One very unusual item I was given many years ago was a military coat button that was hammered flat and most likely placed into circulation as a coin. Many Latin American military forces used their country's national arms for their uniform buttons after they gained independence which is also portrayed on their respective coinages.






This particular button was hollow and struck in copper-nickel with the legend: "REPUBLICA DE HONDURAS" above the national arms. The draped flags hung on lances in the coat of arms certainly adds to the military flavor The legend on the reverse reads: "EXTRA FEIN" which most likely refers to a German manufacturer. Notice the crushed area from the thread loop and battered stem on the reverse. The flattened button measures 24.22 mm.





The similarity to the Honduras 25 Centavos KM # 36 dated 1871 sort of gives one an idea of age of this button and the denomination it was possibly circulated as because this particular style of national arms was only used on a very few coins.