Copper Corner "State of the Token": In a recent email Bill McKivor of The Copper Corner provided his take on the "State of the Token" and also promised that he would have a new e-list out on January 9th.

Read Bill's "State of the Token" below and get on The Copper Corner mailing list by contacting Bill at Copperman@thecoppercorner.com .

"The 'State of the Token'. One of my good friends in London popped in on the latest DNW sale, and sent me a note that he feared he had 'lost the thread' of token values, as the prices were all over the map.

Yes---in the last couple of auctions they have been.

The Dollar has gained a bit vs. the Pound---at this writing about $1.77. If you are figuring prices, always add about 3 cents, as the banks charge it to exchange currencies, and sometimes more than three. Check with your bank to see just what is charged. Thus, $1.80 is about what most Americans will pay, at the moment.

It has helped a bit, but not too much by itself. Other factors have had a big influence.

In October 2004, the first Spence sale was held, with the first part of the Litrenta sale after that, followed this year by Spence part Two, and in December 2005 another sale with many rarities. This, essentially, has amounted to 4 major offerings in a space of little over a year. What has been seen is interesting.

The 2004 sale was the first major sale in some time, and nearly everything was hotly contested---the collectors found pieces not offered for years, and the dealers needed stock!! Prices were high across the board, and the dollar was around $1.90+---not a good combination for either the collector or for me!!

With the Litrenta sale, the stance softened somewhat, but prices remained pretty high.

Spence part Two contained 462 lots, and there was only so much money to go around. The really 'important' rarities sold to collectors at very high prices, while the “medium” rarities found homes for prices ranging from high to low---once in a while no one was looking, and a bargain was had.

The latest sale brought more of the same, with prices all over the map.

The coin and token business is one of supply and demand. Demand really has not changed, but for some reason many collections have come on the market at once, giving me - and you - opportunities to buy interesting items, and some at reasonable prices. Thus, the supply has, to some extent, outpaced demand.

I have seen this before---just as I have gone through periods when there were no tokens for me to buy, and my stock was getting REALLY low. About the time my stock gets down to nothing, another wave of tokens comes available, and I can build inventory again. Token availability, and to some extent prices, are cyclical.

So- what am I saying here? Spence II and the latest sale in December presented lots of tokens, with Spence II having NO unsold lots, and the latest sale having only a handful---thus the buyers are there, and the hobby is quite well. The sheer number of tokens in auctions of late have allowed for some bargains for the buyer with an eye for them be he/she dealer or collector.

Prices on some of the common material will probably soften a bit due to the dollar/pound adjustment in the last year--- but the rarities seem to just keep on going up no matter what happens. Just as water finds its own level, the token market does as well. Overall, the market for the tokens has continued upward over the last year, and is now finding its own level with the dollar/pound corrections and the supply and demand situation.

It has ever been thus is the coin and token business. Overall, coins and tokens have been extremely 'hot' and history tells us that nothing really goes down much, or for long. The smart buyer will look at prices and determine if the price being paid for a particular token is right for him/her based on what one can find out. If a token is bought correctly, it will be able to be sold correctly, and the collector will have value for the money paid.

Good material will always find a home."      Bill McKivor

Davissons Ltd Auction 24: Catalog for Auction 24 which includes "Exceptional, Unusual, Important Coins, Tokens and Medals" and which closes Thursday 8 December 2005 arrived today. Lots 403-482 are "British Tokens as listed by Dalton & Hamer". There are some very nice items here including one I particularly like - an uncirculated Middlesex 754. The auction also includes a wide range of many other attractive coins and medals which make up the total of 502 lots. There is no buyer's fee for this sale. Davissons can be contacted by email at coins@davissons.net, by phone at (320) 685-3835 and can be found on the web at www.britishcoins.com or www.classiccoins.com .

CTCC Journal Volume X Number 3 Fall 2005: The latest copy of this informative Conder Token Collector's Club publication arrived in the mail yesterday. Features include "Token Tales - Election of Mayors of Garrat" by R.C. Bell, "Chelmsford (D&H Essex 5-8c)" by Tony Fox, "Four New Varieties of Camac Tokens" by Gregg A. Silvis, "CTCC Member Medals" by Mike Grogan, "The David Spence Collection, Part II - Britain's Most Valuable Token Auction" by Peter Preston-Morley and more. The quarterly Journal comes with membership in the Conder Token Collector's Club. Contact Gregg Moore (gregg.moore@comcast.net) for further membership info or visit the Conder Token Collector's Club web site for further CTCC info.

Copper Corner List #42: Bill McKivor of The Copper Corner is just back from England and has sent out List #42 for October-December 2005 ... with "something for everyone". If you're not getting Bill's lists sent directly to you via email you should be. Bill can be reached at Copperman@thecoppercorner.com .

Conder Exhibit at Stoa Consortium: There are 35 conders currently being shown in The Ruth and Louise McCollum Memorial Collection of Ancient Coins in the gallery on the Stoa Consortium site which serves "news, projects, and links for digital classicists everywhere".

Conder Cabinet: After a year and a half online there are 349 great images available at The Conder Cabinet. Take a moment right now to take a look in the Cabinet, then take a look at tokens in your own collection and consider sending some image contributions to: Michael Grogan mngrogan@comcast.net .

Davissons Ltd Auction 23: Catalog for Auction 23 which is a Numismatic Literature auction and which closes Tuesday 25 October 2005 arrived today. Lots 1187-1216 are "British Tokens and Medal References" and include among the token related material some individually offered issues of early CTCC Newsletters. There are also a wide range of essential references in other collecting areas which make up the total of 425 lots (Lots start at 1001). Davissons can be contacted at a new email address, coins@davissons.net, by phone at (320) 685-3835 and can be found on the web at www.britishcoins.com or www.classiccoins.com .

Conders at Upcoming DNW Auctions: DNW's two-day auction on September 28 and 29 will feature, among other fine material, the second part of the important Dr David L. Spence collection of 18th century British tokens. On 12 December this year the company’s miscellaneous sale will feature 18th century tokens from a private collection. An auction in March 2006 will include 18th century tokens from the collection formed by David Litrenta (Part II) and in June 2006 the third and final part of the collection of 18th Century Trade Tokens from the Spence collection, covering Wales, Scotland and Ireland, together with the Spence numismatic library, will be offered. More information is available at Dix Noonan Webb .

Simmons Gallery MailBid 35: The Harry Chambers Collection of Tokens, Checks and Passes is advertised as the largest offering of tokens Simmons Gallery have ever made by number. There are over 1280 lots of British (and a few foreign) tokens from 17th-20th centuries (including over 100 Kent 17th century tokens and some splendid GB18th century ones), advertising tokens, pub checks, theatre & leisure passes, regal evasions, unoffical farthings, toy money, calendar medals and the best collection of farm checks and market checks on the market for a long time. The auction closes 4 October 2005. Simmons Gallery can be found online at http://www.simmonsgallery.co.uk . This morning, while I'm posting this, the link for "MB35 TOKENS, CHECKS AND PASSES POSTAL AUCTION online" at top of the Simmons Gallery page is taking me to MB34 but the link further down on page in the "Current" column for "Tokens Postal Auction MB35 current to 4 October 2005" works fine. I imagine link at top of page will be corrected shortly.

ABC Coins and Tokens Updated: David Stuart writes that 17th Century Tokens, 18th Century Irish, Scottish and Welsh "Conder" Tokens and a new category of 19th Century Copper, Brass and Silver Tokens at the Alnwick British & Colonial Coins & Tokens web site have just been updated with new items. He also notes that many new books including Dalton & Hamer's "The Provincial Token Coinage of the 18th Century" and Paul & Bente Withers' "British Copper Tokens 1811-1820" are now in stock ... and he reminds us all that to be fair to everyone, ABC Coin and Tokens' policy is "first come first served".

CTCC Journal Volume X Number 2 Summer 2005: My copy of this Conder Token Collector's Club publication arrived in the mail last week. Features include "Token Tales - London's High Society" by R.C. Bell, "The Epping Forest Issues" by Tony Fox, "Classical 'Conders'" by Tom Fredette, "Eighteenth Century Tokens of Hertfordshire" by Arthur W. Waters via Harold Welch, "The Bristol Bridge Riots of 1793" by Mike Grogan and more. The quarterly Journal comes with membership in the Conder Token Collector's Club. Contact Gregg Moore (gregg.moore@comcast.net) for further membership info or visit the Conder Token Collector's Club web site for further CTCC info.

Mark Rasmussen Numismatist: Michael Knight has written to suggest adding a link to Mark Rasmussen's website. Mark is a former Spink employee who went solo a few years ago. He is listing part one of a collection of 18th century tokens. Once at the Mark Rasmussen Numismatist site, the list can be found starting at the menu bar at top of the page, under Collections, which drops down allowing you to select 18th Century Trade Tokens. You may want to get on Mark's mailing list as these are apparently sent out two weeks before items go online.

ABC Coins and Tokens Updated: David Stuart has sent out an announcement that the English 18th Century Conder Tokens section of the Alnwick British & Colonial Coins & Tokens web site has just been updated with many new items. As always, to be fair to everyone, ABC Coin and Tokens' policy is "first come first served" so best take a look at these new items now.

Conder Token Scan CD: I've had Gary Sriro's Token Identifier CD for some time and have found it very useful but only just picked up his Scan CD last week ... wow ... this thing is great ... it has 2,700+ beautiful scans on the 2005 issue with updated rarity levels. This CD is more than worth the current price of $36.50 plus $3.00 S&H and is an essential addition to the reference library of any Conder collector. Gary can be reached at gsriro@adelphia.net for orders or additional information.

Conders at Spink: The latest additions to the online coins stock lists at www.spink.com are in the Trade Tokens categories (17th, 18th and 19th centuries). The URL that will take you directly to the stock search pages is http://www.spink.com/asp/stocklistsearch.asp and there were 50 very nice 18th century tokens when I looked this morning.

Copper Corner List #41: Bill McKivor of The Copper Corner has sent out List #41 for July-September 2005 ... another large list that very likely does include "something for everyone" as he promises. If you're not getting Bill's lists sent directly to you via email you should be. Bill can be reached at Copperman@thecoppercorner.com .

W.J.Noble Collection: The W.J.Noble Collection of British Tokens, which was sold in 1998, has been added to the online catalogue archive at Noble Numismatics. This collection is quite comprehensive and there are over 4000 images ... it is an exceptional resource for any Conder enthusiast.

New Price List from P. Flanagan & Associates: The April 2005 price list has just arrived in the mail from P. Flanagan & Associates ... there are more than 250 conders listed as well as more than 100 17th and 19th century tokens, and key reference books for token collectors such as the 2004 Dalton & Hamer reprint. For more information email, call or write to x.flan@verizon.net ; (360) 240-8366 from 11AM to 11PM PST; Phil Flanigan PO Box 1288 Coupville WA 98239.

CTCC Journal Volume X Number 1 Spring 2005: The latest issue of the indispensible CTCC publication arrived in the mail just yesterday. Features include "Token Tales - Pidcock's Exchange, Exeter 'Change" by R.C. Bell, "Skidmore Churches" by Simon Monk, "The Essex D&H 42 (Leigh): The Church Belies It" and "Abstracts of Some Recent Acedemic Literature" by Tony Fox, "Talbot, Allum, and Lee - the 'Conder Token' that Never Was" by Bill McKivor, "Looking at 'Conder' Castles" by Tom Fredette, "The Conder Token Bookshelf" by Michael Grogan and more. The quarterly Journal comes with membership in the Conder Token Collector's Club. Contact Gregg Moore (gregg.moore@comcast.net) for further membership info or visit the Conder Token Collector's Club web site for further CTCC info.

Charles Davis Numismatic Literature Auction: Catalogue for a Mail bid sale with 790 lots offered closing 7 May 2005 arrived yesterday from Charles Davis. Charles Davis can be reached at P.O. Box 547 Wenham MA 01984 USA, (978) 468 2933 or numislit@aol.com and at his VCOINS or ABEBOOKS websites.

Copper Corner List #40: Bill McKivor of The Copper Corner has sent out List #40 for April-June 2005 ... it's a large list and it very likely does include "something for everyone". Bill can be reached at Copperman@thecoppercorner.com .

Postal Auction 33 at Simmons Gallery: This auction which was just announced by Howard & Frances Simmons of Simmons Gallery includes Conders as lots 44-80. In all there are over 600 lots of British and foreign tokens from 17th-20th centuries, advertising tokens, pub checks, theatre & leisure passes, tool checks machine tokens, mining tokens (including S African diamond mines), imitation spade guineas, unoffical farthings, toy money, union badges, monnaie de singe, royal commemoratives and medals with local history, calendar medals and prizes for schools and for music prowess. The auction closes on 27 April 2005.

Davissons Ltd Auction 22: My copy of the catalog for Auction 22 which closes Thursday 28 April 2005 arrived yesterday. Lots 298-320 are "British tokens as listed by Dalton & Hamer". Of particular note is a set of Uncharitable Monopolizer issues included as lots 301-303 which comprises a Middlesex 239 copper penny, a white medal penny and the original descriptive wrapper. The auction also includes Seventeenth Century British tokens in lots 407-419 and Nineteenth Century Copper tokens in lots 321-332 as well as a wide range of many other attractive coins and medals which make up the total of 355 lots. Davissons can be contacted at coins@cloudnet.com or (320) 685-3835 .

Jerry Bobbe List: After a lengthy absence from the token world Jerry Bobbe has issued a short list of tokens in a letter that also invites collectors and enthusiasts to attend his mini-seminar on conders 4-5 July during the upcoming American Numismatic Association Summer Seminar 2005 in Colorado Springs, as well as to visit Cheapside Tokens, the site he operates with Larry Gaye, where Jerry will be doing most of his future token sales.

CTCC Journal Volume IX Number 4 Winter 2004/5: The 34th consecutive issue of this informative CTCC publication arrived in the mail yesterday. Features include "Token Tales - John Howard, Philanthropist" by R.C. Bell, "The Rare American Pieces" by Tom Fredette, "New Token Discoveries" by Gary Sriro, "The Spence Collection Sale" by Peter Preston-Morley "The 1794 Colchester Issues" by Tony Fox, "Four New Varieties of Camac Tokens" by Gregg Silvis and much more. The quarterly Journal comes with membership in the Conder Token Collector's Club. Contact Gregg Moore (gregg.moore@comcast.net) for further membership info or visit the Conder Token Collector's Club web site for further CTCC info.

Conders at ANA Summer Seminar 2005: Jerry Bobbe, CTCC#4, will be doing an evening mini-seminar on conders with a focus on their history, manufacture, grading and preservation. According to the January 2005 issue of Numismatist, this class meets from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 4-5 July. More info on the American Numismatic Association Summer Seminar 2005 is available at the ANA site.

Copper Corner List #39: Bill McKivor of The Copper Corner has sent out a List #39 for January-March 2005. Bill can be reached at Copperman@thecoppercorner.com .