Leonard Charles Wyon
Born 23 November 1826
Died 20 August 1891
Active: 1843 - 1879
Country of birth and death: England
Medallist, modeller, die engraver
Born at the Royal Mint, London. He was the second of the five children of William Wyon (1795–1851), Chief Engraver of the mint. He learned the art of die-engraving under his father and then studied at the Royal Academy Schools from 1844. In the same year he was appointed second, or probationer, engraver at the mint under his father. Upon William Wyon's death, as result of reorganisation at the royal Mint Leonard did not, as expected, succeed his father as Chief Engraver. Instead the salaried post of modeller and engraver to the Royal Mint was created for him. Leonard Wyon inherited his father's dies of medals for a wide range of institutions, and he continued to produce medals on their behalf. He also took over the production of punches for the Goldsmiths' Company from his father. Over the next few decades he became the leading die-engraver of the time. Wyon died at his home, 54 Hamilton Terrace, St John's Wood.
Wealth at death: £65,559 1s. 5d.
Probate date: January 1892
Works
Dates are usually the year a work was exhibited so may differ from date of production.
New entries have been made each time a work was exhibited. Click here for more information.
Case of Medals
The catalogue entry gives the creator as 'L. Wyon'; it has been presumed this was a posthumous showing of medals by Leonard Charles Wyon [see also Birmingham (1908)]
Locations
Address Royal Mint Tower Hill London | View on map
1843 - 1851
Address 22 Bloomfield Road London | View on map
1854 - 1855
Address 54 Hamilton Terrace St. John's Wood London | View on map
1856 - 1860
Exhibitions, Meetings, Awards and other Events
Exhibited at The International Exhibition, London, 1862
'Specimens of Medals'
Exhibited at The Forty-Third Spring Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists), 1908
'Case of Medals'
Exhibited at The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts (Summer Exhibition), 1768-
1843 - 1860
Exhibited 13 times (7 times prior to 1851), twenty-three works in all (medals and possibly some portraits).
Participant in Turner Fund (Royal Academy of Arts), 1856-1951
1896
Responsible for making Turner Fund medal.
Personal and Professional Connections
Assistant was Thomas J. Minton
1865
Forrer notes that Minton was resident engraver at the Royal Mint, London, from 1865 to 1879 when the post was abolished. (Previous post-holders were James Wyon (1851-60) and George Wyon (1860-62)). Minton acted as an assistant to Leonard Charles Wyon. See vol. 6, (1916), p. 593 and vol. 8, (1930), pp. 65-66
Descriptions of Practice
Listed as medallist Biographical Dictionary of Medallists, Coin, Gem, and Seal-Engravers, Mint Masters, &c., Ancient and Modern with References to their Works, B.C. 500 - A.D. 1900, Volume VI, 1916 Biographical Dictionary of Medallists
Listed as the eldest son of William Wyon (1795-1851) and trained as a die-sinking under his father. Active as a medallist from c. 1843. He was Second Engraver to the Royal Mint in 1843, and suceeded his father as Chief Engraver in 1851. Forrer adds that 'he also succeeded his father as Engraver to the Goldsmiths' Company and was subsequently appointed Engraver to the Assay Offices of Birmingham and Sheffield.' Wyon executed the dies for 'most of' the British military and naval medals issued between 1851 and 1891. Wyon 'also prepared some of the designs and engraved the dies for many coins of the British Empire - Imperial, Indian, and Overseas Dominions - and some for foreign countries. In addition he designed and engraved the dies for a large number of pattern coins and public and private medals.' Forrer gives a detailed account of Wyons medallic productions including his coins for currency for the Melbourne Mint, Sydney Mint, British East Africa, British Guiana, British Guiana and West Indies, British Honduras, British Imperial, British India, Canada, Ceylon, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Jamaica, Jersey, Malta, Mauritius, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Straits Settlements, etc. Forrer also lists Wyon's Pattern Coins, and states that 'Leonard Cure Wyon prepared many patterns for coins either from his own designs or other atrists' models'. Finally Forrer lists 'Foreign Coins' for which Wyon enraved the dies. Forrer notes that Wyon's collection of coins, medals, dies of wax models for coins were sold at Soethby's, London, on the 12 and 13 of Decemeber, 1901, and on the 18 July, 1902. Forrer provides a large bibliography for the artist. See vol. 6, (1916), pp. 592-631.
Listed as medallist Biographical Dictionary of Medallists, Coin, Gem, and Seal-Engravers, Mint Masters, &c., Ancient and Modern with References to their Works, B.C. 500 - A.D. 1900, Volume VIII, 1930 Biographical Dictionary of Medallists
Forrer lists numerous medallic works that were exhibited at the Royal Academy, London, between 1843 and 1860. See vol. 8, (1930), p. 299.
Sources
International exhibition 1862, official catalogue, fine art department
1862
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
2004
Philip Attwood, ‘Wyon, Leonard Charles (1826–1891)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/30170, accessed 5 Feb 2010]
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Forty-Third Spring Exhibition at the Rooms of the Society, New Street, 1908 Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
1908
p. 80. N.B. The name given in the catalogue is 'L. Wyon'. As there is no trace of an L. Wyon in the Census Returns of the period, it is assumed this was a posthumous showing of work by Leonard Charles Wyon
Citing this record
'Leonard Charles Wyon', Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, University of Glasgow History of Art and HATII, online database 2011 [http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/person.php?id=msib4_1240311740, accessed 16 May 2022]
