# Honorary Medal Awarded by Frederick Henry to Piet Hein

- By: anonymous
- Date: 1629
- Medium: gold (metal)
- Classification: medal
- Dimensions: diameter 4.9 cm x weight 54.92 g
- Museum: [Rijksmuseum](https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/object/NG-1983-16-A--6cd086fee74793919cd755b42b4b073f)
- Rights: [Public Domain Mark](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/)
- Picture: https://iiif.micr.io/Rurdv/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Tweens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

People who have performed a heroic deed or reached the end of a long career are sometimes awarded a medal as a token of esteem and gratitude. Often these are made of gold. Especially in the seventeenth century, gold medals with their chains were literally a reward. They were subsequently melted down and converted into money, which is why so few have survived.