This small series from Chris Duane’s Silver Shield Group (members only release) takes a look at a few National Monuments from around America and seeks to expose some of the underlying reality behind the monuments. Hence the name Monumental Truth. The detail in these strikes is great, there is even writing on the liberty bell that I didn’t even know was there until I was looking at the close up photo’s. Awesome work from Silver Shield on these strikes.
The three monuments covered in this series are - The Iwo Jima statue of the marines taking Mt Suribachi, The Abraham Lincoln Monument and the Liberty Bell.
2017 1 oz Proof - War Is A Racket - 777 mintage.
“I served in all commissioned ranks from second Lieutenant to Major General. And during that period, I spent most of my time being a high-class muscle man for big business, for Wall Street and the Bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for capitalism.” - Smedley Butler.
“Holland (regarding Holland Smith), the raising of that flag on Suribachi means a Marine Corps for the next five hundred years.” James Forrestal
This monument has a special meaning for Chris Duane, as it was influential in Chris joining the Marines. He actually received his Eagle Globe and Anchor pin in front of this statue.
Chris came to the realisation of the armies role in the scheme of things a couple of years after leaving the Marines. This strike now resembles Chris’s current view of the armies role depicted in this monument. The detail in the coin looks great, right down to the clothes the soldiers are wearing.
“War is a racket. It always has been ... A few profit - and the many pay. But there is a way to stop it. You cant end it by disarmament conferences. You can’t eliminate it by peace parlays at Geneva. Well-meaning but impractical groups can’t wipe it out by resolutions. It can be smashed effectively only by taking the profit out of war.” Smedley Butler.
2017 - 1 oz Proof - Federal Tyrant - 600 mintage.
This is the second strike in the series. It features the Abraham Lincoln memorial and the strike call into question some of the things that Lincoln allowed, which helped lead to todays Federal Tyranny.
He was instrumental in destroying states rights. He was involved in silencing the press and his oppositions and also committed the bloodiest America War ever, for the sole purpose of establishing a federal tyranny. The memorial even has the fasces of the Fascist Axe on the arms of his chair.
To quote Chris Duane “The deification of Lincoln happened almost immediately after his assassination. Lincoln is the saint of the Federal Collectivists who use Lincoln as an example of the need to silence the press, run up debts, and if necessary, commit genocide to stop any decentralised power of the states.”
2017 - 1 oz Proof - Liberty Bell - 550 mintage.
This is the final design in the series (not sure if Chris will add to it in the future, which is all to likely) and takes a look at the Philadelphia Liberty Bell. It takes a look at the definition of liberty versus freedom. The design is great, and the detail on the bell is extraordinary. I didn’t even realise the writing on the bell was legible until I looked at the close up photo’s. Although I am not sure, this may just be a sign of age on my behalf, maybe I need to invest in glasses?
Most of us, without putting a huge degree of thought into it, would associate liberty as freedom. We send soldiers to war to fight for liberty (often phrased as freedom) but in reality, liberty is a type of freedom GRANTED to us from a higher power. Usually those in power that grant liberty are above liberty (as they are the ones granting it) and actually enjoy freedom themselves.
So while soldiers die for liberty, they are actually laying their lives on the line for some Powers That Be, to enjoy complete freedom themselves. We all need to realise that liberty is not the same as freedom, and that if we look inside, we can shun the liberty GRANTED to us but instead enjoy personal freedom in our lives.
“Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.” Carl Jung
I really liked the finish on these strikes, the designs were clean and the sculpts had great detail. The clean design also lends itself to the mirror proof finish. I hope you enjoyed this look at some great American Monuments through the eyes of Silver Shield. Stay tuned for more upcoming Silver Shield Showcases.
