Hi! So I've done some research into the history of this coin and know that it is one of Anna Eva Fay's (thus the cursive AEF. However, I was wondering if anyone knew what language the lettering on the back is, what it means, and if MASCOT has some sort of second, magical meaning. Thanks! *Picture is not mine*
Aha. Wikipedia to the rescue again. Wasn't expecting someone who died 90 years ago. Thought we were discussing some modern celebrity I'd never heard of. Though I suppose it is possible, I'd never have guessed that token to be almost a century old, based on the style. It is quite bizarre. Interesting.
Well, I'm pretty sure it is something related to her. Some websites say these were sold in "Dream Books" and some say they were sold individually at her shows. http://www.themagicdetective.com/2016/12/the-fay-controversy-continues.html
Hmm. Paging @willieboyd2 - maybe he will know something about these, as he's big into the "Egyptian Magic Tokens" of roughly the same era.
Well, now, ain't that somethin'. Tony Fein sold one. I just learned something here. Cool. I'm always happy to file away one more odd piece in the memory banks, so if another turns up later, I can say, "Oh, hang on- I've seen something like this before".
This is the more common "The Fays" token: The Fays Mascot Egyptian Symbols Token Bronze, 32mm,, 6.23gm, irregular shape Obverse: Egyptian figure in center, looks like a jar with wings and a bird's head on top "THE FAYS" / MASCOT Reverse: Small Egyptian hieroglyphic figures "THE FAYS" / MASCOT "The Fays" were spiritualists in the early 20th century. They produced these advertising tokens to promote their performances. Anna Eva Fay (1851-1927) was a spiritualist popular in the late 1800's to the early 1920's. She was one of the most famous and successful mediums and mentalists of her time. She married Henry Melville Fay, another medium, and had a son, John Truesdale Fay. Anna and Henry marriage ended and in 1881 she married David H. Pingree who promoted her shows. Anna later made money by answering letters by mail. She retired in 1924 and died in 1927.
There were two Fays, Anna Eva Fay and her daughter-in-law Eva Fay, and they both issued tokens. Here's an article with a photograph of Anna Eva Fay: http://www.themagicdetective.com/2016/12/the-fay-controversy-continues.html There is a third Fay token here: http://tokencatalog.com/token_recor...467&inventory_id=244815&attribution_id=289956 As to the OP's question on the meaning of the symbols, I can not find anything that would answer the question.
There is one of these up on eBay right now. I would've had not the slightest idea what it was, had it not been for reading this thread a few months back. I'm not bidding, but if anyone is interested in these, have at it.
I consulted my advisors and bought this one: Fays Mascot Anna Eva Fay Token Bronze, 32mm, 10.33gm, irregular shape Obverse: Sitting figure with legs crossed and three arms, MASCOT, AEF in script Reverse: Wreath, magic letters in circle, AYX-7OD-77O The letters on the reverse are meaningless imitations of Hebrew letters. How many mother and son token combinations are there?
The designers probably needed the 32mm diameter to get their message across to the public. These tokens are pretty thin and they didn't use much copper.
