The RSWA Medal is an award from the Royal Society of Western Australia, established to honour outstanding work and achievement in science relative to
Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
.
In 1924, the
Royal Society of Western Australia
The Royal Society of Western Australia (RSWA) promotes science in Western Australia.
The RSWA was founded in 1914, and also gained the "Royal" name in the same year. It publishes the ''Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia'', and has ...
decided to commemorate the centenary of the birth (26 June 1824) of
William Thomson,
Lord Kelvin
William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin (26 June 182417 December 1907), was a British mathematician, Mathematical physics, mathematical physicist and engineer. Born in Belfast, he was the Professor of Natural Philosophy (Glasgow), professor of Natur ...
. The event was marked by the creation of the Gold Medal of the Royal Society. The award was established to honour outstanding work and achievement in science relative to
Western Australia
Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
. Miss Enid Isabel Allum, of 7 Richardson Street West Perth was commissioned to design the medal for £5-5-0
honorarium
An honorarium is an '' ex gratia'' payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognizing themself as having any liability or legal obligation to the recipient for their volunteered services, or for services for which fees are not tradition ...
. Miss Allum was a member of the Royal Society of Western Australia, and had previously been Treasurer and Social Committee member. The
Royal Mint at Perth commissioned the firm of Messrs. Stokes & Co, of Melbourne to produce the dye for the medal. In 1924, the inaugural medal was presented to Dr.
William John Hancock. The first three medals were struck in
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
in 1924, 1929, and 1933, and ever since the medals have been struck in
silver
Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
. It is also known as the Kelvin Gold Medal.
In 2013, the RSWA Medal was renamed the RSWA Forrest Medal in honour of Sir
John Forrest
Sir John Forrest (22 August 1847 – 2 SeptemberSome sources give the date as 3 September 1918 1918) was an Australian explorer and politician. He was the first premier of Western Australia (1890–1901) and a long-serving cabinet minister in ...
.
[Recher, H. (1998). A brief history of the Journals, Crests, Medal and Seal of the Royal Society of Western Australia and previous Societies, 1897-1997. Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia. (81): 1-4.]
Recipients of Kelvin Gold Medal
References
{{Reflist
External links
RSWA Medal
Australian science and technology awards
Royal Society of Western Australia