Hi, A friend of mine has this coin that nobody can tell him what it is....so I thought I would help him. It looks Roman to me but I dont know....... Anybody have any ideas???? I've looked all over the web and havent found one like it. He said there was one on the cover of Lost Treasure about 5yrs ago, but I went to their site and looked at all the back issues and didnt see it.
It does not look Roman to me. Roman coins have two different images on the two different sides. The cross and orb is a medieval symbol, though it appears in other contexts, also. The coin appears to be brass, is that right? It is not a gold coin is it? Very few genuine medieval coins are copper. Silver was the mainstay for commerce above barter. Gold was used between kings and emperors. Gold coins in general tend to display two different images: ruler and shield, Madonna with Child and coat of arms, etc. So, it is pretty easy to rule out the likely choices, though it could be an exception. If it is not a valid exception, then it is a fake. How did your friend come upon the coin? That could be an indication of its origin.
I may be mistaken - but am pretty sure I have seen these coins before. I want to say it is from Spain - the design and the florets look awful familiar. But I'm danged if I can recall what it is and I don't have any books for this period except for gold
He says he bought 3 of them and has sold the other 2. It is very thin and is either brass,copper, or bronze(?)
I don't think that it is a coin at all, but a reckoning counter (Rechenpfennig / jeton). Although I am a keen collector of jetons....not that particular type, so my knowledge of that particular type is very limited indeed. Here's a jeton by Hans Krauwinkel. Note the similarities in design obverse. It's a later version of the one shown which is (I suspect) early 1500's and German in origin. Sorry i can't help further, but i suspect the original posters search should include a google search on `jetons' or `rechenpfennig'
Thanks for the info guys. Ian.......the pic you posted has some of the same symbols.....so its got to be close. One question.......what is a reckoning counter?????? I will do a search on `jetons' or `rechenpfennig' and see what I can come up with.
These pieces (jeton, jetton, rechenpfennig, reckoning counter /token) are all one and the same thing, just called different things in different countries. Their actual `history' commenced in ancient Greece where a small piece of metal replaced the use of stones in performing calculations. This method was later used by the Romans and where they went so did the use of the `reckoning counter' skipping a few centuries, in mediaeval europe prior to the adoption of the arabic numerals we are so used to today, `jetons' (from the french verb jeter = `to throw') were moved around a `reckoning board' by merchants and bankers when performing financial calculations (additions / subtractions / multiplications) much like the beads on an abacus is. Hence the final tally (or `reckoning') would be the amount owing subsequent to purchases made or monies borrowed or whatever..... These pieces of metal had no intrinsic value of themselves but usually were made to look quasi `official' given that they did have some significance to their users. There is much much more to the whole subject of `jetons' but as your particular interest is focused on the use as a `counter' I think I have probably said enough to help answer your question for you. Ian
Thanks again Ian. I had just done a search on them and then saw your reply. Very interesting. Do these things have any value? I figure my friends wouldnt be worth that much due to its condition.......especially compared to the pic of the one you posted.
They are collected, but it isn't one of the mainstream collecting interests. as such an item like yours which is at least five hundred years old will often pass unnoticed basically because no-one has a scooby as to what it is, and what it represents. I hate to say it, but in light of all that, unless you can use some very inventive and convincing marketing you wouldn't be able to sell it for much. To a collector it might be worth between $5 -$10. With a little bit of spiel as to history and `wow' factor...who knows who (or what) you can hook on that kind of baited line........ ;-) Ian
Hi Zeke This is a reckoning counter made in Nuremberg (Germany) in the 15th century by an anonymous master. Freek
I'm a collector of Nuremberg-reckoningcounters (rechenpfennig) and have a lot of books about it, so when I can help anybody with determination so mail to groenendijk.f@planet.nl Freek Groenendijk The Netherlands
