Found In Mexico: Square, 1850, Star, Gopez | Hacienda Token

It's a 'Hacienda Token'. They were used by ranch owners to pay workers to shop at the ranch's company store/trading post.

The tokens usually state the name of the hacienda or ranch a denomination (they didn't use Peso or centavo as these were official National designations). The term "Octavo" or 1/8 was a fractional token of what ever the "peso" denomination was called. The denominations were made up by the Ranch owners and they pegged the company store prices in tokens to a relationship to the national currency.

Values vary between a buck or two, and up to $100 or so.

In your example, there appears to be an animal above the floral design, probably a horse. I'm also pretty sure it says Ropez, and not Gopez. I suspect the weird symbol on the back is in fact the brand used by the Hacienda in question to mark it's livestock. An educated guess would be that the piece was found in a northern Mexican border state. Also, while the date could be 1850, I suspect it's more likely 1810.

I purposely held back a little information the local provided namely because he's known to spin a pretty good tale and sell contemporary counterfeits (some of which I really like).

He told me it came from the hacienda El Gallinero www.haciendaelgallinero.com. This hacienda is very close to the city where I picked up this token and has been around quite a while (since the 1700's at least). I thought the stamp on the back would help identify it with the Gallinero and a livestock brand makes perfect sense, since that was it's main role about this time in history.

Regarding that brand...El Gallinero basically means "the chicken coop" or a little more literally "the rooster coop." I figured the double "H" part of the stamp might have to do with "Hacienda" as well as illustrate the 'body' of a animal, namely a chicken. The "T" and the "P" on the right side might be for "Pollo" which means 'chicken' and would would double to illustrate the head and the "T" portion would illustrate the crown of a rooster. The second "T" on the left hand side being used to illustrate the feathers for a chicken's tail.

Additionally, if the date is indeed 1810, that would mean it was minted the exact same year that Mexican history took a huge turn in this EXACT same hacienda. (Check out the history tab on the link above) In short, Padre Miguel Hidalgo (a priest) was the spark that lit the fire for independence from Spain on September 15, 1810. He met at this very same hacienda to make the plans for revolution.

During his many visits, he likely visited the hacienda's private little church where this token was found.

How's that for a small piece of history!

JMerrick, thanks for the support! The token from La Quemada didn't look right to me. The seller said he bought a number of them with different inscriptions and some other old coins from a centurion (very old man) that lived 20 miles away (in the opposite direction from La Quemada and in the direction of a tourist heavy town). I didn't like the whole sand casting, with scraped letters, then hammered look either. Too modern and if anything looked like someone's attempt at making trinkets for tourists.

This piece on the other hand comes from someone that I know a lot better and has established a good reputation with me for metal detector finds. (I bought a contemporary fake with an amazing history from him, it was a great buy!)

The hard part is connecting this token to El Gallinero with out being there in person. Although, I do have an idea. It might take a few weeks, but I may be able to track it down.

The back of that coin is a rabbit just so you know. Why a rabbit beats me?

Cud Wild, thanks for joining the conversation...however what you might be seeing as the rabbit's "ears" looks more like a post-fabrication scratch. That line isn't nearly as deep and doesn't have the indent from being purposely struck like the rest of the design.

Libertad, again, thanks for your contribution. I would love to agree that it's "Lopez", however, in-hand it would take a lot to convince me that an "L" has been so butchered as to turn in it into what looks like a "G".

However, all of this may be for naught. We'll just have to wait for more information.

Keep up the feeback! I'd love some counterpoints if you have them. :)

If it were an "L", I'd imagine that it would have character sturture similar to the other letters that have flat bottoms such as the "E" and the "Z". However, the first letter has a curved bottom that seems more akin to the "O".

Well folks, I'm still waiting for a response from my contacts up North. However, I never though I'd see this!
ebay auction for a hacienda token with a VERY similar J-H-P "brand" on it. Ebay Link

Sorry if this is offensive, but for future reference when the auction ends, here are pics and key text from the auction:

MEXICO, 1875 HACIENDA SANTO TOMAS?, LINO MARTINEZ, 1/2? REAL TOKEN, BRONZE?, 16mm

Another auction listing from the same seller Ebay Link


MEXICO, 1875, HACIENDA SANTO TOMAS, LINO MARTINEZ, 1 REAL TOKEN, BRONZE?, 20mm

So,its basically like the Scrip that the coal mining companies used to use in this country,so that miners could shop at the company store?

Well, this weekend investigative numismatics is taken to a whole new level with the search for the livestock brand found on the copper token in this thread.

The main entrace to the Hacienda El Gallinero.
After talking breifly with the owner, and discussing the token's origins, I was allowed to walk around the grounds. The owner also indicated that an old round coin and a square coin were found on the premises and are currently in the town's history museum. He believed that this token could be from El Gallinero. Keyword being could.

Sorry the photos are not clearer. The "100k" requirement is a killer for color-rich photos...had to take the quality setting down big time, oh well! :)





Down past the garden seen in the above photos, this old shed was sitting by itself in the woods.

A close inspection shows a unique design that looks like a typical livestock brand. Later, when talking to a gentleman that I believe to be the 'foreman,' he told me that this was indeed a brand that his father had designed. That being the case, it's age would be about 50-75 years old.


Further exploring, around the back of the hacienda.


This is under the gutted building in the adjacent photos. I could imagine using a metal detector around these parts with a measure of success.


Neat to see how many apertures there are on the roof line of the hacienda.


This is a coat of arms that is over what looks like a water driven mill.


Inside this "barn," looking up directly at the top of the arches, you see the following three images...coats of arms. I was told by foreman that these pre-dated the token and were probably from the 17th century. This has merit since the "barn" can be seen in a pencil drawing of the Hacienda from the 1800's. (Seen on the Hacienda's Web site, under History.)