Olympic participation medals have their origins with the first Modern Games, held in Athens in 1896. Officially called commemoratives, these medals are presented to all athletes and officials as remembrances of the Games.
Although usually struck in bronze, there have been medals struck in steel, copper, pewter and other metals as well.
These medals can be quite beautiful and feature different designs for each Olympic Games. Highly prized by collectors, participation medals range from very common in availability to exceedingly rare.
Lake Placid 1932 Winter Olympics Bronze Participation Medal
Although posters were used to promote the Olympic Games from the very beginning, it was not until the 1912 Stockholm Games that the first official Olympic posters were produced.
Originally, Olympic posters were a much-needed vehicle for advertising and were affixed to walls, displayed in shop windows, and exhibited in train stations worldwide.
While only one type of poster was produced for the 1912 Games, more recent Games have seen literally dozens of varieties. Many are beautiful works of art. And while many are quite common, samples from the early years of the Games are very rare and valuable.
Olympic diplomas are certificates presented to Olympic winners and participants. It’s a tradition dating back to the first Modern Olympics in 1896.
The diploma designs are truly unique, with wonderful graphics, often with bright and vivid colors. The designs reflect the eras in which they were made. In current Olympic Games, the first eight places receive special winner’s diplomas. Participation diplomas are given to all athletes and officials.
Today, the two types of diplomas generally differ in design. That was not always the case. Winner’s diplomas tend to carry a value less than their corresponding winner’s medals, despite being just as rare. As with all Olympic memorabilia, the prices of diplomas have been rising steadily and those from earlier Games are especially desirable.
One of the most dramatic events of an Olympic Games is the Olympic torch relay, which involves thousands of people and covers much of a host country’s geography. No other aspect of the Games is seen in person by as many people, and it is one of the few chances a non-participant can have to feel a sense of personal involvement. At times, the relay has also traveled into space, the summit of Mt. Everest, and beneath the sea! Olympic torches truly “light the way” to the Games.
The first Olympic Games to have a torch relay was the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin, Germany. The flame was ignited by the sun in Olympia, Greece, site of the ancient Olympics, and carried by a relay of runners and torches to Berlin where the flame ignited a huge cauldron at the Olympic stadium. The relay proved to be such a success, it became an integral part of the Olympic Games.
The quantity of torches produced for a particular Olympic varies greatly; for some Games, only 10 or so torches are made, while for others 10,000 or more are produced. Although some collectors prefer one type or another, the values of Olympic torches do not tend to vary based upon their use in the relay.
This Olympics spotlight focuses on winner’s medals. The ultimate goal for any Olympian is to stand upon the podium and receive a medal as one of the top three finishers in an event. Officially called “prize medals,” the Olympic Games’ highest awards – bronze, silver and gold – are equally prized by collectors, no matter the “metal.”
While the Olympic champion is referred to as having received a gold medal, the medal is in fact made of silver and then gilded with at least six grams of gold. In only four Olympics were gold medals actually struck in solid gold: 1900, 1904, 1908 and 1912.
When the Olympic Games were revived and the first Modern Games held in Athens in 1896, only the first two places were honored with medals; the Olympic champion received a silver medal and the runner-up received a bronze. At the Paris Olympics of 1900, as many as 15 of the top finishers received medals.
In 1904, at the St. Louis Olympics, for the first time the top three finishers were awarded gold, silver and bronze. This same order of finish is still used today.
Garmisch 1936 Winter Olympics Silver Winner’s Medal
EDITOR’S NOTE: In 2015, I had the opportunity to interview musician Chris Lamy, in advance of RR’s curating his collection of Ramones memorabilia, which sold at auction for more than $60,000. Here’s the fun result of our conversation. — KP
Granite State connection
Tell me: What were you 50-somethings doing in southern New Hampshire in 1979, 1980? Finishing high school? Working at Alexanders at the Nashua Mall? Hanging out at Hampton Beach? Chris Lamy was hanging in Manchester.
With the Ramones.
Lamy, 52, befriended John Cummings – you probably know him as seminal punk rock guitarist Johnny Ramone – in those heady days bordering the neon decade. Lamy’s incredible collection of Ramones memorabilia went on the block through RR Auction in Amherst, in their “Marvels of Modern Music Auction: The Punk Rock Collection of Chris Lamy” auction event.
Lamy played with Granite State punk rock outfit GG Allin and the Jabbers when he met the Ramones’ “Johnny.” Back then, it wasn’t as difficult to get close to the band members, if you knew how to play the game.
“They weren’t huge in ’79, ’80 – like now, when they’re dead,” Lamy quipped in a phone interview. “Playing in the Jabbers, I learned that if you just looked like you belong, you can just walk backstage. I met Johnny and we bonded right off the bat and became good friends.”
Lamy said he and Johnny had much in common as punk musicians, but that wasn’t what cemented their friendship. “It was one of those things … We were in bands, but we didn’t talk about it,” he said. “We talked about baseball and monster movies. So if they were playing in New Hampshire or nearby, and they had a few hours to kill, they’d come here to Manchester and watch TV with my old man,” he said, laughing. “Sometimes we’d go to a record store, sometimes we’d watch boxing on HBO. Just killing time until the gig.”
“Playing in New Hampshire” holds an interesting fact. The Ramones formed in 1974, and stayed snugly in their home state of New York for two years of gigs. “When the Ramones went on tour in 1976 to promote their debut (album) – the greatest punk LP of all time – guess the first place they played outside of New York?” Lamy posited. “Where would what would become the most famous punk band of all time choose to be their first stop outside their comfort zone of New York and before even Boston?”
Nashua. Feb 25, 1976. “Ringing in the Bicentennial, even before the Freedom Trail,” Lamy said.
Punk collectibles
Lamy’s collection featured memories, handwritten letters from Johnny, posters, and one incredible guitar. But this wasn’t Lamy and the Ramones’ first dealings with the auction house. If you were sharp-eyed, you might have seen Lamy driving the long-banged lads around our local towns – including trips to the Amherst showroom of RR Auction.
“We loved movie star autographs,” Lamy said. “Johnny and I had these books with celebrity addresses, and we’d send them 8×10 glossies and SASEs, asking for their autographs. It was an obsession. We’d have a contest between us as to who could get the most autographs.
“Back then, RR Auction had a showroom, with books of autographs you could flip through. So I’d drive them over there and we’d buy them. It’s cool to be closing the loop with RR” with this auction, Lamy said.
Lamy’s lot included Joey Ramone’s sweat-spattered set list from a local 1982 show incorrectly listed as “Hampton Bays, New Hampshire,” as well as scads of signed performance posters and vinyl records, Johnny’s stage-used guitar picks, and most significantly, Johnny’s early stage-used Hamer guitar [sold at auction for nearly $50k]. There were also pieces of memorabilia from punk rock’s other big names, including The Sex Pistols, Black Flag, The Clash and Lamy’s own tumultuous time with GG Allin and the Jabbers.
The Jabbers are still rocking venues, despite breaking with their late frontman decades ago. They still honor his frenetic memory with free annual concerts. “In true punk fashion, the Jabbers will only play locally if the venue that books us has free admission,” Lamy said.
When asked why it was time to offer his punk-history items for public dissemination, Lamy said the march of time and philosophical musing determined it. “To me, they were just possessions. I didn’t need the possessions to justify who I was anymore,” he said. “They’re just perpetuating what happened 30 years ago, with me and The Ramones. I felt like I really should share it. This stuff shouldn’t be in a cellar, waiting for a flood. His guitar shouldn’t be somewhere in storage.”
Lamy also knew it was important to have someone handle the sale who knew the value and worth of the items.
“I talked to my daughter, and she doesn’t want them,” he said. “And all I could think about was, if I die, I didn’t want her or my girlfriend to be taken advantage of by someone trying to buy the guitar, or the whole lot, out from under them. I mean, if you didn’t know any better and thought, ‘oh, this guitar’s been modified, forget it’ and you didn’t know it was modified by Johnny, and that it’s one of only three known pieces of gear that’s pre-1980 … You don’t want that stuff lost to history.”
RR Auction has dealt with top-name music memorabilia for decades, so that was a safe choice for the auction.
The glimpse into their friendship via the handwritten letters from Johnny is surprisingly sweet and down-to-earth. “I only shared a few of the letters that weren’t too personal, didn’t have any dirt,” Lamy said. He does have an amusing side note on the letter-writing, however.
“In one of my letters I said, ‘you gotta get a computer,’ and Johnny said he had one but didn’t know how to use it,” Lamy said. “He told me ‘the next time my friend Eddie comes over, I’ll have him show me how.’ He was talking about (Pearl Jam’s frontman) Eddie Vedder, who actually bought the computer for him.”
Lamy and Johnny remained close throughout the Ramones’ eventual breakup and Johnny’s retirement in California. Their friendship is even mentioned in Monte Melnick’s book “On the Road With The Ramones.”
“We were friends, and it’s time to get rid of the stuff my friend gave me,” Lamy said. “It gives me peace of mind that it will be auctioned for what it’s truly worth.”
We’re known for our selection of incredibly well preserved signed documents and artifacts relating to US Presidents, dating back to American colonial times. From Gen. George Washington, to those who serve in Washington in this century, we have the Rare and Remarkable items from these history-making political figures.
Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s four-star A-2 leather flight jacket: $93,750
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s wool cape: $68,750
Signed book by JFK and Jackie Kennedy, a Christmas gift for JFK Sr.; $30,000
Abraham Lincoln’s eyeglasses: $30,000
Harry S. Truman’s Stetson fedora: $22,500
Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s four-star A-2 leather flight jacket. Sold for $93,750.
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s wool cape. Sold for $68,750.
Abraham Lincoln’s eyeglasses. Sold for $30,000.
The Fisher lifetime collection featured:
Rare William Henry Harrison presidential appointment document: $74,938
James Madison letter: $54,256
Thomas Jefferson letter: $34, 073
James Polk letter to Andrew Jackson: $32,541
Garfield assassinator Guiteau’s written confession: $27,872
Rare William Henry Harrison presidential appointment document. Sold for $74,938.
Another video of our presidential auction successes is here.
We need your presidential consignments!
We’re seeking any kind of presidential memorabilia that captures an individual, a historical event, or a time and place with its significance. We’ve had a lot of success with personally owned and worn clothing, jewelry and accessories (presidents and First Ladies), as well as handwritten correspondences of all kinds – RR Auction has extensive success with letters and speech drafts by then-lawyer Abraham Lincoln – and autographed and rare photographs, personal items and other glimpses into the working and private lives of the leaders of the free world. “Road to the White House” campaign memorabilia; First Family ephemera. Pre-American Revolution through 21st century.
Our next US Presidents auction will be Feb. 7, 2018. Do you have memorabilia you’d like to consign for the February auction – autographs, signed documents, photos, ephemera, unique items of all kinds – please contact us by Friday, Dec. 15!
There were certainly plenty of things to talk about in 2017, from politics to entertainment to social commentary. These now-and-future icons of our time period will remind us of who we were, what we did, and how we felt about it, and perhaps will be some collector’s sought-after memorabilia someday. What would be YOUR choices for the Best of 2017 Pop Culture moments and personalities?
Here, in no particular order, are some of our picks for the tastemakers and risk takers who made their marks this year – for better or for worse.
Donald Trump
“Stranger Things”
The remake of Stephen King’s “It”
The new darker Taylor Swift and her “Reputation” album
The new toned-down Lady Gaga and her “Joanne” tour
Wonder Woman
Beyonce’s pregnancy and her twin babies
“Riverdale” – “Archie Comics” characters in a dark teen TV drama
Playboy’s first published issue, featuring Marilyn Monroe.
Capturing a moment
Why is the Pop Culture collectibles market so hot? In every lifetime, there are people or events that forever epitomize a moment in time. Whether it defines an entire decade or one poignant turning point, these emotions will be linked in our collective psyche to a specific time and place in our shared history.
That’s pop culture. It allows us to relive those unforgettable moments of zeitgeist, from music, entertainment, art and current events, often in a very visceral way.
Signed Beatles album cover, “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” sold by RR Auction.
The Pop Culture collectibles market is perhaps our most emotional, evocative category. Hollywood, music, pop art … Each gave rise to its own superstars, trends and unforgettable imagery. Pop culture collectors are some of the most passionate we’ve seen.
If you have memorabilia you’d like to consign—autographs, signed documents, photos, posters, clothing, instruments, unique items of all kinds—contact us.
We’ve selected our (decidedly biased) Top 20 Pop Culture icons of the 20th century. Do you agree with our 20/20 hindsight? Comment on the blog post, below!
Marilyn Monroe
Elvis Presley
The Beatles
Michael Jackson
Madonna
Babe Ruth
Muhammad Ali
Michael Jordan
James Dean
Elizabeth Taylor
Andy Warhol
Walt Disney
Bob Dylan
Superman
Barbie
Charlie Chaplin
Neil Armstrong
Jackie Kennedy
David Bowie
Prince
Have a Pop Culture item or collection featuring an icon that you’d like us to appraise?
