Summary

Australia South Australia Adelaide
William Morgan Token Penny 1858 (AD)
Mint: W.J.Taylor, London
Previous Collections: George McArthur
Standard References: Andrews 385 = Heyde 186/1

Physical Description

A round copper token (34 mm diameter). The token features the name address and business of the issuer: William Morgan, Hindley Street Adelaide, Wholesale and retail Grocers. The reverse features a female figure representing Justice seated on a wool bale with legs to left but her head and upper body to front. A wine barrel lies on the ground behind her and a three-masted sailing ship sails to the right on the horizon to the left. She wears a blindfold and extends a balanced set of scales with her right hand. With her left she holds an inverted cornucopia from which fruits flow onto the ground. She wears an ancient-style of flowing dress bound at the waist, her left arm bare and right draped to near the elbow.

Obverse Description

WILLIAM MORGAN / WHOLESALE / & / RETAIL / GROCER / HINDLEY STREET / ADELAIDE

Reverse Description

Female figure representing Justice seated on a wool bale with legs to left but her head and upper body to front. A wine barrel lies on the ground behind her and a three-masted sailing ship sails to the right on the horizon to the left. She wears a blindfold and extends a balanced set of scales with her right hand. With her left she holds an inverted cornucopia from which fruits flow onto the ground. She wears an ancient-style of flowing dress bound at the waist, her left arm bare and right draped to near the elbow. Above AUSTRALIA; in exergue, 1858

Edge Description

Plain

More Information

  • Collection Names

    McArthur Bequest

  • Collecting Areas

    Numismatics & Philately, Working Life & Trades

  • Acquisition Information

    Transfer from National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), George McArthur, 15 Mar 1976

  • Date Issued

    1858 AD

  • Issued By

    William Morgan - Wholesale and Retail Grocers, Adelaide, Greater Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, 1858

  • Mint

    W.J.Taylor, Mint, London, England, Great Britain, 1858

  • Previous Collection

    George McArthur

  • Inscriptions

    Obverse: WILLIAM MORGAN WHOLESALE & RETAIL GROCER HINDLEY STREET ADELAIDE Reverse: AUSTRALIA 1858

  • Denomination

    1 Penny

  • Series

    Trade Tokens

  • Material

    Copper

  • Axis

    12

  • Classification

    Trade tokens, Australia - south australia, Working strikes

  • Category

    History & Technology

  • Discipline

    Numismatics

  • Type of item

    Object

  • Dimensions

    34 mm (Outside Diameter), 15.91 g (Weight)

  • Shape

    Round

  • References

    Andrews 385 = Heyde 186/1 W.J. Taylor employed two stock 'seated Justice' reverse dies to strike the Morgan order. The two resultant die combinations seen on the tokens are employed both for museum storage and standard references. Identification of the reverse dies is simplest by measuring the height of the letters used for the word AUSTRALIA and the space between the closest point of the first A to the horizon line. The die characteristics on these are: Die Letter height A to horizon 1 2.3 mm 11.5 mm 2 2.0 mm 10.9 mm This token was struck from die 1
    [Thesis] Lugton, Mary E. 1989. George McArthur of Maldon: his Life and his Book Collection.
    [Catalogue] Morrison, Ian. 2003. The Baker of Maldon.
    [Book] Andrews, Arthur. 1921. Australasian Tokens and Coins.
    [Book] Heyde, Gilbert C. & Skinner, Dion H. 1967. Unofficial Coins of Colonial Australia and New Zealand.