(1837) Token WS C/M on HT-56 Copper Phoenix-Not One Cent

Coin Details

Description

This 1837 copper token features a phoenix rising from flames, one of the most visually dramatic designs in the Hard Times Token series. The phoenix — a mythological bird that dies in fire and is reborn from its own ashes — symbolized the hope for economic recovery and the resumption of specie payments following the Panic of 1837. The phoenix imagery had particular relevance to the financial crisis. The suspension of specie payments on May 10, 1837, and the subsequent failure of hundreds of banks across the country left the nation's monetary system in ruins. The "shin plasters" — small-denomination paper notes issued by banks, merchants, and municipalities as emergency currency — were widely distrusted and frequently worthless. The phoenix on this token suggested that from the ashes of the collapsed paper money system, a sound metallic currency would eventually arise. The "SUBSTITUTE FOR SHIN PLASTERS" inscription that appears on some Phoenix tokens directly declared the token's function: it was offered as a reliable metallic alternative to the unreliable paper currency flooding the market. Unlike a banknote, which was only as good as the issuing bank's solvency, a copper token had intrinsic value as metal and could be evaluated by its weight and appearance rather than by trust in an institution.

Rarity Notes

Common. The Phoenix/Shin Plasters design is one of the more frequently encountered political Hard Times Tokens.

Cross References

Low 46; Rulau HT-56