CoinClinic: Communion Tokens

The 1804 silver dollar wasn’t struck for circulation. Shouldn’t it be considered to be a non-circulating legal tender commemorative?

None of the 1804-dated silver dollars were struck in 1804. The initial reason to strike the coins was to complete a set meant to be given as a gift to foreign rulers. Yes, the coins could be considered to be NCLT, but they don’t commemorate an event, nixing that part of the description. The first U.S. coins that commemorated an event were the early issues on which more than 13 stars appear, this being to mark the additional states joining the union. Since those coins were struck for circulation, they could be considered to be commemorative, but none fit the definition of being NCLT. Incidentally, at the time these coins were issued, no one considered them to be commemorative.

Couldn’t the 1848 CAL $2.50 quarter eagles be considered to be commemoratives?

We know for a certainty that the Military Governor of California, Col. R.B. Mason, shipped gold to Secretary of War William L. Marcy, who in turn forwarded that gold to the Philadelphia Mint. The mint was instructed to use the gold for congressional medals for Generals Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott. Since there was gold left over, that bullion was turned into 1,389 specially marked quarter eagles on which CAL was added. It does not appear that there was any special distribution, and the coins went unceremoniously into circulation.

When were communion tokens first used in the United States?

U.S. communion tokens are an understudied area of numismatics. From what is known, the first such tokens are the 1748-dated tokens of the Conecocheague Presbyterian Church in Welsh Run, Pa. Some of the other churches using communion tokens soon after include Junkin Tnet and Octorara in 1752, Derry and Paxtang during the 1750s, and Mercersburg during the 1770s. A Western Pennsylvania Numismatic Society article indicates that more than 200 different tokens were used in churches in 28 counties.

Are there any communion tokens made of gold or silver?

Communion tokens were meant to function as the entry ticket to a communion service at a church. For that reason, they weren’t traded as currency and were typically comprised of base metals, many times that being metal being lead (or anything else that was cheap). There are modern communion tokens comprised of precious metals, but these are meant to be given as gifts to or from a communicant rather than as a ticket of admission to the ceremony.

What happened to communion tokens once they were redeemed?

Communion tokens were typically issued locally by churches that didn’t have a lot of monetary resources. Even though some of the tokens are dated, it wasn’t unusual for the church to redeem the tokens at one service, then re-issue them for the next time communion was being celebrated. By the late 19th century, the tokens were being replaced by cardboard or stiff paper tickets. Some of the metal tokens were destroyed, but many of them were solemnly buried. It is likely that some of these buried groups have been resurrected and sold into collector markets.

U.S. Communion tokens are listed as exonumia in catalogs. Can you explain what can be considered to be exonumia?

Exonumia is a catch-all term for many objects that don’t qualify as being coins or bank notes. The term was invented by the late Krause Publications numismatist Russ Rulau. Exonumia encompasses badges, checks, countermarked coins, credit cards, elongated coins, encased coins, medals, notaphily or scripophily, tags, tokens, and wooden money.