The bronze medal above was among the many odds and ends we found in my mom’s possessions after her death. You might notice the captions “1 August”, “1° agosto”, and “1er août” and, very faintly, “Huguerin” (if you look closely enough). One of my sharp-witted siblings figured out what it was.
August 1 is Swiss National Day, by tradition the day on which the Swiss Federal Charter were adopted. It’s Switzerland’s founding holiday, their Fourth of July. Huguerin is an old Swiss watchcase and medal-making company, still in operation. We figure that the medallion, rigged up as a badge with a pin on the back, was a commemorative badge of some sort.
We have no idea what its provenance is or the story behind it if any. I do know that my Swiss great-grandfather, Joe Schuler, as well as his sister Agatha were still alive in 1926 and that Agatha visited Switzerland around that time. I have a photo of the two of them together, taken around that time. My guess is that it was a present from Agatha to Joseph but I have no way of verifying that.
