1039

Lower Canada, copper blacksmith imitation of a Tiffin half penny token, 1820, bust / seated Commerce

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / World Coins - World (A-G) Start Price:400.00 USD Estimated At:400.00 - 600.00 USD
Lower Canada, copper blacksmith imitation of a Tiffin half penny token, 1820, bust / seated Commerce
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Lower Canada, copper blacksmith imitation of a Tiffin half penny token, 1820, bust / seated Commerce, turned axis, extremely rare, ex-Loye, ex-Baker. Breton-1008; Courteau-1; BL-32A1 var. 4.40 grams. Crude VG with areas of dark oxidation and flatness but enough detail on both sides to recognize the type, with just the very top tips of 82 of date slightly visible below Commerce, unlisted variety with axis rotated 90 degrees. Imitation tokens like this were produced by a Montreal blacksmith who intentionally left details unfinished and artificially toned his products to make them look like heavily circulated regal issues. The demand for small coinage was so great that they circulated anyway. Pedigreed to the Warren Baker Collection of Canadian coins and tokens and to the Loye Collection.