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More on Tokens: War Between The States People rarely supply children and money to Governments for war making. The Bankers running government usually develop some false pretext for war, and then develop ponzi, pyramid and taxation schemes to fund the war. During the US War between the States, both the South and the North resorted to use of paper currency (scrip) instead of honest money (gold and silver). The honest money became so scarce that it barely circulated. Criminal bankers and local governments began to issue paper money. Local and Regional Banks issued wildcat bank notes derisively called 'shinplasters'. The US government tried to fool the people with paper money scrip and even postage currency ('encased postage'). Naturally, the people realized this paper scrip issued by banks and government was worthless paper promises that would never be redeemed. So, the citizenry began to introduce 'store cards' and 'civil war tokens'. These store cards and tokens were like small coins, made of brass and/or copper, typically with the name of a merchant on the obverse and denomination and design on the reverse. These token 'store cards' served both as advertisements and as a medium of exchange. Here is a great resource for the Civil War Era Tokens: http://indiancent.wikispaces.com/Civil+War+Tokens Western Expansion The United States experienced a large growth spurt, especially in Western United States, between the end of the War Between the States (1865) and the beginning of the Great Depression (1929). During these times, the demand for currency was larger than the supply, especially for coinage. The discoveries of gold in California helped the US Mint produce gold coinage, but that was in larger denominations - those typically not used in day-to-day transactions. 'Good For', 'Trade', and 'Merchant' tokens were produced by private firms, underwritten by the merchant, to exchange for a fixed price of goods or services. This stimulated the merchant's business (and served as advertising) by providing a medium of exchange that previously did not exist whereby a prospective customer could purchase a good or service without having to cash in a one dollar gold coin. During the Renaissance artists produced unique tokens and medals when sponsored by wealthy merchants and landowners. The tokens would sometimes represent busts or portraits of the sponsors or their loved ones. Other tokens, or one side of the portrait token, would look similar to themes or designs used by the Romans so that the public would recognize the familiarity and be more disposed to purchasing (or at least admiring) the coin. These artists, and their sponsors, would offer the tokens and medals as 'tokens of appreciation' (now you know where the phrase originates) when esteemed visitors would visit the estate of the sponsors. Other times the artists or sponsors would provide the token along with a small gift or letter to other friends and family. EROTIC TOKENS - EXOTIC TOKENS - NAUGHTY TOKENS - ZODIAC TOKENS - SEX TOKENS We've received a number of emails interested in and inquiring about the exotic tokens/erotic tokens listed here. Erotic Tokens or Brass Checks (or cheques) were most recently (typically) used by entertainment emporiums as ‘good for’ some service, typically an entry to a show. The majority of erotic tokens (also known as 'burlesque', 'adult' or 'exotic' tokens) I have listed are likely from the early 1970s and would have been used in peep show arcades, usually in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Our original stock was from an estate we purchased lot via a dealer from Santa Cruz, Ca where a woman collected these coins in the late 1970's and early 1980s. Based on her inventory and pricing we established a basic, if imprecise, determination on the relative rarity/value of these tokens. "Good For" tokens, even ones for erotic service, have been around for many centuries. The Romans called them Spintriae See some examples here: http://www.antiquanova.com/erotictokens.htm The Romans produced about 13 distinct and different styles of these erotic tokens, their exact use has not been written down for our benefit, and one can only speculate regarding their particular use or value. The reverse of these tokens typically had a Roman Numeral. Modern erotic tokens have incorporated these designs; often the obverse of the modern token is one of the thirteen original designs and the reverse represents one sign of the zodiac - a fitting pattern since the zodiac has twelve symbols and well matches closely to the number of the 12 original obverse designs. Erotic tokens are just a subset of “good for” token. These chits substituted for currency. In many boom towns on the frontier actual coinage was in short supply. Hence, merchants would use issue tokens good for trade in their store. These also served as coupons and advertising. Also, use of privately issued coinage would enable the merchant to minimize or even evade paying taxes. Brothels have always been a good place to launder money for services and avoid the taxman. The IRS actually operated a brothel that it took from Joe Conforte for tax evasion, once in the 1980s and once in the 1990s. Tokens tell a fascinating tale of mercantilism. We currently have in stock one brothel token (The Den - Goldfield, Nv) and have seen many more. Eventually the public brothels disappeared from most towns (except in Nevada) and the tokens lived on through use in the peep show machines of the early 1900s, and later, the adult bookstores. Beginning in the 1990's the bookstores began replacing machines that accepted tokens with machines that only accepted dollar bills. Hence, the use of erotic tokens has stopped, by and large, and are therefore no longer being produced and have become obsolete. Another Theory This a great paper where the author speculates that the roman tokens were actually gambling markers: http://www.uq.edu.au/economics/hetsa/Fishburn%20final.pdf UPDATE (May 2008): Now that our curiosity was piqued, in May 2008 we went to some of the adult emporiums, bookstores, and theatres in the City of San Francisco (only to look inside the cash register, or course). There were only two stores left in the city that still used tokens (all the rest have gone to paper money or credit cards). And these stores will only use tokens for another two months until they switch over to the more modern machines. Therefore, the era of erotic tokens has ended. Even among the common modern tokens, their demise in nigh. We've learned quite a bit about the use, scarcity factor and number of erotic tokens over the past couple years and are happy to share this information here at CoinMine.com. We haven't found this information published anywhere else. Say, why not buy a set of erotic tokens from CoinMine, making them your own and starting a new collection that should be good for a few jokes around the Thanksgiving table. UPDATE (October 2008): As of October 2008 we can find no emporiums in California which use tokens. That era is gone (and frankly I am not that interested in going into those neighborhoods anymore). We understand that the Le Sex Shoppe in Los Angeles, Le Sex Shop in Chicago, and The Machine Shop and Gold Coast on Clark Street in Chicago are all long closed. UPDATE (November 2008): Our trip to the Santa Clara coin show was most fortuitous. We met up with the same dealer who originally sold us the lot from the Santa Cruz estate. We bought the first lot from him at the same Santa Clara show in 2005. This time he said this was about everything he had from that estate. There are some new tokens that were not in the original lot, although much of the stock is duplicate material. It is good to have new inventory, though we have no idea where we will replace the stock. We have begun to catalogue all the pictures we have taken of the tokens we have sold to date. Perhaps someday we can publish a small pamphlet on these Erotic Tokens! In the Zodiac series, what we have learned is that the four hardest tokens to accumulate are Virgo, Scorpio, Sagittarius and Pisces. In the Erotic Pose token series we have learned the two rarest tokens are Friendly/Creative and Definitive/Humanitarian. Here is a list of all the known combinations as submitted by a kind reader:
Aware/Active
Friendly/Creative
Professional/Active
Active-Creative Creative/Ingenious Definitive/Humanitarian Versatile/Fearless Provider/Humanitarian The number of times a trait is mentioned:
Aware- 5 FANTASY TOKENS We have stocked and sold 'fantasy tokens' or 'fantasy pieces'. These are copies, or reproductions, of actual tokens that had previously served in commerce at saloon, bawdy houses, and houses of ill repute throughout the western united states. Some of these are marked 'copy' on the token, and some aren't. A few of the places represented:
China Doll Saloon - San Francisco, Ca
Dotty's House - Poverty Hill, CA
Fat Ann's - Carson City, Nv
Gem Saloon - Tombstone, Az Terr.
Hap's Bath House - New York
Hungry Eye Saloon - Chicago, Il
Lillie's Saloon - Hangtown, Ca
Long Branch Saloon - Dodge City, Ks
Octagon Saloon - Los Angeles, Ca
The Octoroon - Los Angeles, Ca
Poke of Gold Saloon - Folsom, Ca
Silver Dollar Saloon - Denver, Co
Slim's Palace - San Francisco, Ca
Southern Belle Saloon
Stella's Saloon - Virginia City, Nv
Swede Saloon - Yuma, Az Uncle Sam Hotel - Yuma, Az Terr.
More on Tax Tokens:
Nowadays most folks don't give a second thought to paying taxes on
purchases since the tax is charged at the same time and is just 'the
cost of doing business'. It wasn't always that way, however.
Currently the federal and state governments force merchant to charge a
percentage of the transaction as a sales tax directly into the
transactions, in dollar amounts. Previously the state wasn't
authorized (by the people) to do such, and they would charge a 'token'
tax, representing both the type of transaction type - as a physical
token - and the supposed pittance of the tax (which originally started
as a nominally small amount such as one-half of one percent but - like
most other taxes - have grown enormously to support the bureaucracy - and in most states now are
between 4% - 7.75%. This fixed state (and city) tax was conducted as
a transaction, separate from the sale. That is, the merchant would
charge you a dollar for a box of nails, and then separately charge a
token for the tax. Some 'vice' consumer goods, such as tobacco and
liquor, had their own special type of tax - the revenue tax - which was
actually a type of stamp affixed to the package/container showing that
the goods dealer did indeed give the state a cut of the action. Of
course, as is currently done, the tax is built into the transaction in
hopes the consumer will not even notice the ever-creeping tax rate.
Additionally, some states - such as Alabama and Louisiana- had a
separate Luxury tax paid by token "for the Public Welfare" of course. This is similar to how the feds charge an income
tax. For many decades, when the citizenry was strong, they would not
even allow the central government to charge a tax on wages. The
first few feeble attempts by the corrupt senators was roundly and
soundly defeated by the (at the time) relatively honest supreme court.
Of course over time the corrupt power brokers sacked the honest court
judges and eventually we ended up (through a combination of avarice and
apathy) a corrupt judicial branch willing to enforce the wage levy.
However, notice that today the income/wage tax is taken right off the
top. The government requires your employer to set aside their cut before
you even see it in your paycheck. They make sure they get paid first.
Should they try to pry the money from your hands or bank account twice a
month they realize that would set the people in a bitter mood, so it is:
"Out of sight, out of mind".
Many
counties/townships/etc use the term mil levy to refer to their property
taxes. A 'mil' is 1/1000 of a dollar, or 1/10th of a cent. (Now you know
where the term 'good for 1/10 cent' comes from as seen on your typical
coupon for consumer goods at the grocery store). Sales tax tokens were used from
the 1920's until the1940's to collect tax that was equal to or less than
1 cent. Some cities and counties independently issued tax tokens
in addition to, or instead of, the state tax. Also, the states
would occasionally issue these tax tokens to support particular funds
in lieu of bonds such as 'old age' funds, emergency relief funds, luxury
tax, and widows and orphans funds. Issuing these tokens proved a
valuable way - before the age of computers - to keep track of where
sales taxes should be distributed, the matter was as simple as
collecting the tax tokens form vendors and distributing tax funds
accordingly. They were only used in about eleven states.
California and West Virginia tax tokens are very scarce; we have the
other states listed in our inventory.
Candy/Confection Tokens In the 1920s and 30s when gambling was illegal, slot machines (and pinball bingo machines) would pay tokens to get around the gambling laws. Mills, Jennings and other slot machines used these tokens instead of coinage.
Hence, they were pretty common back then and still are pretty common today.
Amusement Arcade Tokens There are many different designs of amusement arcade tokens. Merchants began using them in the 1920s and you can still find them in use today all throughout the world.
Mardi Gras Tokens Special Thanks to Remdor Collectibles for this description:
If it Isn't a Token, what IS It? (The Wonderful World of Exonumia) You might have a "So Called Dollar", a "Fantasy Piece" or even a Medal. Find out more information on Medals here: http://www.maineantiquedigest.com/medals/medals_collector.htm But be careful, as there are counterfeits out there: http://www.exonumia.com/fakes.htm Great Token Site: http://www.chicagocoinclub.org/projects/PiN/cut.html Or, Maybe you have a 'Civil War Token', or a 'Store Card' or a 'Patriotic Token':
http://cwt.michigano.org/
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