Historic medal donated to Wick museum
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A BRONZE medal from the 19th century was donated by local journalist David G Scott to Wick Heritage Museum and will be on show during the forthcoming open day on January 2.
David bought the medal at Cashpoint Auctions in the town for £19 and thought it would make a good addition to the museum's collection.
"I thought it might have gone for quite a bit more as I did some research and found the same medals selling for around £70 in online auctions" he said. `
"It's a lovely object and I held on to it for a few months before deciding to donate it to the museum. I actually thought they'd already have one so was surprised when I learned that they didn't."
The bronze medal was created by Kirkwood & Son for the Caithness Industrial Exhibition held in Wick in March 1868.
One side shows a laurel wreath surrounded by lettering and the date while the other side shows a female figure representing Industry.
According to local historian Harry Gray, the medal was related to an exhibition that was held in the Temperance Hall that once existed in Louisburgh Street.
"Wick had a very high opinion of itself at that time," he said.
"When they had the Great Exhibition of 1851 in the Crystal Palace, there were folk here who thought, 'if they can do that in London then we can do it here in Wick'."
Mr Gray said there was a series of similar "Great Exhibitions" held in Wick and Thurso throughout the 19th century.
The date of the medal, 1868, was also the year when Robert Louis Stevenson stayed in Wick while his uncle, Alan Stevenson, a lighthouse engineer, was overseeing the construction of Noss Head lighthouse, which opened in 1869.
Perhaps the great novelist may have visited the exhibition in Louisburgh Street and even handled the medal...
Ian Leith, chairman of the Wick Society, the voluntary group that runs Wick Heritage Museum, said: "This is a valuable addition to our collection and we're always pleased to receive donations like this."
The medal will be on show in a display case near the entrance to the museum.
On the open day, January 2, the museum will be free to visit between 10am and 4pm.
