Great Britain Half Penny Conder Token PCGS MS63 BN

Why Is Thomas Paine Being Hanged On This Token?

Conder Tokens are privately minted tokens struck and used during the late 18th and early 19th Centuries in England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland because. At that time there was a shortage of small denomination coins for everyday transactions, so merchants created their own beginning in 1787.

An American Hanging On A British Scaffold?

The reverse of the Tokens we have here feature the slogan, “MAY THE KNAVE OF JACOBIN CLUBS NEVER GET A TRICK.” The obverse features a man hanging from a scaffold with the phrase “END OF PAIN,” a reference to Thomas Paine, the influential political philosopher who wrote the Common Sense pamphlet in 1776 that helped to ignite the American Revolution. How did an American patriot like Paine end up portrayed on a British token hanging on a scaffold years after the Revolutionary War had ended? That’s a good question, and here’s the answer:

Thomas Paine: Political Activist

After the American Revolution, Paine traveled to France in an effort to secure continued French support for the fledgling United States of America. There, he hooked up with the Republican Society, which had a stated aim of overthrowing the monarchy and establishing a Republic. So involved was Paine in the movement that a manifesto he wrote demanding the abdication of the king was plastered across Paris. But Paine didn’t stop there. By 1791 he landed in the crosshairs of the British government after he made a speech before the Revolution Society in London toasting “The Revolution of the World.” While a campaign to lynch Paine was initiated in England, he was able to escape to France before the authorities could arrest him for sedition. He narrowly escaped execution in France after he was able to prove that he was an American and not British.

Graded By PCGS In Choice Uncirculated Condition

This historical copper token is graded by the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) as being in Choice Uncirculated Mint State-63 (MS63) condition. According to the current PCGS population report, only five of this issue are graded, and this token is the second highest graded and finest known at PCGS. It also comes with a Brown (BN) designation. Natural oxidation affects all copper coins over time, transforming their original orange/red color to a dark tone. To accurately grade these pennies, one needs to describe the surface color. A “BN” or Brown grade means the surface has reacted with the atmosphere to the extent that the coin is almost entirely a chocolate brown color.

Though it’s not dated, this Half Penny Token is well over two centuries old. How has it been preserved in this condition for that long is anyone’s guess? We have only one available, so if you want it in your collection, you know what to do!