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forgot I also picked up this wacky token at the Tallahassee Coin Show - any ideas on what it is?
TallahasseeCoinClub
Posts: 473 ✭✭✭✭
It's kind of a goofy rendition of the obverse of a Morgan dollar but I still like it. Comparison to the nickels in the photo demonstrate that it is significantly larger than a dollar.
Ideas on origin, who struck it, why and rarity and value?
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com
3
Comments
According to google glass...
This item is a vintage Colorado travel souvenir medal or token, featuring high-relief depictions of famous landmarks from the state.
Visual Elements and Details:
Top Section: Inscribed with the word "COLORFUL" arches over a landscape of mountains and evergreen pine forests.
Bottom Left: Depicts the iconic modernist spires of the Air Force Academy Cadet Chapel in Colorado Springs.
Bottom Right: Features the historic Central City Opera House building.
Base Inscription: Marked "COLORADO" along the lower rim.
Background Coins: The medal is sitting on top of several U.S. Jefferson nickels (including 1943 silver war nickels and 1945 Denver/San Francisco mint marks), indicating this token is roughly 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter.
These metal medallions were popular collectibles sold at tourist gift shops, rest stops, and parks across Colorado during the mid-to-late 20th century.
(Note: The surrounding coins behind the medal are U.S. "War Nickels" from 1943 and 1945, which are being used as a backdrop or sizing reference).
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A fairly generic souvenir trinket. Could have been sold at any gift shop in any tourist area.
I figured something like that.
I do not particularly enjoy collecting Morgan dollars. But for years I have considered how much fun it might be to collect one-offs, i.e. exonumia featuring some aspect of the Morgan dollar design. This token might start off this little stash.
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com
Maybe @dcarr has seen these before?
First seeing it, I was thinking it looks like a Bryan dollar, until I saw the date, and then especially the reverse.
Ed. S.
(EJS)
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There are quite a few versions of these large souvenirs. Often, one side will state "Lucky Penny" or similar.
Unfortunately, they were not made entirely of stable metal. The core is usually a type of reactive "pot metal" (zinc and/or tin) with a copper plating. So a lot of them have degraded surfaces. The example posted is pretty nice. It may be in reference to the first Silver Dollars struck at the Denver Mint.
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Would you agree that this was likely struck circa 1962 since that is when the United States Air Force Academy Cadet Chapel was built near Colorado Springs?
And I agree with the "pot metal" assessment - it has that "look and feel".
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com
The Air Force Academy Chapel was completed in 1962, so that is the earliest possible date. The Central City Opera House was completed in 1878.
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I should add that it was not my intent to imply that the item was actually made in 1921.
But I believe the date of "1921" on it is a reference to the first silver dollars struck at the Denver Mint.
Many souvenir items like this were produced in Japan using copper-plated pot metal, after WW2 and into the 1970s.
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"Pot metal" is an apt description of the appearance of the planchet. Who in Japan was creating these - corporations? mom'n'pop shops?
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com