DENMARK Christian VIII (1839-1848) Gold medal. Royal Academy of Engineering and Arts. 37.5 mm. 48.72 g. Smooth edge inscribed "Gaucheraud". Engraved by Christensen. Bare head of the king on the right. R/ Genius laureate, standing frontally, holding a flame in his right hand. At his feet, a lyre. In its original box. Rubbed (hairlines) on right and reverse. Small graffiti on the edge. Slight shock on the scroll. Very rare. Superb condition. Medal awarded to Hippolyte Gaucheraud, tutor to the royal family. Hippolyte Gaucheraud (1800-1874), a man of letters, journalist and educator from the Creuse region of France, received the gold medal awarded by the Royal Academy of Engineering and Arts from Christian VIII as tutor to the children of the King of Denmark. His talents as an educator were recognized by the great families of France and England, who entrusted him with accompanying their children on their Grand Tour of Europe. A close friend of Louis Daguerre, he was the author of a resounding "scoop" published in La Gazette de France on January 6, 1839, the day before the "daguerreotype" was presented to the Académie des Sciences. The same article appeared in London under his byline on January 12 in The Literary Gazette: Hippolyte Gaucheraud was the first to describe the discovery of the daguerreotype, measuring the impact of "this prodigious invention, which baffles all scientific theories on light and optics, and will revolutionize the drawing arts".