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Have you ever regretted a purchase and then acquired another item that sparked your interest in that
BillJones
Posts: 34,762 ✭✭✭✭✭
About a year ago I purchased this Martin Van Buren presidential medalet that his supporters issued during the 1840 campaign. It is listed in DeWitt / Sullivan as MVB 1840-5. Aside from a few varieties, most Van Buren pieces are not that easy to find, I have rarely seen other examples of this piece.
After I purchased the piece I started to have second thoughts. Unlike a couple of very rare Van Buren pieces, this one did not really have any interesting slogans although the die work was in high relief and first rate. The piece was also nicely preserved for a white metal medalet of this era. Still, the piece did not excite me as much as some others for which I had paid a similar price.
Then, I purchased this William Henry Harrison medalet, which was also issued during the 1840 campaign. Upon further review in the Sullivan book I noted that the Van Buren piece and this Harrison token had been made by the same company. It is not unusual for a single firm to issue campaign items for more than one candidate during a campaign. After all they are in business to make money, and politics usually does not change that. Still it is fun to be able to find pieces that have something in common like that, especially when both pieces are very scarce.
So now I have new appreciation for the Van Buren piece which ealier had had me scratching my and saying, "Why did I do that?" I guess fate must have had something to do with my purchase.
After I purchased the piece I started to have second thoughts. Unlike a couple of very rare Van Buren pieces, this one did not really have any interesting slogans although the die work was in high relief and first rate. The piece was also nicely preserved for a white metal medalet of this era. Still, the piece did not excite me as much as some others for which I had paid a similar price.
Then, I purchased this William Henry Harrison medalet, which was also issued during the 1840 campaign. Upon further review in the Sullivan book I noted that the Van Buren piece and this Harrison token had been made by the same company. It is not unusual for a single firm to issue campaign items for more than one candidate during a campaign. After all they are in business to make money, and politics usually does not change that. Still it is fun to be able to find pieces that have something in common like that, especially when both pieces are very scarce.
So now I have new appreciation for the Van Buren piece which ealier had had me scratching my and saying, "Why did I do that?" I guess fate must have had something to do with my purchase.
Retired dealer and avid collector of U.S. type coins, 19th century presidential campaign medalets and selected medals. In recent years I have been working on a set of British coins - at least one coin from each king or queen who issued pieces that are collectible. I am also collecting at least one coin for each Roman emperor from Julius Caesar to ... ?
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