John Roettiers

John Roettiers (July 4, 1631 - 1703) was a celebrated British engraver and medallist.

Roettiers was the oldest son of Philip Roettiers, a goldsmith of Antwerp. He took up the profession of stonecutter and medallist, with his earliest known productions being dated 1658 and 1660. In 1661 Charles II of England invited Roettiers and his brother Joseph (and subsequently a third brother Philip) to join the British Royal Mint, and by 1662 Roettiers was one of the mint's chief engravers. He produced many important medals throughout the reign of Charles II, including a new Great Seal in 1666-1667. He also produced the official coronation medals of James II of England (1685) and William and Mary (1689). He died in 1703 and was buried in the Tower.

Roettiers was widely credited as one of the best engravers ever employed at the English mint. John Evelyn termed him "that excellent engraver... who emulates even the ancients in stone and metal" (Diary, July 20, 1678), and Samuel Pepys declared his medals to be "some of the finest pieces of work, in embossed work, that I ever did see in my life" (Diary, March 26, 1666).

His sons James Roettiers (1663-1698) and Norbert Roettiers (1665-1727) were also famed engravers and medallists both in England and in France.

References

Dictionary of National Biography, ed. Leslie Stephen, Smith, Elder, vol. XLIX, pp. 98 et seriatim, 1901.

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