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TOKEN
Unique ID: LANCUM-E2CD36
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation 
Cast lead-alloy token probably dating from the later post-medieval or early modern period, that is c. AD1600-1800. The token is inscribed I.W. on the obverse and has an unidentified symbol on the reverse. The symbol on the reverse resembles weighing scales (which wouid make sense in this context) or, possibly, an inaccurate fleur-de-lys, if turned 180 degrees.
Lead tokens appear from the 13th century, and our understanding of this series has recently been enhanced by the large quantity recovered from the Thames muds. In the Tudor period letters appear (Cuddeford 1999, 57) and the series had largely died out in the 1820s. The function of these pieces is not well understood, but in the late 17th centurythey were certainly used as tokes for very small change, and a similar fundtion is likely for some earlier pieces (Bean 2007, 348).
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: POST MEDIEVAL
Subperiod from: Late
Period from: POST MEDIEVAL
Subperiod to: Early
Period to: MODERN
Date from: Circa AD 1600
Date to: Circa AD 1800
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Thickness: 1.5 mm
Weight: 7.36 g
Diameter: 26 mm
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Tuesday 1st May 2012
Personal details
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Materials and construction
Primary material: Lead Alloy
Manufacture method: Cast
Completeness: Complete
Numismatic data
No numismatic data has been recorded for this coin yet.
Spatial metadata
Region: North West (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Cumbria (County)
District: South Lakeland (District)
To be known as: Sedbergh
Spatial coordinates
Grid reference source: From a paper map
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
| Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Griffiths, D., Philpott. R. and Egan, G. | 2007 | Meols: The Archaeology of the North West Wirral Coast | Oxford | Oxford University School of Archaeology | 348ff |
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Timeline of associated dates
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