The engraved inscription to this gold box reads: A Common Council holden in the Chamber of the Guildhall of the City of London on Thursday the 7th day of April 1864 resolved that the honorary freedom of this city be presented to General Giuseppe Garibaldi on the occasion of his visit to this country as a tribute of respect to the most generous, brave and disinterested of patriots.
Fuelled by the first international media coverage made possible by the telegraph, the visit of the Italian general, politician and nationalist Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-82) aroused huge interest in Victorian England.
The crowds that greeted him at Vauxhall were so enormous that he required six hours to reach his lodgings on the Mall. His speech at Crystal Palace drew 25,000 supporters. A biscuit was named in his honour.