Georges Cuvier (1769-1832) is considered the founder of vertebrate paleontology. In 1796, he was a founding member of the Institut de France, and in 1799 became Professor of Natural History at the College de France. He held high administrative offices under Napoleon. Cuvier established the occurrence of extinctions, but did not believe in evolution. He differentiated African from Asian elephants, and the mastodon. Cuvier identified several fossil species including the pterodactyl (flying reptile). He reasoned that reptiles preceded mammals and proposed stratigraphy: age estimation based on depth at which a substance is found. He was the author of Leçons d'anatomie comparée (1800-1805).
- Medal
Bronze. France 1834. Signed. Posthumous.
- Size
67 mm
- Artist
Antoine Bovy (1795-1877), Swiss medallist Jean François Antoine Bovy (1795-1877), Swiss medallist from a celebrated family of medallists and coin engravers, all of whom worked for the Geneva Mint. Antoine was naturalized as Frenchman in order to compete for design of French coinage, but he worked in both France and Switzerland (where he also designed the federal coinage). Decorated with the Legion of Honour he was a very prolific medallist and is considered as one of the great masters of the French medallic school. (Forrer 1, 243)
- Obverse
Clothed bust to left wearing coat with fur collar, over redingote, embroidered with leaf design, cravat and gillet; below, in minute letters, A. BOVY 1834. ; continuing curve of legend, GEORGE CUVIER. NÉ A MONTBELIARD EN 1769. MORT A PARIS EN 1832.
- Reverse
In the field, DISCOURS / SUR LES RÉVOLUT. / DU GLOBE. / RECHERCHES SUR LES / OSSEMENTS FOSSILES. / ANATOMIE COMPARÉE. / RÈGNE ANIMAL. / HIST. DES SCIENCES / NATURELLES. / &.&.&. in ten parallel lines; around, in two concentric lines, PAIR DE FRANCE ∙ CONSEILLER D'ETAT ET AU CONSEIL ROYAL D'INSTR ∙ PUBL ∙ SECRETAIRE PERP ∙ DE L'ACADEMIE DES SCIENCES ∙ / L'UN DES 40 DE L'ACAD ∙ FR ∙ L’ACADᴺ ∙ LIB ∙ DE L'ACAD ∙ DES BELL ∙ LETT ∙ PROF ∙ AU COLL ∙ D ∙ FR ∙ ET AU MUS ∙ D'HIST ∙ NATURELLE & ∙ & ∙, with a rosette at bottom to separate beginning and end of lines.
- Ref
Freeman 123; Storer 725 (except inscription in the field); Duisburg CLXIX-4; Nilsson 135
