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Washington Draped Bust Tokens and the Melbourne Restrikes

ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,482 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited November 6, 2021 9:42PM in U.S. Coin Forum

I've been fascinated by these tokens and restrikes.

Great info on these is from Notre Dame University. Does anyone know the professor(s) and program(s) that work on this? Are they the only university that does research on coins? Do they have a degree program?

https://coins.nd.edu/colcoin/colcoinintros/WashDRAPED.intro.html

"1783" Washington & Independence Token - by Thomas Wells Ingram and Soho Mint - PCGS PR64 - Ex. E. Pluribus Unum Collection

Were these primarily sold in the US or the UK?

"1783" Washington & Independence Token - by William Joseph Taylor - PCGS MS64BN

Why Melbourne? Was Taylor opening an office there? It seems like a store card. And why pair it with the United States die? Was this a regular issue, or a special issue with just a few strikes?

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    coinsarefuncoinsarefun Posts: 21,781 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I can’t offer any info but I’ve always like these myself. There are just to many dang nice looking tokens and
    medals out there it’s frustrating ;)
    Are either one yours?

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    CaptHenwayCaptHenway Posts: 33,891 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Apropos nothing at all, I am reminded of the line “Not the Melbourne Method!!!” from the movie “Arsenic and Old Lace.”

    Numismatist. 54 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Also won the PNG's Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
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    ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,482 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 6, 2021 10:04PM

    @coinsarefun said:
    I can’t offer any info but I’ve always like these myself. There are just to many dang nice looking tokens and
    medals out there it’s frustrating ;)

    I agree. I look at these all the time!

    Are either one yours?

    Neither of these two are mine, but I do have a couple of errors! One is raw and one is in a PCGS holder, but no TrueView yet. Have to get both in front of Phil's camera!

    The top 1783 Washington & Independence silver piece is from the E. Pluribus Unum collection. When that collection came up for sale, I had to stay focused to pick up the following:

    1876 Declaration of Independence medal by George Lovett and Abraham Demarest. Musante GW-830, Baker-388, var., HK-75a. Silver. Plain edge. PCGS MS64 POP 0/1/0 - Ex. Stanley DeForest Scott; E. Pluribus Unum Collection

    This is my big pickup of the auction. It's a silver 42mm So-Called Dollar. I only know of one other one and it's in very strong hands. This one last sold in 1975 in the Stanley DeForest Scott collection so it's taken 45 years to come back to the market!

    1832 Philadelphia Civic Procession Medal - Original - Silver, Plain edge - Musante GW-130, Baker-160. Silver - PCGS MS64 POP 3/1/0 - Ex Catherine E. Bullowa (d); E. Pluribus Unum Collection

    This was my second highly desired piece of the auction and I was lucky to win this. This specimen is the top condition piece out of less than 10 known. It is from Catherine E. Bullowa back in 1984 so off the market for 36 years!

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    ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,482 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @CaptHenway said:
    Apropos nothing at all, I am reminded of the line “Not the Melbourne Method!!!” from the movie “Arsenic and Old Lace.”

    I'm waiting Jason Melbourne!

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    rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Those are unique and interesting. I really want one of those 'Declaration of Independence' medals... Should have looked for a replica the several times I visited Independence Hall... but did not. I will just get one online. Cheers, RickO

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    ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,482 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 7, 2021 6:35AM

    @ricko said:
    Those are unique and interesting. I really want one of those 'Declaration of Independence' medals... Should have looked for a replica the several times I visited Independence Hall... but did not. I will just get one online. Cheers, RickO

    The 1876 Declaration of Independence medals by Abraham Demarest are designed after Charles Cushing Wright's medal and aren't overly expensive in the more common white metal.

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    rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Zoins... Thanks, I will check them out.... Cheers, RickO

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    ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,482 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 7, 2021 6:40AM

    Here's some info and image from the 1851 Great Exhibition in London.

    Ref: https://www.historyextra.com/period/victorian/great-exhibition-1851-victoria-albert-what-crystal-palace/

    William Joseph Taylor was based in the UK and perhaps this token showed the US and Australia to signify some commonality between the three English-speaking countries.

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    rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Zoins ... Must have been a truly awesome event during that period. Cheers, RickO

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    ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,482 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November 7, 2021 7:01AM

    @ricko said:
    @Zoins ... Must have been a truly awesome event during that period. Cheers, RickO

    There are still expos now and planned in the future, but it's interesting that the US doesn't really have world expos any more but they still run in other countries.

    The last US-based one was from 1984. Here's a list:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_fair

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    CaptHenwayCaptHenway Posts: 33,891 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Love those Washington pieces!

    Numismatist. 54 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Also won the PNG's Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.

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