BRITISH 18TH CENTURY TOKENS, ENGLAND, Skidmore, Copper Halfpenny mule, obv shield of arms between laurel branches, date 17 91 divided by the shield, HALFPENNY above, rev head of a man and ass conjoined, ODD * FELLOWS * A MILLION HOGG 1795 A GUINEA . PIG around, edge plain (D&H Worcestershire 30). A couple of spots of verdigris, otherwise nearly good extremely fine and very rare.
ex Dudman Collection
Founded by John Skidmore (1748-1823) and later joined by his second son, Paul (b. 1775) in 1795 or 1796. They carried on an iron-foundry and held the appointment of stovegrate maker to His Majesty's Board of Ordnance. The company produced numerous tokens, ultimately responsible for more than a quarter of all the token varieties produced in the late 18th Century, including those issued by Matthew Denton, Thomas Prattent, and Thomas Spence.
Estimate: £100-150