World's Columbian Exposition Commemorative Medal 1892 - 1893

This bronze medal was made by Augustus Saint-Gaudens for the World’s Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, which took place in 1893. The exposition was held to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas. The medal presents a particular view of history as celebration. The image of Columbus is not a neutral one, but makes specific claims about progress, heroism and discovery. Made at a time of increased industrialization, urbanization and immigration, the World’s Fair was a stage on which America could present itself to the world, but also to itself. As an event it shaped cultural memory, dictating which histories get told, and how. Looking at the medal today we can investigate the cultural history of the 1890s to better understand the institutional, social, and political context in which the exposition was created.