NEW YORK.- Today, on the 250th anniversary of the birth of the Marquis de Lafayette, Sotheby’s announced that it will offer for sale one of the most important relics from George Washington’s life -- his specially commissioned gold medal symbolizing the ideals of the Revolution, which, following his death, was presented by his family to his adoptive son, the Marquis de Lafayette. The medal, in the form of an eagle, represented the values that Washington, Lafayette and their comrades had fought for during the Revolutionary War, and to uphold those values, they formed The Society of the Cincinnati in 1783. Eagle badges, or medals, were presented to all members of the Society, but the design of the present example is unique, being made for Washington to his specification by the engineer and designer of Washington, D.C., Pierre Charles L’Enfant. After Washington’s death in 1799, the medal was passed on to his family who presented it to Lafayette during his triumphal return to the United States in 1824. Lafayette treasured this talisman from his greatest hero, offering it a place of honor in his home for the remainder of his life. This treasure has not been seen on American soil in more than 100 years, since it was showcased at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. Complete with what is almost certainly the original ribbon and red leather presentation box bearing the label: WASHINGTON’S CINCINNATI BADGE, the medal has been consigned by Lafayette’s great-great-granddaughter and is estimated to sell for $4/10 million when it is offered for sale in New York on December 11, 2007.

David Redden, Vice Chairman of Sotheby’s, said, “This medal is a treasure from the age of heroes; one of those magical artifacts that burns through time and transports us to a moment that changed the world forever. Not only is it a precious and unique work of art, but a link between two men who, against the most improbable odds, managed to change the course of history.”

The Washington- Lafayette Order of the Society of the Cincinnati was designed by the noted engineer and architect, Pierre Charles L’Enfant. At the founding of the Society, L’Enfant, who had served under Washington in the Continental Army, was commissioned to design an eagle badge to be presented to the members of the Society.

Washington requested seven eagles of standard design, as gifts for his closest aides. But for himself, he asked L’Enfant for a badge “finished in a masterly manner [and] ornamented in an elegant, tho’ not costly Stile.” The gold and enamel medal is in the form of an eagle, within a surrounding laurel wreath.

Inset into the eagle’s chest is an oval medallion with an abbreviation of the motto: Omnia Reliquit Servare Republicam (He left everything to serve the republic); and on the reverse an abbreviation of: Virtutis Præmium Societas Cincinnatorum Instituta A.D. 1783 (Reward (of) valor The Society of the Cincinnati Founded A.D. 1783). The medal is suspended from what is almost certainly the original blue silk ribbon edged with white, and is housed in a contemporaneous red morocco presentation box lettered in gilt: WASHINGTON’S CINCINNATI BADGE.

In early 1777, at the age of nineteen, The Marquis de Lafayette resigned his place in the French Army and made arrangements to join the nascent American Revolution. He immediately made his mark as an effective soldier and gifted tactician. He played an integral role in the American triumph, including the final victory at the Battle of Yorktown in 1781. However, Lafayette and Washington were more than brothers in arms; they considered themselves father and son; Lafayette being the son that Washington never had. While the austere Washington served as a mentor to several other of his younger aides, it was for Lafayette that he reserved the greatest affection and admiration. Following the victory at the Battle of Yorktown, Lafayette returned to France, with Congress acknowledging his “judgment, vigilance, gallantry,…merits & military talents.” Lafayette departed for France in December 1781 and soon after he took his leave, Washington sent him a poignant letter: “In that moment of our separation upon the road as I traveled, & every hour since – I felt all that love, respect & attachment for you, with which length of years, close connexion & your merits, have inspired me.” Washington died in 1799, with the two men never meeting again. However, they did exchange letters and Lafayette sent his only son, George Washington Lafayette, to live out the French Revolution with the Washingtons. Lafayette made his first return to America since the American Revolution in 1824. He was greeted with great fanfare, touring each of the twenty-four states with much pageantry. It was during this trip that Lafayette was presented with Washington’s own Order of the Society of the Cincinnati. Lafayette justly treasured the badge from the moment he received it, and is shown wearing it in a portrait painted during his visit to Charleston, South Carolina (the portrait currently resides in the Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston).

The Society of the Cincinnati was founded by the officers of the Continental Army in May 1783 to maintain the ideals of the Revolution. It is a hereditary organization whose members have included many distinguished military leaders and civil servants in the history of the country, beginning with twenty-three of the fifty-four signers of the U.S. Constitution. George Washington was elected the first President of the Society; and likewise, Lafayette was the first President of the constituent organization formed in France.