John Gidley (1632-c. 1713)

John Gidley (1632-c. 1713), surgeon, uniface oval bronze portrait medal, 1682, bust right, mantle around shoulders, JOANNES GIDLEY LOND, AD 1682 E S 50, 71 x 58mm (MI 590/268; Brettauer 401). Very fine and extremely rare.

John Gidley was born and baptized in Winkleigh, Devon. He finished his education at Exeter College, Oxford, 1653/54 and gained an M.A. in 1660. He was a Freeman of the City of London and a member of the Barber-Surgeons' Company. His brother Bartholomew was a famous Royalist during the Civil War whist some of his descendants emigrated to Newport, Rhode Island.

Provenance: Bt T. Millett, March 2009.