The mystery of Lionel Martin's 1922 gold Brooklands medal has finally been solved thanks to Steve Waddingham, Aston Martin company historian, Neil Murray, owner of 'Green Pea' and Andy Bell, pre-war Aston expert.
When I first took possession of the medal I knew it had been awarded to Lionel Martin but little else. I couldn't be sure of the exact date, the driver or the car. Thanks to the above gents those questions have been answered and another piece of Aston history has been confirmed.
The Brooklands race was held on April 29th 1922 and was won by Clive Gallop driving the famous Aston known as 'Bunny'. The usual practice was to make the award to the entrant (Martin) but he may well have passed the medal on to Gallop.
A few weeks later 'Bunny' went on to break 10 World records in one day at Brooklands so my medal represents the day the Aston team got the car running to optimum in preparation for the record attempt.
Gallop was an engineer, racing driver and First World War pilot. He later helped Count Louis Zborowski design and build the real 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'. Ian Fleming later based his children's book on the car. Gallop also helped develop the engine for the famous Blower Bentley.
The medal is 9k gold and was made in Birmingham in 1922 by Elkington and Co.
Thanks to the three gents mentioned we have discovered the true history of this great piece of Aston Martin memorabilia. This proud owner is indebted to them.