Let's see your exonumia!

Good information, Jeff, but I'd like to see a clear picture from the poster. Merely quoting a source or saying it matches "exactly" isn't good enough for me. During many years of researching counterstamps, including silversmiths, I've found many examples of misinformation, even from experts. Something to think about, though. Thanks, my friend.

Bruce

 

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L.Lochet counterstamped 1862 Dix centimes Napoleon III

 

I agree. Until we see the goods it is just compelling speculation.

I did find a photo of a silver spoon with an RF mark but it was slightly different and the owner speculated that it was either Rufus or another silversmith.

 

Hi Bruce ... I can only make a guess that George used this half cent as a nameplate of sorts. Perhaps, this coin was attached to George's tool box? I'm unable to make out the figure of sorts in the tiny square punch. This appears to be a touchmark; these, used to impress prospective silverware buyers by suggesting quality comparable to European silverware.

 

Nickle wrapper fail

 

Alaska turned 59 this year.

this one is 2.5" dia

 

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Centennial 1973. About the size of a US silver dollar

 

Go fish (Faroe Islands token)

 

Magdalen Island token

 

And #50. Tough times on The Big Isle these days

 

I'm just beginning to carefully look through the years of the EXONUMIA postings. And I realize your posting of the Steiner Tea & Coffee Merchants token is years old. Has anyone ever inquired about the meaning of the Q within a six-pointed star mark? To what do you attribute it's meaning?

 

Almost a century later, but the more things change, the more they stay the same…

Reminds me of lyrics from a '60s satirical protest song...
“Look sharp, feel sharp, be sharp…
file your head to a point!”

 

Picked this up in Assisi, Italy a while back.

 

I've always been very interested in the Stiner tokens, Sam, and the meaning of not only the letters in the Star of David, but also the date 1840. I've never researched an issue for as long and hard as I did this one. I've answered some of the questions, but unfortunately the meaning of the letters are still unknown to me.

The Stiner Brothers...Jacob and Joseph...were actually half brothers who came to this country in 1855 from the West Indies. They were Bohemian by birth, but apparently were involved in the tea and coffee trade in the Indies.

The first mystery was how could their company have been "established in 1840" if they didn't arrive here until 1855? The Stiners were long associated with the "New York & China Tea Co." which was founded by an Englishman named Edward Christianson in about 1840. Apparently, they acquired control of the company early upon their arrival in New York. I could only trace Christianson back to 1841, but there's no question the Stiner's use of the date 1840 refers to the establishment of that company, and by inference, theirs.

The letters are interesting. After tracing them for a long period of time, I found that no letter from A to N was ever stamped on a token. All were in the range of O to Y. I've never seen an X or Z, so these two probably weren't used.That leaves only 10 available letters. Some have opined that each letter represented one of Stiner's branch stores. The fact is that the company had many times that number of outlets, so that scenario is wrong. To put it simply, the Stiners were the Starbucks of 19th Century New York. Other than the fact that they were Jewish and the reason for the use of the Star of David is obvious, the letter designations are still a mystery.

The fractions 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, and the number 1 refer to units of coffee in pounds. In those times, coffee was packaged in these increments of weight. Apparently, possessing one of their tokens entitled the bearer to a free package of the size indicated. Just as a note of interest, coffee sold for about a dollar a pound back them. This accounts for why the two larger denomination tokens are rarely seen...not many were issued. I've only documented two 3/4 tokens (letters P and S) and 3 1 pound tokens ( letters O, U, and W). The 1/4 and 1/2 denominations are fairly common.

So the long and short of it, Sam, is I have no ides what the letters represent. LOL I've attached photos for those who have never seen a Stiner token. The obverse image is generic to the whole series. I do still search the internet for new information, but haven't come up with anything in some time.

Bruce

 

Nice coffee token Bruce, good for you! I got a couple of gold fractional tokens back from ANACS so I was excited about one grade, not so much about the other but here goes. First a couple of my favorites that aren't gold but I still like them a lot. The baby food token by Heinz, I think it's Canadian but I may be wrong. Then there's my tomato picker token with one of the best pictorials money can buy. That's also why I like the baby token, great pictorial! Last one isn't graded yet but I had it scanned, so I'll probably just leave it alone. Cheers!

 

Thanks, fretboard. You have a nice set of tokens there. I agree, the baby pictorial is special, and the high relief strike is exceptional. Thanks for showing them.

Bruce