HOBO & LOVE TOKEN TUESDAY (vol. 1)
lordmarcovan
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I just won my first "hobo" carving by a modern artist. That hasn't been easy to do, despite months of browsing and occasional bidding and attempted sniping.
(Previously I have owned only one other, which was a gift from BILLZACH, the artist.)
As a collector of 19th century love tokens, hobo carvings (I don't say "hobo nickels" because they come on all kinds of coins) are a natural outgrowth for me, I suppose.
Really, "love tokens" and "hobo carvings" seem to me to be almost exactly the same thing, though the modern hobo artist might sometimes use different tools and is often doing art for art's sake alone.
There is no doubt that the best modern pieces are more elaborate than most earlier love tokens, and hoo boy, was I ever surprised to find the modern pieces (at least the cream of the crop) to be much more fiercely fought over at auction! All too often, I've found myself willing to go out on a limb and bid nearly $100 for a nice hobo carving (a real leap of faith for an unseasoned novice to the field, since a hundred bucks is no small sum on my budget)- only to see the piece close for $250, $300, even $400+!
But that's good for the modern artists, who have to eat. The long-dead artists who carved my 19th century love tokens don't care what I pay for their work.
I'll post my newp in a little while, after it gets its own thread.
But in the meantime, please post all your hobo carved coins here! (And love tokens too, while you're at it.).
And if you're an artist who does these, toot your own horn, by all means!
(Previously I have owned only one other, which was a gift from BILLZACH, the artist.)
As a collector of 19th century love tokens, hobo carvings (I don't say "hobo nickels" because they come on all kinds of coins) are a natural outgrowth for me, I suppose.
Really, "love tokens" and "hobo carvings" seem to me to be almost exactly the same thing, though the modern hobo artist might sometimes use different tools and is often doing art for art's sake alone.
There is no doubt that the best modern pieces are more elaborate than most earlier love tokens, and hoo boy, was I ever surprised to find the modern pieces (at least the cream of the crop) to be much more fiercely fought over at auction! All too often, I've found myself willing to go out on a limb and bid nearly $100 for a nice hobo carving (a real leap of faith for an unseasoned novice to the field, since a hundred bucks is no small sum on my budget)- only to see the piece close for $250, $300, even $400+!
But that's good for the modern artists, who have to eat. The long-dead artists who carved my 19th century love tokens don't care what I pay for their work.
I'll post my newp in a little while, after it gets its own thread.
But in the meantime, please post all your hobo carved coins here! (And love tokens too, while you're at it.).
And if you're an artist who does these, toot your own horn, by all means!
0
Comments
Thought this was a love token but have been told that because it has no inscription, it's considered folk art. Still cool to me.
"Odin" carved by Marcus Hunt
My best original hobo
That's nice- is it a Type 1 or Type 2 reverse? And how exactly does one distinguish the early hobo nickels from modern ones done with hand tools?
I'm not sure lack of an inscription precludes it from being considered a love token.
I've always considered this 2-cent piece with no inscriptions to be one.
"Spiny Lighthouse Seascape"
Pictorial love token on 1864 two-cent piece
"Folk art" is definitely a good catchall term, though.
That Shield nickel of yours is definitely cool to ME as well- I really like it.
It is far more visually appealing than the Shield nickel love token currently in my collection, but mine has a fun backstory because I found out some info and a picture of the young man who once owned it.
"Relic of a Short Life"
"JASPER DILDAY" love token on ca. 1867-1869 Shield nickel
Here is one from modern artist.
"Odin" carved by Marcus Hunt
NVU- excellent! I like the gold inlay in his eye. Makes him look rather badass, which of course is appropriate for the ruler of the Norse gods!
Lord's Prayer on an 1899 Dime
Lord's Prayer on an 1892 Quarter
PS- that one on the 1892 quarter is awesome! I didn't see it until I reloaded the page.
Now, back to modern carvings, and speaking of Barber quarter host coins...
Here's "the one that got away", to use a fishing metaphor.
(Appropriate, considering the theme of the carving.)
"Fisherman", by David HJ He, aka "HJH", "david-art"
I set a strong esnipe bid and stretched 'til it hurt, but still came up short. This one closed for just north of 200 bucks, which these days is not that unusual for exceptional pieces.
I love the "Asian carp" look of the fish, the salty old fisherman who has the giant catch slung on his back while he puffs on an old fashioned clay pipe, and all the seemingly random ducks or geese running around. How on earth did the artist come up with all that? Who knows, but I love it.
But it was not to be. *sigh*
Happily, I later won one from the same artist, on a Barber dime, with carving just about as good (and on a smaller "canvas" too), for a price in the upper-mid-two-figure range, which is much more in line with my modest budget. I'll post that one in a little while.
I have about 30 pieces in my collection. The smallest ones I have are on a Half Dime and one on a Gold Dollar. A few years ago I bid on one that had the LP engraved on a silver Three Cent piece. Unfortunately I was the under bidder. I did save a picture of it though.
'I reckon all art is folk art - I never seen a horse draw nuthin'
Pacific Northwest Numismatic Association
Menomonee Falls Wisconsin USA
http://www.pcgs.com/SetRegistr...dset.aspx?s=68269&ac=1">Musky 1861 Mint Set
A pair of flowers on the obverse of a type 1 seated dime
Neat. Simple those these may be, I like them. They remind me of some buttons of the period I've dug on antebellum plantation sites while detecting here in Georgia. I keep hoping one day I'll dig a love token.
Actually, I did, once, while visiting a colonial site in Mount Pleasant, SC, but it isn't much to look at. It's just crudely carved initials on a holed, bent, beat-up, and nearly-slick Charles III (ca. 1770s) Spanish Colonial 1-real coin. Still was a cool find. I'll try to put a picture up later if anyone wants to see the ugly-but-cool thing. (Nobody ever said the inclusions to this thread had to be good-looking!)
A friend of mine in Asheville, NC dug a late-Victorian love token with a single "M" initial on a 1773 (I think) half-real coin. Which is interesting, because I haven't seen too many Spanish Colonials as host coins while shopping eBay. They're apparently still out there in the ground, though. My friend Michael was bummed that it was a "damaged" coin. I told him that he was crazy- it was a singular stroke of luck find a cool love token, especially with his own first initial on it! That seemed to be destiny.
Speaking of your "flower" piece, I have a similar "flowers" piece with a cute little bunny rabbit carved on the other side. I'm not as enthusiastic about two-sided love tokens when you can't tell what the host coin was. This one is silver, the host was about the size of a British shilling, and obviously quite old. Also pretty crude, though, so I've never imaged it or added it to my collection. It cost me the whopping sum of $1.00 plus 75 cents shipping, so I figure I come out OK on bullion, if nothing else. That's another not-so-beautiful one I'll have to image.
Menomonee Falls Wisconsin USA
http://www.pcgs.com/SetRegistr...dset.aspx?s=68269&ac=1">Musky 1861 Mint Set
My best original hobo
That's nice- is it a Type 1 or Type 2 reverse? And how exactly does one distinguish the early hobo nickels from modern ones done with hand tools?
LORD M, Its a Type I. Just a deduction that its an original. Full date and a near full horn reverse led me to believe it had been carved not too long after it was minted. Carving style also looks older, rather than some of the modern versions.
Thought this was a love token but have been told that because it has no inscription, it's considered folk art. Still cool to me.
I'm not sure lack of an inscription precludes it from being considered a love token.
I've always considered this 2-cent piece with no inscriptions to be one.
LORD M, Posted this one on the forum shortly after I bought it and was informed by one of the more knowledgable veteran members that it was folk art..
I have about 30 pieces in my collection. The smallest ones I have are on a Half Dime and one on a Gold Dollar. A few years ago I bid on one that had the LP engraved on a silver Three Cent piece. Unfortunately I was the under bidder. I did save a picture of it though.
Whoa, I'd love to see the Lord's Prayer trime! That must be really amazing. Probably went for really strong money, I'll bet!
Maybe you saw my recent "Three-Cent Chicken".
Not as skillful as the Lord's Prayer would've been, probably, but still good work on such a tiny coin.
Posted this one on the forum shortly after I bought it and was informed by one of the more knowledgable veteran members that it was folk art..
"Folk Art" is a good general catch-all term to cover all of this kind of stuff. "Love token" and "hobo nickel" and other terms are rather fluid, though, and I'm not sure anyone's come up with any hard definition that's widely accepted. A lot of the modern artists call their creations "hobo nickels" even when the host coin isn't a nickel. I suspect this is because so many of them are members of the OHNS- the Original Hobo Nickel Society.
My records show it sold for $355.00 in November 2011. These were the eBay sellers pictures.
I did see it. Very nice!! I have considered collecting Love Tokens engraved with animals. I recently saw one with a spider on it. Wish I had gotten it.
Here is a more mundane quarter;
Any ideas what this is supposed to be? Perhaps a fence...
Pacific Northwest Numismatic Association
Menomonee Falls Wisconsin USA
http://www.pcgs.com/SetRegistr...dset.aspx?s=68269&ac=1">Musky 1861 Mint Set
Wow, you guys!
Here is a more mundane quarter;
Any ideas what this is supposed to be? Perhaps a fence...
Intriguing. Certainly looks like a fence to me, and I see "7 MILE" in the inscription, so perhaps some kind of racing prize?
Unless there's a place or road called "Seven Mile" somewhere. Doesn't Detroit have an "8 Mile", made famous by rapper Eminem?
I think the key to the mystery is in that elusively faint inscription above the "7 MILE" part... the part that ends with "...LPH". Can you make out any more of it?
If it is a race prize token, it's kind of funny that the initials are "FWD" (as in, "Forward").
MWallace- I see the Lord's Prayer trime now. Absolutely amazing piece. Not surprising that it went for strong money. The Old English lettering of "Our Father" and "Amen" are a particularly nice touch.
Joseph J. Singleton - First Superintendent of the U.S. Branch Mint in Dahlonega Georgia
Findley Ridge Collection
About Findley Ridge
Engraved on Dahlonega Dollar. I have only seen two other D-Mint love tokens. Don't know any back story to this coin.
JJS- Wow. Just WOW.
I've seen quite a few "MIZPAH" tokens and knew it was something vaguely biblical, but I didn't get around to looking it up until just know.
So thanks for the educational opportunity, not to mention the eyecandy.
Wow!!! I just two days ago won a 1939 Great Britain Florin Two Schilling with "MIZPAH" engraved on it.
I've seen quite a few "MIZPAH" tokens and knew it was something vaguely biblical, but I didn't get around to looking it up until just know.
Wow!!! I just two days ago won a 1939 Great Britain Florin Two Schilling with "MIZPAH" engraved on it.
Apparently a rather long tradition.
by Deadman Jeweler
Charles III Album
Charles III Portrait Set
Charles IV Album
Charles IV Portrait Set
Spanish Colonial Pillar Set
Very cool. I'm an outspoken critic of the skull/skeleton/zombie fad in hobo carvings these days (only because it has been done to death- no pun intended), but that guy does good work and that particular composition is original enough that I rather like it, particularly the Japanese-looking swirl patterns of the background.
that didn't work out very well, I'll tryagain
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As promised, here is my modern hobo newp, by the same artist who did the "Fisherman" piece I posted earlier (which sadly I was outbid on).
Still, I'm happy because this one is almost as nice, and was less than 1/3 the price of the other.
"The Helmsman"
Modern (ca. 2016) hobo carving on 1900 Barber dime, by artist David HJ He
And I won a second modern carving tonight, but I'll leave that for a future Hobo Tuesday to post, after it arrives. It's on a Statehood quarter, but the artist, who is only an artist and not a coin guy, neglected to include a picture of the reverse, so I don't even know what state is on the reverse. (Hoping for GA, FL, or NC, for personal reasons, but that doesn't matter, because I liked the obverse carving.)
Michael Kittle Rare Coins --- 1908-S Indian Head Cent Grading Set --- No. 1 1909 Mint Set --- Kittlecoins on Facebook --- Long Beach Table 448
A modern hobo that I picked up a little while back called "A bump in the night".
by Deadman Jeweler
That is EPIC!!!!!!
My YouTube Channel
Twobitcollector- keep tryin'. Your pix aren't working yet. (You might wanna delete the duplicate post.)
As promised, here is my modern hobo newp, by the same artist who did the "Fisherman" piece I posted earlier (which sadly I was outbid on).
Still, I'm happy because this one is almost as nice, and was less than 1/3 the price of the other.
"The Helmsman"
Modern (ca. 2016) hobo carving on 1900 Barber dime, by artist David HJ He
And I won a second modern carving tonight, but I'll leave that for a future Hobo Tuesday to post, after it arrives. It's on a Statehood quarter, but the artist, who is only an artist and not a coin guy, neglected to include a picture of the reverse, so I don't even know what state is on the reverse. (Hoping for GA, FL, or NC, for personal reasons, but that doesn't matter, because I liked the obverse carving.)
Thanks, I hope it works
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