One Penny with T.K.S.H.T.W.S.S what is it????

I have a coin/token my father gave me before he passed away and have no idea where it's from, no indication of country, or whether it's a coin/token even though it has One Penny on one side and the letters T.K.S.H.T.W.S.S. in a circle on the other with no indication of which is the first letter.

See attached picture.

Appreciate any help you can give.

 

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Looks like a gaming machine token ! might well be wrong though LOL

De Orc

 

You have a Freemason or Masonic Penny. Most carry a bit more info than yours does.
Here's a couple...
http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/masonicmuseum/chapter_penny_alex_daniels.htm

 

It's possible that it is a Masonic token of the York Rite.

Of course it's also possible that the person who posted that information doesn't know what he is talking about.

 

I have a similar one from the Darius royal arch chapter #294. It is probably from some group like the Masons...

Charlie

 

Apologies for reviving an old post, but some may find this info of interest. These pieces are known as Masonic Chapter Pennies. The OP's is the most common type of Mark Penny, which has the obverse divided into three spaces by two circles. Normally the outer space will display the name, number and location of the Chapter, the middle space typically displays an inscription stating when the charter was granted (not when the token was made), while the inner space consists of the words "ONE / PENNY" in two lines.

The reverse of this type displays a keystone with the letters H.T.W.S.S.T.K.S. arranged in a circle.These letters represent the "mark" of the Ancient Grand Master.

Since your Penny does not have all of the identification that would normally appear, it was likely used by a Chapter that had not yet adopted a special Mark Penny, Shekel, or Token that would bear the name, number, location, etc. These generic Pennies are known as stock Pennies, and there are many variations.


"US$0.01 is one cent. There's no such thing as a United States "Penny"."

While not a government issue, this is certainly a Penny that was made in the United States (as are the Shekels). U.S. Exonumia has a wide range of oddball denominations likely not familiar to regular coinage collectors, such as the 87 and one half cent token, a 6 and one quarter cent, two and half cents, one dollar and fifteen cents, etc.

 

There's a whole website on these that I posted in another related thread.

Aidan.

 

I too have a coin much like yours. My coin however has a coffin or casket on the back with AL JF 3000 on it. I think that I have learned that it is a Mason token, but I have no idea what the symbols mean.

If you know anything please email me back.

Thank you,

Patti Cuneo

 

Hello Patti, and welcome to Coin Talk.

There were hundreds of dies used to produce these tokens, so it would be difficult to know exactly which symbols are on your token without some additional information. Pictures would be most helpful, or at least as detailed a description as possible.

 

Patti Cuneo:
Welcome, and try for the pictures.

 

"Hiram The Widows Son Sent To King Solomon"

 

Coin that i got

Hey people
I got coin, and I don’t know anything about it, could somebody give me some info what does it mean, to whom it probably belonged?
Sorry for the bad quality of the pics, hopefully you will manage to see the most important details on them. One side has letters: H T W S S T K S and on the other side, there is sun and balances and "one penny". I was trying to find in internet what these signs mean, but could not find anything, unfortunately!
Thanks!

 

Hi elisabeth welcome to the forum, can I refer you to CW post some 6 back, He give a very good reply to your question :smile

 

Thank you!
I read these before...
but the fact is that my coin has sun and balances in it. but the most strange fact is that i found it in very small town in NM state....
and it looks very old! and could you please tell me what is the value of it? I mean, is it really [FONT='Calibri','sans-serif']valuable [/FONT]thing or it is jus piece of metal?
And that it doesn’t have the date on it, probably it may be older then ones that are dated?
Thanks again!

 

As to value, sorry but I have no idea, hopefully CW will be back around before to long and he might be able to give you more info on yours. It could well be that different chapters issued there own tokens with differing designs on them :smile sort of like world coins LOL

 

As I see this CW is real professional in this field
Ok lets wait for him....:goof:
Hopefully it wont take long time till he finds free time for us.......
Liz

 

Just wanted chime in, but as many know it is a Masonic Lodge coin and the inscription which reads, H T W S S T K S stands for:
(H)iram (T)he (W)idows (S)on (S)ent (T)o (K)ing (S)olomon. The odd shaped design is infact a special (KEYSTONE) used to complete arches.

Hiram Abiff was a key player in King Solomon's first temple.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiram_Abiff

The coins are very collectable (several are listed every week in the classified of Masonic Periodicals) but alas not worth a great deal, $1-$5 dollars depending on who is willing to pay the most.

Take Care
Ben

 

Thanks Ben much appreciated :hail:

 

Thank a lot!
I considered the finding of this coin as a kind of mystery, but as it seems... it is just (may be inordinary, but) though COIN
I never interested in masons, but all the time my destiny, it gives me signs (or i dont know even how to call them) and all of them are related to these masons, o my god!!!!! and now this coin ....... may be it doesnt have merchant value, but it is something different for me........and the strange things always happen to meeee, but this is not the forum where I should share this
Ok
Thanks to all of you!

 

The meaning of your coin.

I'm new to this board (Today) but I have an answer and some advise.

The coin you possess is a Masonic token. Your father gave it to you in hopes that you would make inquires as to its meaning. Now for the lettering on the coin. Start at 12 oclock. should read H.T.W.S.S.T.K.S. The meaning of these letters are elsewhere on the internet. I will not repeat them here. The fact that this is one a one cent copper coin is also meaningful. That was the daily wage of a stone mason. The shape of the impression on this same side is also meaningful. We as masons are taught to make sure all angles are square. You'll see that there are no square angles on this piece of stone. So it was rejected by the builder. This stone was used by our God to be the keystone the supported entrance to Soloman's Temple.( Or the cornerstone)
The coin is carried as a reminder of the obligations to each other, family and man. Dividing our daily time between our God, our Family, and our trade.

You are a very fortunate man to be give this token by your father. May it help guide your ways.

God Bless and peace be with you.

Papadean