Good afternoon fellow collectors, Today I bought this circulated token that I allready owned in uncirculated condition. This token was minted in 1910 by S. Þorvardsson and good for one loaf of bread in the town of Hnifsdalur. Tokens from Iceland from the late 1800´s to the early 1900´s are hard to find uncerculated condition but in this instance the premium falls to the cerculated one. Some years ago a bag full of these token was found all uncerculated. Siggi
Yeah Siggi, that's odd how in some instances a circulated piece is worth more than an unc. I like your token very much. I've seen and owned a number of U.S. trade tokens that we refer to as "good-fors". Good for a loaf of bread, a free drink, a quart of milk etc. A lot of these were issued during the middle and late years of the 19th Century, and are very collectible. Civil War pieces are especially desireable. I love youe coins, tokens, and the great pictures Siggi. Thanks for posting them. Bruce
Thanks Bruce, I simply just love these tokens. And I seem to have more interest in tokens than coins. I have seen some very beautiful US tokens and some as you say are very collectible. This collection I consider a life time collection as they are so rare and seldom come up for auction. Siggi
I'm very interested in tokens as well Siggi. My main collecting interest is in counterstamped coins (these are considered tokens). I also collect U.S. Half Cents and obsolete and Civil War currency. Have you come across any counterstamps in your collecting endeavors, or do you have an interest in them? Bruce
I have only seen one counterstamped coin from the US in my hands, My main focus has been with Icelandic tokens and my knowlidge of us tokens is limited but I´m always willing to explore new things
The counterstamps appeal to me Siggi because of the history behind them. I do a lot of research on unattributed pieces in an attempt to assign them to a particular issuer and historic period. I suppose I carry it to extremes because I'm not satisfied until I've found out as much as possible about the issuer, including his family history, his occupation, and anything else about him, his family, and his life experiences. It's difficult when the person lived a century or more ago, but I do the best I can. I can hold an example of a centuries old counterstamp in my hand and really feel as though I "know" him...at least that's my goal. I have several research projects in my files that I've been working on for 7 or 8 years, but still feel I haven't found out enough about them to close the investigation. I never give up on something I've started until I'm satisfied that I've exhausted all my options. I've actually had 4 punches made over the years for the purpose of stamping my own personal pieces...one example is my avatar. I send these to those I correspond with in the hobby as a way of saying hello. If your interested in them, I'd be more than happy to send some examples to you at no charge. Pleas send me a pm with an address and I'll get them to you. Again Siggi, I love your token. Bruce
Bruce, I applaud your inthusiasm. We all love collecting for different reasons but for me it has always been history first. Most tokens from Iceland have been well documented but there are storys and rumors of tokens that have never been seen. Just last year one came up actually on this site. Wich is very funny and ended up in our central bank museum. It was a token not know to exist before. I would love some samples and I will contact you tomorrow. I will find something to send you from my history I´ll be in touch tomorrow it´s time to head to bed. Siggi
