Allan Wyon (1843–1907) was an English medallist and seal-engraver. John Forrest bookplate

Life

He was the son of Benjamin Wyon, and the younger brother of Joseph Shepherd Wyon and Alfred Benjamin Wyon. He went into the family arts, and for a time supported his brother Joseph in medal-work. From 1884 till his death he carried on in London the business of the Wyon firm of medallists and engravers founded by his grandfather, Thomas Wyon the elder. From 1884 to 1901 Wyon held the post of engraver of the royal seals, a post that had been successively held by his father and his two elder brothers. He was a fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

(elected 1889) and of the

Numismatic Society of London The Royal Numismatic Society (RNS) is a learned society and charity based in London, United Kingdom which promotes research into all branches of numismatics. Its patron was Queen Elizabeth II. Membership Foremost collectors and researchers, bo ...

(elected 1885), and was at one time treasurer and vice-president of the

British Archæological Association The British Archaeological Association (BAA) was founded in 1843 and aims to inspire, support and disseminate high quality research in the fields of Western archaeology, art and architecture, primarily of the mediaeval period, through lectures, con ...

. His medal designs included the

Jenner Medal of the Royal Society of Medicine The Jenner Medal of the Royal Society of Medicine, formerly known as the Jenner Memorial Medal or the Jenner Medal of the Epidemiological Society of London, is awarded from time to time by the Royal Society of Medicine (RSM), London, at the recom ...

. Wyon died at Hampstead on 25 January 1907.

Works

Wyon made the episcopal seals for the archbishops of Canterbury and York; the seal for the secretary of Scotland in 1889, and the

Great Seal of Ireland The Great Seal of Ireland was the Seal (emblem), seal used until 1922 by the Dublin Castle administration to authenticate important state documents in Ireland, in the same manner as the Great Seal of the Realm in England. The Great Seal of Irela ...

in 1890. The great seal of Queen Victoria of 1899 was not his, but the work of

George William de Saulles George William de Saulles (4 February 1862 – 21 July 1903) was a British medallist. He designed the obverse of coins of the United Kingdom and its colonies under Queen Victoria and King Edward VII. Life He was born on 4 February 1862 at Villa S ...

. Among Wyon's medals were: *

Sir Joseph Whitworth Sir Joseph Whitworth, 1st Baronet (21 December 1803 – 22 January 1887) was an English engineer, entrepreneur, inventor and philanthropist. In 1841, he devised the British Standard Whitworth system, which created an accepted standard for scre ...

(commemorating the Whitworth scholarships founded 1868); * the Royal Jubilee medal of 1887; *

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

(Royal Society medal, first awarded 1890); *

Max Müller Friedrich Max Müller (; 6 December 1823 – 28 October 1900) was a German-born British comparative philologist and oriental studies, Orientalist. He was one of the founders of the Western academic disciplines of Indology and religious s ...

, circ. 1902. He signed in full as "Allan Wyon". Wyon also compiled and published ''The Great Seals of England'' (1887, with 55 plates), a work begun by his brother Alfred.

Family

Wyon married in 1880 Harriet, daughter of G. W. Gairdner of Hampstead, and had three daughters and two sons; the elder son was Allan G. Wyon, and the younger was Guy Alfred Wyon.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Wyon, Allan 1843 births 1907 deaths English medallists English engravers Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London