Napoleonic medals are

medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

s including those struck by the Paris Medal Mint celebrating the accomplishments of

Napoleon I of France Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. The exact number of these medals is not precisely known since the official records of Napoleon's reign, including the list of medals struck by the mint, were erased by

King Louis XVIII Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. He spent twenty-three years in e ...

. Counting medals struck in England and Italy, the total number of different medals exceeds 2,000. The sizes of these medals vary, although most are approximately 40mm in diameter. Many were struck in copper, although silver and gold were also used. The copper medals have a

patina Patina ( or ) is a thin layer that variously forms on the surface of copper, brass, bronze and similar metals and metal alloys (tarnish produced by oxidation or other chemical processes) or certain stones and wooden furniture (sheen produced b ...

applied, which protects the copper from eroding and makes the medal look like bronze. A single copy of most of the medals was struck in gold for Napoleon's personal collection. Many of these gold medals were sold at auction from the personal collection of Victor Bonaparte. The most definitive catalog of Napoleonic medals was created by a collector named Bramsen in three volumes published between 1904 and 1913. This catalog identifies more than 2300 medals, including medals struck by the Paris Mint and as well as medals from other countries related to Napoleon or his reign. The most common type, known as the

St. Helena Medal The Saint Helena Medal (french: Médaille de Sainte-Hélène) was the first French campaign medal. It was established in 1857 by a decree of emperor Napoleon III to recognise participation in the campaigns led by emperor Napoleon I. Emperor ...

, was issued to French grognards who rallied to Napoleon's cause during the

Hundred Days The Hundred Days (french: les Cent-Jours ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition, marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration ...

.Illustrated Times, page 186
/ref> There are at least 26 known volumes of ''The Napoleon Medals'' by Edward Edwards. Most copies are in Museums but some are held in private hands. It is a complete series of the medals struck in France, Italy, Great Britain and Germany, from the commencement of the French Republic in 1804 to the restoration in 1815. The books were printed in (M.DCCC.XXXV11) (1837) by Henry Hering, London. Many of the medals struck during Napoleon's reign were restruck later from the same dies. Determining when a given medal was struck is sometimes difficult. Restrikes can often be identified by a punch mark applied to the edge of the medal, which is usually denoted by the word 'BRONZE'.

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Exonumia First French Empire Orders, decorations, and medals of France {{France-hist-stub