Papers

We are pleased to present here a number of papers, on various topics, which have been written by our members.

The very first of these is a paper entitled 'Merchant Countermarked Dollars of the Late 18th and Early 19th Centuries' by Eric C. Hodge. The desperate shortage of silver currency experienced throughout the United Kingdom at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th Centuries led a number of merchants and manufacturers to countermark Spanish Dollars, pieces of eight, which were readily available on the bullion market, and use these as tokens. This fascinating paper is well illustrated by photographs of some very rare pieces.

Our second presentation features a visit to the pub, as represented by the large numbers of tokens issued by landlords and  publicans throughout the UK from the middle of  the nineteenth century up to the time of the First World War. Bob Lyall has produced a most interesting introductory guide to the types and purposes of these tokens - as far as they are known - and the paper is illustrated by photographs of a range of typical items, including several from our own locality.

The third paper, by Chris Leather, is an examination of the Anglesey Halfpennies of 1790, a little-known part of the enormous output of tokens made in the period 1787-1791 for the Anglesey Mines Company of Thomas Williams. The 1790 pattern halfpence struck by Matthew Boulton take pride of place as the world's first truly modern coins.

Our Numismatic Notes section offers additional, but shorter, insights into our fascinating hobby.