(1787) Token Indian - Eagle Bolen Copy

Coin Details

Description

This copper token is a Bolen copy of the 1787 Indian - Eagle colonial pattern, produced by John Adams Bolen of Springfield, Massachusetts. Bolen created faithful reproductions of scarce early American coins and tokens during the 1860s-1870s, driven by collector demand for pieces that were already rare and expensive during his lifetime. The Indian - Eagle design references one of the many speculative coppers produced during the Confederation period when private minters filled the vacuum left by the absence of a national coinage system. Bolen's copies were made transparently and without intent to deceive, distinguishing his work from that of contemporary counterfeiters. He maintained careful records of his die combinations and the quantities struck in each metal, typically producing only small runs in copper, brass, white metal, and occasionally silver. The "1787" date reflects the original colonial issue being copied rather than Bolen's production date. Bolen copies occupy a unique niche in American numismatics, valued both as examples of nineteenth-century die-sinking craftsmanship and as accessible stand-ins for colonial rarities that remain beyond most collectors' reach.

Rarity Notes

J.A. Bolen copy, produced in very small quantities. Bolen typically struck fewer than 25 pieces per metal for his colonial reproductions. Collected both as Bolen productions and as representatives of the original colonial type.

Cross References

PCGS #881770; Bolen copy of 1787 Indian - Eagle