John REICH and the Coinage of 1807
In 1807, the designs on U.S. coins underwent dramatic changes, done by order of Mint Director Robert Patterson. The chief engraver at that time was Robert Scot, in office since late November 1793, but Patterson went to some lengths to get another engraver, John Reich, to do his bidding.
Reich was born in Furth, Bavaria (now part of Germany), in August 1767, the son of a distinguished engraver, Johann Christian Reich. The infant child was christened Johann Matthäus Reich but after coming to America Anglicized his name, as did many people from Germany, to John Reich.
The younger Reich grew up at his father’s side and learned his engraving skills first-hand. The two sometimes collaborated on medallic commissions, but most of the work signed “Reich” and produced in Bavaria was done by Johann Christian Reich.
Even though Johann Matthäus Reich was a talented engraver by the age of 20 in 1787, there was only limited work available to him in Bavaria over the next decade. The younger Reich eventually decided that his fortune would be found in the New World. In May 1800, he signed on at Hamburg as an indentured servant for a voyage to America, meaning that the captain had the right to sell his services in the United States in order to pay for the trip.
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