1803 Die Trial - J-C1803-2, Kettle & Sons

Coin Details

Auction Record

$517 • MS63 • 03-29-2017 • Stack's Bowers

Description

This brass die trial is one of a series of pieces produced by Kettle & Sons, a die-sinking and token-manufacturing firm based on Suffolk Street in Birmingham, England. The Kettle business was founded during the 1780s by Henry Kettle, with his sons Thomas and William joining the operation around 1800. The firm specialized in producing gaming tokens — brass imitations of gold coins intended for use as gambling chips in English gaming houses. This particular piece is cataloged as a die trial rather than a finished token, meaning it represents a test impression from the dies before full production. The design closely imitates the contemporary American Capped Bust Right style used on early US gold coinage, featuring a Liberty portrait on the obverse that mirrors the work of Robert Scot at the Philadelphia Mint. Kettle tokens are historically significant as the earliest known imitations of American gold coin designs produced abroad. Because of their close resemblance to genuine US gold coins, unscrupulous individuals both in the 19th century and today have occasionally removed the KETTLE signature (found to the right of the date) and offered these pieces as authentic American gold coinage. Die trials are rarer than the finished gaming tokens, as they were working proofs retained by the manufacturer.

Rarity Notes

Very rare. Die trials from the Kettle firm survive in much smaller numbers than the gaming tokens themselves, which are already scarce.

Cross References

Judd-C1803-2 (formerly listed in Judd appendix; removed from 10th edition)