The records of the Gold Medal cover the institution of the medal and the conferment of the Honour in subsequent years. They include examples of the medal, the original Declaration of Trust, and subsequent printed version of the declaration, correspondence and newspaper cuttings. However there are not records for all instances of the presentation of the Medal. Researchers are advised to also examine the Council Minutes and the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society (both held in the RAS Collections) when researching concerning the Gold Medal and its recipients.
Sans titreThe Sir Richard Burton Medal – On 12 April 1921 the Council of the RAS agreed to found a Richard Burton memorial lecture in commemoration, that year, of the 100th anniversary of Burton's birth. A fund was established to finance the lecture and by 1923, £60 had been subscribed. It was decided in March 1923 that part of this would be used to fund the Burton Medal. This would be awarded to the person chosen to deliver the lecture, which was to deal with Burton, his travels or some suitable subject of exploration. The presentation and the lecture would take place triennially. The medal was designed in 1924 by Pinches, to be cast in silver and gilded. In practice those chosen to give the Burton lecture were expected to have undertaken exploration and research in the East, and more particularly in close association with local people, or in difficult circumstances.
This archive contains papers pertaining to the inauguration and awarding of the Sir Richard Burton Medal. The Papers includes:
- Correspondence
- Administrative documents
- Printed materials including newspaper articles
- Examples of the Medal
- Photographs