What are Conder tokens?

The simple answer is they are denominated, bronze 18th century merchant's advertising tokens.

Many collectors may have heard of these pieces but have only a vague idea of what they represent.

The first thing to clarify is the name. British collectors call these pieces provincial token coinage while American collectors refer to them as Conder tokens.

The name Conder comes from James Conder, an early cataloger of the pieces. Conder wrote An Arrangement of Provincial Coins, Tokens and Medallets issued in Great Britain, Ireland and the Colonies, Within the Last Twenty Years from the Farthing to the Penny Size.

Conder was from Ipswich, England, and not only cataloged these pieces but also issued his own tokens to advertise his drapery business.

The standard reference for Conder tokens is The Provincial Token-Coinage of the 18th Century by Richard Dalton and Samuel Henry Hamer.

Tokens are listed alphabetically by town and issuer and are illustrated. Another good resource is A Brief Introduction to 18th Century Trade Tokens by Allan Davisson, which was based on Dalton and Hamer's book.

According to Davisson's handbook: "Lack of small change for day-to-day transactions was a longstanding problem in England. Elizabeth I felt that only gold or silver matched the dignity of the throne, a view that was held by several of her successors. In the mid-17th century the crown grudgingly allowed a private issue of farthing tokens and a massive issue of private pieces emerged."

According to Davisson, in 1787 Thomas Williams and the Anglesey Copper Mines Company "issued a penny token with a druid's head on the obverse and a cipher with the initials of the Parys Mines Company on the reverse. The piece was a full weight issue, beautifully designed and of excellent quality. Though this was not the first issue of high quality tokens in this era, it was the first major issue."

The idea caught on and soon many merchants began issuing their own denominated tokens.

Davisson writes: "English life was undergoing a major change as the Industrial Revolution took root. People who had once spent most of their lives in one rural area moved to industrial areas to run the new factories. Rather than growing, making or bartering for life's necessities, people bought them and the need for small change mushroomed."

Davisson identifies five general areas into which these tokens fall:

Trade tokens issued by an individual private authority for its own use in making change.

Generic trade tokens to be sold to anyone who wanted them to make change. According to Davisson, "these tended to be a bit lighter than the best of the tokens, a kind of entrepreneurial seigniorage."

Tokens made for advertising, satire or political commentary.

Tokens made for collectors, including the various series by Kempson for Gloucester, Middlesex and Warwickshire that had particularly detailed and accurate illustrations of various buildings in these locations. Private tokens made by collectors, deliberately issued in small quantities.

According to Davisson, these tokens "are among the rarest of the token issue. Some of them are among the most beautiful and complex tokens in the series."

Subjects illustrated on Conder tokens are wide-ranging and include castles, ships, inns, churches, knights in armor, a lady's shoe, a printing press, allegorical figures, a beehive, musical instruments, hospitals and any number of animals, including but not limited to elephant, rhinoceros, lion, beaver, swan, dog, pelican, stag, lamb, phoenix, horse, snail, stork, bear, crocodile, toucan, cat, ostrich and others.

Also depicted are Adam and Eve and historical figures such as Sir Isaac Newton, Lady Godiva, Shakespeare, George Washington, English author and wit Dr. Samuel Johnson and others.

Peter Skidmore issued a series of tokens featuring famous churches and gates throughout England. Thomas Pidcock, owner of Pidcock's Exhibition, issued a series of tokens featuring lions, tigers, elephants, boa constrictors, camels, giraffes and other exotic animals.

People didn't venture far from home in the 1800s, so when the brightly colored wagons of these "traveling menageries" or "wild beast shows" drove through town, they really drew a crowd.

Pidcock was one of several people who owned exotic animals and who journeyed from town to town with wagons featuring jungle scenes and such, putting on animal shows.

One of the best ways for a collector to learn more about these fascinating tokens is to join the Conder Token Collector's Club.

The club publishes The "Conder" Token Collector's Journal four times a year; a subscription to the journal is included in the annual dues of $25.

For more information about the club, contact CTCC Treasurer Scott Loos, Box 2210, North Bend, WA 98045 or visit the club's Web site at www.conderclub.homestead.com.