TOKEN

A complete lead-alloy gaming piece or token of Modern date (AD 1760-1900). The object is formed after a coin of George III. The coin used in this example is a three shilling of George III (AD 1760-1820). The obverse of the coin is all that can be seen and shows a bust with an inscription around the edge.

Spink, P 408, no 3769

Obverse only: Description - Bust / Inscription - [GE]ORGIVS III DEI GRATIA REX

Similar objects on the Portable antiquities database: NARC-067BB4. Below are extracts from the previous entry describing the production of these tokens. .

"In the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries many coin-like objects were produced to serve as gambling counters or gaming pieces, to keep score or act as tokens during card games and other games of chance. The commonest types are pieces made in imitation of gold guineas and half guineas of George III's so-called 'spade' type, issued between 1787 and 1800 (fig. 1). These pieces were normally made of brass and can also be distinguished by their inscriptions, which were usually versions of those used on the original coin, but bungled and with incorrect dates. The type was revived in the 1860s, when they usually carried the names of the firms which produced them, or BIRM for Birmingham, where most were manufactured."

Dimensions: Diameter - 33.10mm, Thickness- 2.69mm, Weight- 18.4g

Numismatic data

No numismatic data has been recorded for this coin yet.