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 Replies: 12 / Views: 1,195 |
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Valued Member
United States
275 Posts |
Hey! I picked this up cuz I thought that it was neat and well i'll never be able to afford one from my state. lol You would think being 9th generation one would have made its way through the family. but unfortunately not! I know nothing about tokens. hopefully it's authentic. I'm all ears to learn about tokens! (added close ups of the weird/probably damaged edge). Thanks in advance!     |
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Moderator
 United States
34396 Posts |
Not a token though,but rather colonial copper, so I'm going to move this over to that subforum. Congrats on getting started in a new direction of collecting!
"If you climb a good tree, you get a push."
-----Ghanaian proverb
"The danger we all now face is distinguishing between what is authentic and what is performed."
-----King Adz
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
94367 Posts |
 Waiting for the experts! |
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Moderator
United States
56855 Posts |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
11880 Posts |
In 1783 we won the Revolutionary War and thus the United States of America came into official existence (recognized by the rest of the world) at the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, 7 years after we declared independence. We took our time establishing our national coinage until the Mint Act of 1792 when we built the mint and began issuing national coinage in 1793. During the void in 1783-1793, states issued coinage until they were barred from doing so by the federal government. Your coin, if authentic, would be a state-issued, pre-federal coin imho. Your coin looks like a match for the 1787 Massachusetts Cent, Arrows in Left Talon variety. It has the correct short bow above the hand, the spacing in the date and other relationships between the devices and lettering looks correct. This is the only variety with the short bow end above the hand. Some more authentication work may be needed but the coin looks to match the variety exactly. It is the most common of all the varieties, but finding a coin like this is quite impressive. Congratulations. For more information see the article here: https://learn.apmex.com/coin-guide/...s-1787-1788/See the 4th coin in the article from the top. IN NECESSARIIS UNITAS - IN DUBIIS LIBERTAS - IN OMNIBUS CARITAS THE MAN IN THE ARENA, Theodore Roosevelt at the Sorbonne Paris on April 23, 1910: " It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." My coin website: https://fairfaxcoins.com |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
11880 Posts |
Image for comparison:  (1787 Massachusetts Cent, Arrows in Left Talon, Obverse [left], Reverse [right].) IN NECESSARIIS UNITAS - IN DUBIIS LIBERTAS - IN OMNIBUS CARITAS THE MAN IN THE ARENA, Theodore Roosevelt at the Sorbonne Paris on April 23, 1910: " It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." My coin website: https://fairfaxcoins.com |
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Valued Member
 United States
275 Posts |
Thanks Spence it's really exciting but also makes me nervous because I dont know alot and worry about over paying or getting fakes! sorry about posting in the wrong place!
@num-student Very interesting!! What if anything can I do to authenticate it better?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1657 Posts |
I collect some of the state coinages but not Massachusetts specifically, though I do have a couple. I don't see any reason to doubt its authenticity. Numismatic student posted the general type, the next step would be to ID the exact variety. Rarity varies widely from one variety to the next and value depends on the variety. While New Jersey and Connecticut coppers are more in my wheelhouse than Massachusetts cents, I do have references to ID. If someone more knowledgeable than me doesn't come along shortly I'll give it a shot. Very nice coin!
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Moderator
United States
15392 Posts |
Appreciate the CCF experts weighing in on authenticity,  Nice example, perhaps the start of a new collecting interest? Take a look at my other hobby ... http://www.jk-dk.art |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1657 Posts |
It's a 3-G, this is a rarity 3 variety which equates to 201 to 500 estimated known.
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Valued Member
United States
275 Posts |
Possibly yes a new type of collection. I seem to do better with these older ones than I do with others it seems lol
The seller said it was a #K111 I thought it was some sort of number he used to categorize his stuff. or is this a variety I'm wondering?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1657 Posts |
The most widely accepted and used attribution for Massachusetts varieties is by Ryder, which is what I went by. There are others but I am not familiar with them.
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Moderator
United States
94812 Posts |
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Replies: 12 / Views: 1,195 |
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Posted 08/07/2023 5:35 pm
