whats the deal with opium dollars? real or marketing hype?

goldrealmoney79

Were opium dollars authentic to the time period? or were they made up make believe to sell people on these trade dollars?
I know they were supposed to be used for holding opium, but you rarely see them with much if any wear on them. and then other ones appear to be used as a locket.
In addition, rarely do the die markers match up on these opium dollars and they look like theyre made from 2 separate coins.

Here is the only worn example ive ever seen
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1-One-Dollar-ND-Trade-Dollar-Opium-Box-Hinged-Dollar-Well-Used-/372815484984?hash=item56cd88d838%3Ag%3AzHkAAOSwAchdsc1T&nma=true&si=RO2L2cJqyoIU804dI25ZDl9D4Q0%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Here is another example being sold with the photo inside
https://www.ebay.com/itm/034-OPIUM-BOX-DOLLAR-034-1878-TRADE-DOLLAR-W-OLD-PHOTO-NURSE-INSIDE-/353359650155?hash=item5245e05d6b%3Ag%3Aj6AAAOSwkMpgBy2b&nma=true&si=RO2L2cJqyoIU804dI25ZDl9D4Q0%253D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

So whats the deal with them? Were they just lockets and story got changed over time? or were they originally used for opium and then became lockets? or was it all just marketing hype?

Lazybones

I have always believed they were just lockets. The opium story is just a made up history to create interest.

LZB

Namvet69

It is my opinion that the term opium dollar is a more a loose link to silver trade dollars in Asia than drug paraphernalia. Raw opium would not be stored in the wafer thin space between 2 hollowed out coins. Nice locket though. Peace Roy

PerryHall

I think they were lockets made to hold a pic of a loved one or a locket of hair. I don't think they were big enough to hold any significant volume of opium so they wouldn't have been really practical for that purpose.

291fifth

Hype. "Opium" sells them better than "photo locket" or "hair locket". When does the reference to them as "opium" first appear and where does it appear?

PerryHall

I've see a few with XXX rated pics from the late 19th century.

MWallace

@PerryHall said:
I've see a few with XXX rated pics from the late 19th century.

This is true. I have several.

Mr_Spud

Sometimes they sell them as spy coins too, but usually when it’s other hollowed out coins besides trade dollars.

DCW

@MWallace said:

@PerryHall said:
I've see a few with XXX rated pics from the late 19th century.

This is true. I have several.

Well, let's see 'em!

carabonnair

I think you are correct that they are primarily lockets, but "opium" or "spy" coins is more effective marketing.
Here's a more unusual $20 Liberty made by Tiffany & Co.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1879-Tiffany-Co-22k-Yellow-Gold-20-Gold-Liberty-Spy-Coin/274456034949

MWallace

@DCW said:

@MWallace said:

@PerryHall said:
I've see a few with XXX rated pics from the late 19th century.

This is true. I have several.

Well, let's see 'em!

I don't want to get kicked off.

ricko

Definitely hype.... I have always chuckled when I see that phrase attached to a sale. Other 'coins' may at some point have been made to hold a microfilm... However, I have no evidence to support that statement. Cheers, RickO

Crypto

I have also seen 8 reales with old time razor blades hidden inside of them. I suspect there was a lot of metal workers who did metal work with whatever they had available. Pretty sure the trades them self where “China dollars” or “opium Dollar” to be semi-derogatory. The locket part just co-op the name. The coins dropped it when they became collectible but the junk kept it especially when it started to help them sell.

OliverDePlaise

Opium would glue them irreparably shut.

cmerlo1

You can see mine here:

https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1008759/my-new-trade-dollar-even-cooler-than-i-originally-thought

mbogoman

Pictures??? Here you go!

CaptHenway

@Lazybones said:
I have always believed they were just lockets. The opium story is just a made up history to create interest.

LZB

This.

Cougar1978

Hype - ROFL

You can get nice Pcgs 69 and 70 slabbed pandas for much less.

Nic

Didn't it take two coins and a jeweler to make these?

Disclosure: Cleaning out some items and have a couple of trade $'s and both 92 and 93 Columbian halves. Fascinated me long ago. Very well made and you would never know in hand except for weight. XF/AU, no bends, working hinges, etc.

Seems they are still collectables.

CaptHenway

@Nic said:
Didn't it take two coins and a jeweler to make these?

Disclosure: Cleaning out some items and have a couple of trade $'s and both 92 and 93 Columbian halves. Fascinated me long ago. Very well made and you would never know in hand except for weight. XF/AU, no bends, working hinges, etc.

Seems they are still collectables.

Yes, though a single company making these professionally (which would make sense as there are many of them around and the workmanship is consistent) could probably have made two lockets out of three coins. Take coin A and cut it in half down the middle, leaving you an intact, complete obverse and an intact, complete reverse. Take coin B and hollow out the obverse, leaving the reverse and the reeded edge intact. Install the picture frame and the hinge and take the obverse from coin A and trim away the rim to fit and attach it to the hinge. Take coin C and hollow out the reverse and use the reverse from coin A as with the previous piece. Save all the trimmings for the smelter.

They do seem very rare with an intact picture as per the nurse one. Many years ago while working at a coin shop in Chicago I bought in a leather purse containing over 50 Columbian halves that were horribly covered with green slime from the leather. I didn't want to touch them, so I put the coins in a large jar, filled it with acetone and let it sit for a few days. When I went to rinse them off I saw something oozing out of one of the coins. I found the hinge, popped it open and found it full of liquified acetate and paper pulp. It had had a picture in it, but I melted it.

gumby1234

I own 2. One is a locket with the old photo inside , the other just empty. They can be very hard to open once closed.