I can't seem to clearly identify this coin because I thought a shield should be on top on reverse side. Any ideas if it's real, error coin, or just some Civil War token made to look like an Indian Head penny? Value?
Very interesting. It could be a CWT (Civil War Token), a crude fake or simply a fantasy piece. Is it the same size as a regular Small Cent? Can you weigh it?
Identical to an Indian Head penny in all respects except for the missing shield. Have no way to weigh it, but its sounding like I should find a scale since it seems to be a necessity in validating coins. I suppose I could take it to a local dealer.
You have also probably noticed that the front is different from an Indian Head also -- it has 13 stars in a ribbon around the Indian Head and the band on the Inidan's headdress does not appear to be the "LIBERTY" or older kind. I am also lean toward a Civil War token, but would like to know where it was stamped. I picked this and the other one (other post) in Eastern Pennsylvania.
Not quite. On the obverse of a genuine IHC are the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA where yours has a ribbon with stars. A genuine IHC has the word LIBERTY across the Indian's headdress where yours has stars.
Thank You, you are right. Another reason why it is probably a token and not an official United States coin. Guess I'll stick the tokens with the Model M 1861 U.S. Percussion Rifle I was also given. Why am I saying this? I might as well turn everything over to the kids now and let them worry about them. I'm tired of hoarding "stuff", as the late George Carlin called it.
If I were you I would keep the tokens in the coin collections. Tokens are known as exunomia and are very collectible. It would be nice if you could get the tokens identified. As I said, we have some CWT collectors here that may can help you ID them. Be patient and I'm sure one will read the thread and offer some help.
That is very bizarre, I've never seen anything like it. You should take it down to the shop and let us know what they say about it.
Looks like a civil war token. There were thousands of different designs made during that period. Coins became scarce and companies made these type of tokens. I will check when I get to my reference books to see if I can find this exact item. But I am pretty sure that is what it is
Hi tpanc13, What you have is a patriotic Civil War token, id 95/368a. It is a fairly common cwt with an R-2 rarity rating (2000-5000 known). In Kanzinger's 2002 book, values were listed at $15 in F/VF, $25 in XF and $35 in Unc. The reverse used to display "NOT" above the "ONE CENT", but someone has removed most of it, which was somewhat commonly done. Die 95 is the only Indian Head design where the stars are in a ribbon on the obverse. These dies were engraved by Emil Siegel, whose shop was at 177 William Street, New York City, NY. Siegel was one of the most prolific of the cwt token makers.
Kudos for cwtokenman again. The descriptions you provided for my coins make them more fun to save now. I'm liking this site. Thanks to the others who responded too.
This looks similar to yours. I'm thinking the reverse of your coin says " Not One Cent" there were many different token varieties for this year http://cgi.ebay.com/1863-%22Not-One-Cent%22-Civil-War-Token-_W0QQitemZ380118317569QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20090418?IMSfp=TL090418154001r2140#ebayphotohosting
