The Elliot Cresson Medal, made of 24k gold, awarded to Nobel Award-winning physicist Leon Lederman in 1976. The Elliot Cresson Medal, given from 1875 to 1997, was the highest award given by the Franklin Institute and counts Marie Curie and Nikola Tesla, as well as many Nobel Prize winners, among its recipients. Lederman was the sole recipient in 1976 and received the award for his ''experimentation in study of high energy interactions, nuclear forces and particle physics''. A leader in particle physics, Lederman was an early proponent of the Superconducting Super Collider and author of the landmark book ''The God Particle''; he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1988. Medal features a relief portrait of Elliot Cresson, with his name and the founding year. Verso reads: ''FOR DISCOVERY OR ORIGINAL RESEARCH / 1976 / LEON M. LEDERMAN / FIELD OF PARTICLE PHYSICS'' and is framed by the words, ''AWARDED BY THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE OF THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA''. Medal weighs 38 grams or 1.3 ounces, and measures 1.5'' in diameter. Case measures 4'' x 4'' x 1.5''. Some mild discoloration around rim, otherwise in near fine condition. With an LOA from Leon Lederman.