Commemorative Collection (#11)

Marco Polo, Venetian traveller and merchant, 19th century. Together with his father Niccolo and uncle Matteo, Marco Polo (1254-1324) set off from Venice for Asia in 1271

Roman Troops and Barbarians on the Arch of Constantine, relief detail, early 2nd century. The Arch of Constantine was constructed 313-315 with a relief from the time of Hadrian, early 2nd century AD

English playing cards commemorating defeat of the Spanish Armada (8 August 1588)
English playing cards from a pack commemorating the defeat of the Spanish Armada (8 August 1588), 16th century

Statue of William of Orange commemorating the Battle of the Boyne
Statue of William of Orange (4 November 1650 - 8 March 1702) commemorating the Battle of the Boyne (1690) in Sandy Row. This battle was a crucial moment in James IIs

A commemorative stela from the Marduk Temple in Babylon. Although it looks like a Kudurra/boundary stone, it was in fact set up by a son in honour of his father. Both have the shaven heads of priests

Postcard commemorating Captain Scotts ill-fated expedition to the South Pole, c1912. Robert Falcon Scott (1868-1912) English antarctic explorer (inset) and his ship the Terra Nova trapped in ice

Peace commemorations for the end of the Crimean War, at Plymouth, England, 1856. Rockets and general illumination of the fleet in Plymouth sound. From The Illustrated London News, 1 June 1856

(Salomon) August Andree (1854-1897), Swedish engineer and balloonist, 1897. In 1897 Andree made an attempt to reach the North Pole by balloon

Arch of Titus, Forum, Rome, c81. The arch commemorates the capture and sack of Jerusalem by the Roman emperor Titus (39-81) in 70 during the Jewish revolt against Roman rule

Edouard Branly, French physicist, 20th century. Artist: J-P Legastelois
Edouard Branly, French physicist, 20th century. Branly (1844-1940) was a pioneer of early radio and inventor of the coherer (1892). Obverse of commemorative medal

Matthew Boulton, English entrepreneur, industrialist and engineer, 1809. English works owner Boulton (1728-1809) (front) and Scottish engineer and inventor James Watt (1736-1819)

Pierre Marcellin Boule, French paleontologist, 20th century. In 1921 Boule (1861-1942) completed the first reconstruction of a Neanderthal skeleton. Obverse of commemorative medal

Karl Bosch, German chemist, c1930s. In 1910 Bosch (1874-1940) and Fritz Haber patented the Haber-Bosch process for the industrial production of ammonia

Matthew Boulton and James Watt, British engineers and industrialists, 1871. Artist: J Moore
Matthew Boulton and James Watt, British engineers and industrialists, 1871. English works owner Matthew Boulton (1728-1809) (front) and Scottish engineer and inventor Watt (1736-1819)

Souvenir for Queen Victorias Golden Jubilee, 1887. Scrapbook souvenir for Queen Victorias (1819-1901) Jubilee of 1887 showing her then and at her accession in 1837

Henry Havelock, British soldier, c1857. Major-General Henry Havelock (1795-1857) took part in both reliefs of Lucknow (September and November 1857) during the Indian Mutiny

Roman soldiers taking part in decursio, the ritual circling of funeral pyre, c180-196
Roman soldiers taking part in decursio - ritual circling of funeral pyre, c180-196. Detail of a relief from the Antonine Column, Rome

Roman cavalry crossing a wooden bridge, from Trajans column, Rome, 106-113. The column was erected by the Emperor Trajan (57-113)

Roman legionary on sentry duty, from Trajans column, Rome, 106-113. The column was erected by the Emperor Trajan (57-113) and carved in low relief with a narrative of his two campaigns in Dacia

Trajans column, Rome, 106-113. Detail, showing military scenes, of part of Trajans Column, built to commemorate the Emperor Trajans (53-117) campaigns in Dacia

Johann Joachim Winckelmann, German archaeologist. A prominent authority on ancient art, Winckelmann (1717-1768) is particularly known for his work on treasures discovered at Herculaneum and Pompeii

Jean Lamarck, French naturalist. Lamarck (1744-1829) formulated the doctrine of Transformism (also known as Lamarckism), a theory of evolution which stated that acquired characteristics could be

Christiaan Huyghens (1629-1695), Dutch physicist. Artist: F Henrionnet
Christiaan Huyghens (1629-1695), Dutch physicist. Portrait from obverse of commemorative medal. Huyghens applied the pendulum to clocks

Mineral Court of New South Wales, Centennial International Exhibition, Australia, 1888. Artist: O Shamessy
Mineral Court of New South Wales, Centennial International Exhibition, Australia, 1888. In 1888 the city of Melbourne hosted an exposition in commemoration of the centenary of the arrival of

New South Wales Room of Minerals and Rocks, Centennial International Exhibition, Australia, 1888. Artist: O Shamessy
New South Wales Room of Minerals and Rocks, Centennial International Exhibition, Australia, 1888. In 1888 the city of Melbourne hosted an exposition in commemoration of the centenary of the arrival

Heliopolis Obelisk, Egypt, 1878. Artist: Felix Bonfils
Heliopolis Obelisk, Egypt, 1878. The oldest standing Ancient Egyptian obelisk in existence, this example dates from the reign of the 12th Dynasty Pharaoh Senusret I, who ruled from 1971 to 1926 BC

UJJ Leverrier, French astronomer who calculated the position of planet Neptune in 1846 (1884). Commemorative medal. Urbain Jean Joseph Leverriers (1811-1877)

Queen Victorias coronation, 1837 and Golden Jubilee, 1887
Queen Victorias coronation, 1837, and Golden Jubilee, 1887. In the upper picture, the Archbishop of Canterbury is placing the crown on Victorias (1819-1901) head in Westminster Abbey, 28 June 1837

Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence, 1885. The eldest son of Edward, Prince of Wales (later Edward VII), Albert (1864-1892) was known to his family as Eddy

Medal commemorating the centenary of the birth of George Stephenson, railway engineer, 1881
Medal commemorating the centenary of the birth of George Stephenson, British railway engineer (1781-1848), 1881. It shows the Rocket

International Exposition of 1876 held at Philadelphia, Pennslvania, USA, 1876
International Exposition of 1876 held at Philadelphia, Pennslvania, USA, in 1876, the Centennial of American Independence

The west side of the Albert Memorial, 19th century
The west side of the Albert Memorial in London, built to commemorate Prince Albert (26 August 1819 - 14 December 1861), Prince Consort to Queen Victoria (24 May 1819 - 22 January 1901, 19th century

Wilhelm Bauer (1822-1875), German inventor and pioneer builder of submarines. Bauer designed and built the first German submarine (U-boat). Reverse of commemorative medal

Paul Kruger, South African politician, c1900. Known as Oom (uncle) Paul, Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (1825-1904) was President of the Transvaal or South African Republic from 1883

Eternal Flame in the Field of Mars, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. Artist: Sheldon Marshall
Eternal Flame in the Field of Mars, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. The Field of Mars is a park in St Petersburg. The Eternal Flame was lit in 1957

Suvorov Monument, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. Artist: Sheldon Marshall
Suvorov Monument, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. Detail. The monument, sculpted by Mikhail Kozlovsky in 1801, depicts Russian general Alexander Suvorov (1729-1800) as a youthful Mars, Roman god of war

Base of the Suvorov Monument, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. Artist: Sheldon Marshall
Base of the Suvorov Monument, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. Detail. The monument, sculpted by Mikhail Kozlovsky in 1801, depicts Russian general Alexander Suvorov (1729-1800) as a youthful Mars

Quadriga on the General Staff Building, Palace Square, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. Artist: Sheldon Marshall
Quadriga on the General Staff Building, Palace Square, St Petersburg, Russia, 2011. This triumphal arch joins together the two wings of the General Staff Building Built in the 1820s it commemorates

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