I love a puzzle and this one is puzzling. It’s an 1852 large cent, holed in the center and counterstamped 4 times - 2 per side perpendicular to each other. Even stranger is that none of the stamps seem to be identical. I haven’t done too much searching but I couldn’t find it in Brunk. What do you think is going on? I don’t want to influence what anyone else might see but each line seems different to me.
One old superstition my grandfather mentioned was that a "penny" nailed on the door frame brought 'good luck' . Maybe the purpose of the hole and name.
Punches look the same to me, but it is longer than the coin is wide. So on some the first part is missing on others the last part is. Then the hole and the punches overtunning each other doesn't help.The punch appears to be E. H. BROWNELL
A very quick search revealed one E. (Eugene) H. Brownell, b. Jan. 1, 1880. Worked for his father as "woodworker" (@ Brownell & Burt, Carriages, Sleighs; Tauntan, Mass.). Company eventually evolved into making auto bodies (Ford) as late as 1932. E. H. had 3 daughters, last b. 1917. Could he be the source???? Where, how, what were the circumstances of this acquisition?