I bought this coin about 30 years ago, but I still have no idea what it actually is. I bought it because it was cheap (I think I paid $2 if I remember right), and because of the date, 1795. At that time, it was the oldest coin I had. I believe the metal is brass. I apologize for my poor photography skills. I blame the lens.
Yes it is a Spade guinea gaming token from the early 19th century, made of Brass. If you post it in the exonumia thread under Coin Chat someone will probably be able to tell you exactly who is advertising through it. The name under the bust and the lettering around the side on the reverse all means something to the right expert.
SIMCOX was the maker Imitations such as this one were often used for advertising purposes or as counters for gambling
A little confession. Right after I bought the coin (I bought it from an antique shop) I took it to a coin shop and asked the owner if he knew what it was. He said it was 'probably a gaming token.' I didn't think he knew what he was talking about. Turns out I was wrong. Anyway, I just put the coin in a cookie can I have full of tokens and nonAmerican coins. There are about 1,000 coins and tokens in that can. I occasionally open it, but not very often. I started thinking about that coin a few days ago, after joining this site, so I dug through the can and found it, and took a couple of pics to post this. Well, as soon as I posted, I saw that word simcox at the bottom. I had never noticed that before. So I googled it and found out that the guy at that coin shop so many years ago was correct. It was a gambling token. I decided to keep my post up, anyway, because I thought it might generate some interesting comments. I found one on ebay today. The seller is asking $50, but it is graded XF details by NGC and in much better condition than mine. Mine might actually be worth a few dollars, though.
George Simcox and his brass foundry in Birmingham. Is that Birmingham in Alabama, U.S.A., or Birmingham, U.K. If the latter, as I am one of the locals, I could find out some matters here. If in Alabama, I don't have a banjo on my knee !!!
