Attractive winner’s medal issued for the Rome 1960 Summer Olympics. Gilt silver, 69 mm, 102 gm, by Giuseppe Cassioli. The front depicts a victorious athlete being carried by a jubilant crowd; the reverse, inscribed, "Giochi Della XVII Olimpiade Roma MCMLX," features a 'Seated Victory' with the Colosseum in the background. This beautiful specimen is housed in its cast bronze olive leaf wreath bezel, which is engraved “Ginnastica [Gymnastics].” The medal bears some slight rubbing and fading to gilt.
Among the 26 gold medals issued between the men’s and women’s gymnastics events at the 1960 Summer Olympics, the gymnasts of the Soviet Union accounted for 15 of them. Simply put: the Soviet Union teams dominated the XVII Olympiad, accruing 26 medals across all events, 10 of which resulted in gold. An exceptional top prize medal from an iconic Summer Games—the most famous gold medalist was, of course, the young boxer Cassius Clay, who finished first in the light heavyweight division.
