First Conder Token Purchases. How Did I Do?

Bump. Apparently there is not a lot of interest in this area on this forum.

Its good to see more Conder tokens around...ive been making a collection but there arent many collectors.

You've got 2 of the common token. Macclesfield isn't very popular (I have the other type with the bust of Charles Roe on the other side, this one is slightly more sought after). The Norwhich token is more sought after and can cost quite a bit - this one is in very high grade. Struck 1792, but anepigraph - however, the city of issue is attested on the rim (the arms are the Norwhich city coat of arms, but most wouldnt recognise that). The rim inscription I've found is IOHN HARVEY OF NORWHICH, but these conders often have mysterious mules with different rims.

The Norwhich one will have been removed from Circulation or bought by a collector and thats how it survived in this condition.

Do you know how any why these tokens were issued? Its a very interesting period. If you need any help, shoot me an email. I've got a lot of these lying around.

I have been collecting Conders for about two years now and have built a small collection of about 20 or so tokens. I am photographing them this week and hope to post some photos soon.

I am by no means an expert on this stuff, but I did purchase a book a couple of years back that has helped greatly titled The Token Book published by Galata. I paid $75 plus shipping two years ago and don't even know if you can buy them anymore for a reasonable price. There was one listed on Amazon today for $155.

This book uses the Dalton & Hamer reference numbers for 18th Century tokens. Because the market is so thin I don't take the prices too literally, but they are a good indication of whether a token is common or rare. Here is what I could find on your tokens.

The first one appears to be a Norfolk Norwich D&H 28. I would rate its condition as a VF-. The book price for VF is 20 pounds, so given the condition of yours I would say it is worth $20-$30, but as Ben Byfield indicated there are many varieties of this one and the book does not go into a great amount of detail as to how to identify those.

The second one is a Chesire D&H 14. I would also grade this token as a VF-. The book value is 15 pounds for VF, so yours is probably worth $15-$20.

I hope this helps.

The thing to keep in mind is that token grades are generally listed under the British system of grading and not the US system.

In the price guides a token listed as VF is equal to a strong EF in US grading and a token listed as an EF is a strong AU in US grading. Many E-bay auctions try to have it both ways and will state that the token is EF, but are ambiguous as to which grading system they are using.

The other thing that makes it difficult is that not all of these were struck well, so that plays into the value a well.

I love collecting these for the same reasons you stated, but there is a great deal to learn.

Harry Wells mentioned the Token Book. Well Galata are not only a publishers, but a stockist too. They have numerous books on tokens from various eras on their site. You might find a look interesting:

http://www.galata.co.uk/store.asp?s...tegoriesID=9

There are some dealers that specialise in Conders. A search should find them as an alternative to ebay.