Baldwin & Sons
Auction 102 4 October 2016
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BRITISH 18TH CENTURY TOKENS, ENGLAND, John Ottley, White Metal Penny mule, obv Guildhall, GUILD – HALL, with LONDON . MDCCXCVI in exergue, rev a building, BANK OF ENGLAND above, ERECTED 1734 in exergue, edge plain (D&H unlisted, Davisson as D&H Middlesex 42bis). Struck from lightly rusted dies, essentially as made and unique.
ex W J Davis Collection
ex S H Hamer Collection
ex F S Cokayne Collection, acquired 26 November 1930
This enigmatic token, and the five following, represent six of the seven known examples of Kempson's original dies muled and struck on white metal planchets. Generally accepted as not contemporary, it is thus quite unlikely that they were made by Kempson who quit the business in the late 1790s. While some of his stock and trade likely passed to William Lutwyche, a number of dies ultimately came into the possession of John Ottley who cut new dies that were paired with some of those from Kempson's Penny and Halfpenny building series'. While this group has not yet been directly traced to John Ottley, it would seem that they are more likely to be attributed to him than to Lutwyche or, perhaps, others.
Estimate: £300-500
ex W J Davis Collection
ex S H Hamer Collection
ex F S Cokayne Collection, acquired 26 November 1930
This enigmatic token, and the five following, represent six of the seven known examples of Kempson's original dies muled and struck on white metal planchets. Generally accepted as not contemporary, it is thus quite unlikely that they were made by Kempson who quit the business in the late 1790s. While some of his stock and trade likely passed to William Lutwyche, a number of dies ultimately came into the possession of John Ottley who cut new dies that were paired with some of those from Kempson's Penny and Halfpenny building series'. While this group has not yet been directly traced to John Ottley, it would seem that they are more likely to be attributed to him than to Lutwyche or, perhaps, others.
Estimate: £300-500