1795 Talbot Allum & Lee - Plain Edge Cent

Coin Details

Description

Issued by the New York City mercantile firm of Talbot, Allum & Lee — importers of East India goods whose counting house stood at 241 Pearl Street — this 1795 cent-sized copper token is cataloged as Whitman 8630 and distinguished by its plain edge, contrasting with the lettered edge variant that bears the firm's advertising inscription. The obverse depicts a standing female figure (possibly Liberty or Commerce) holding a staff and cornucopia, while the reverse shows a fully rigged sailing ship, representing the firm's involvement in international maritime trade. Talbot, Allum & Lee tokens were struck at the Birmingham, England, mint of Peter Kempson and imported to New York for circulation as cent-equivalent pieces, capitalizing on the new federal Mint's inability to produce sufficient copper coinage to meet commercial demand in the mid-1790s. Struck in copper, the token weighs approximately 10.5 grams with a 29 mm diameter and the plain edge that defines this variety. The plain edge is scarcer than the lettered edge version, as the lettered edge type was the primary production variant. These tokens circulated widely in New York and were even accepted at the federal Mint in exchange for officially struck cents — a remarkable testament to the quality of their manufacture and the practical necessity of supplementing official coinage during the Mint's early years. The Talbot, Allum & Lee tokens are among the finest products of the late-eighteenth-century English token industry and rank alongside the Mott tokens and Kentucky tokens as premier examples of privately issued American trade coinage.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Plain edge variety.

Cross References

Whitman 8630