This came in a lot of coins I purchased a few months ago. I tried to do some preliminary research on it, but I found next to nothing. Do any of you have any pointers or tips that could help me find out more about this odd piece? Obverse front: Obverse back: Reverse front: Reverse back:
Interesting piece. So, a hollow shell with two halves, then? It makes me think of a "box thaler", and I suspect the word "BOX" on here might allude to a similar sort of thing, i.e., a coinlike round "box" in which small pictures or verses or miniature paintings were kept. Sort of like a locket. But that's just a guess. It dates to the very dawn of photography, so perhaps still a bit too early to have held little photos.
Thank you for the link @lordmarcovan, before reading that article I didn’t know these existed. I learn something new every day! You are correct. This piece is a hollow shell with two parts. This reminds me of the silver-lined brass shells produced at the Soho Mint to house proof coins within the Boulton and Watt collections. Here is an old picture of what I am talking about (yikes I need to take new photographs!!).
Boy, I sure love those Soho proofs, particularly the gilt ones. Your Irish avatar coin give me the tingles. I once had an 1805 Irish gilt penny, NGC PF64 UCAM, and it was absolutely stunning. (Unfortunately I no longer have any photos of it.) It is my #1 "remorse" coin that I regret having sold. I never had any of the metal shells, though. That's neat. No doubt they're the reason why many of the surviving pieces are still so lovely to behold today.
I have no idea why it was made or exactly what it would be used for, but it looks like an unfilled electrotype shell to me. That might be literally what it is, but I think the why of it is probably much more interesting than that. I might have found a clue here on p. 114 which suggest that it, indeed, might literally be a box, but gives no clue as to the original contents: Is the diameter approximately 28mm, as would be expected for a halfpenny of the period? There was no 1849 halfpenny, but I wonder if the size is similar.
You and I both! The coins produced at the Soho Mint have quickly consumed the majority of my attention recently. The attention to detail, quality, and fascinating history make for an appealing collecting venture. I love the look of the gilt pieces but I find them to be a little overpriced in my opinion. As nice as they are, the only examples I can reasonably afford are usually scuffed with numerous handling marks. I have a circulated gilt proof two pence I stubbed upon last year, but otherwise, I am restricted to the copper and bronzed issues. I imagine your 1805 Irish penny was a breathtaking piece. I’ll eventually break down and buy one, but today is not that day. The brass shells are the hallmark of the pieces originally contained within the collections of the Boulton and Watt family holdings. The vast majority of the proofs that come for sale were never housed in these shells, which makes me think they were preserved based on their artistic merit. This isn’t too far fetched considering people were already collecting Conder tokens in the late 18th century. I have seen some genuinely spectacular proof Conders over the years. The temptation to add a few has been building for years.
This is only a guess, of course, but it could be these were meant to hold a lock of hair or some other remembrance of the dearly departed. Funerary pieces were quite the rage back then, though most made with hair were done with the hair braided up, or somehow otherwise, worked into the design, and placed between panes of glass in a frame. You know what ? Fred Weinberg has seen so much in his career, maybe he has seen something like this. @Fred Weinberg
My thoughts was a discreet snuff box......but also buy into the remembrance of a sample of hair from a love one.
definitely seems like a British version of a box thaler. These were used to hold various things like min portraits, snuff, Bible verses, etc... https://www.icollector.com/AUSTRIA-Karl-VI-1711-1740-AR-box-thaler-12-98g-1719-EF_i29825230
Excellent work @Paul M. this seems to corroborate the suggestions provided by other members. I suppose if it was indeed a "box", it could have been used for anything. The shells are so thin and fragile that I imagine this piece would have to be full to retain its shape if carried in someone's pocket. This may be a mystery we never get an answer to; however, it is interesting to think whatever this piece held initially may have caused the toning seen on the inside of the shells. Thanks for the help everyone! EDIT: I forgot to mention that the diameter is indeed 28.66 mm.
Notice a repair on the lower lip under the 4. Having owned womens pendent watches the they are on a chain around the neck upside down....so when lifted the watch faces upright. The area in question could of supported a loop to be on a chain or string.
One difference between this halfpenny and a classic box thaler is of course the fact that it was a purposely made fantasy item rather than a real coin. Circling back to the real-coin pieces, there are also the so-called "opium dollars": (*Images grabbed from an eBay listing.)
I don't know if the stories of those "box dollar" Trade dollars having been used to smuggle opium have any basis in truth. I suppose it's technically possible, but I suspect most were used as lockets for keepsakes and pictures. I've seen one or two with pictures in them. Note that the one pictured above appears to have a woman's name engraved inside. The workmanship on some of them is stunning, and often appears seamless and nearly invisible.
I agree. Considering how small these are, you're not going to smuggle much of anything at any one time. Since the idea of smuggling, for a smuggler, is to make as much money as possible from each effort, I doubt if these were ever a smuggler's "dream". If these did indeed ever hold opium, they were most likely a "stash" type container, designed to hide one's personal, from accidental discovery by a random-type search, rather than anything else. And, so long as they weren't handled very much, they probably did a very admiral job of that. As you pointed out, the joinery is excellent, and would most likely pass a cursory examination, but not perhaps a determined one, in which the searcher knew the suspect was "holding".
