon. The plaque was completed in a week, whilst President Kruger was travelling in France, and was struck by the Paris firm of Janirez.

The medallion was done by Artist Svante Nilsson who was a young Scandinavian engraver. He engraved several medals and plaques which were exhibited on the annual Paris show for Plastic Arts as well as the World Exhibition in 1900. The artist made this plaque while President Kruger travelled through France and was done in a rush and completed within one week. It was produced by the studios Janirez Of Masion de Commerce, Paris. The distribution was undertaken by Cheminias, a business man and Sevin & Rey were responsible for the publicity. In designing this plaque, Nilsson was inspired by photographs taken on Kruger’s visit to Europe ten years before, which explains the much younger Kruger on the plaque. The plaque was firstly intended as a mark of honour to Kruger, but the artist aimed at the same time to pay tribute to the Swedes who fought and fell so bravely on the battlefields in South Africa. A commando of 52 Swedes was wiped out at Magersfontein by the English. Only six Swedes survived that battle and Nilsson wanted to commemorate the bravery of his fellow countrymen.