(1838) Copper Token HT-81A, Am I Not A Woman

Coin Details

Auction Record

$1,140 MS62BN 08-22-2018 Stack's Bowers

Description

This copper anti-slavery token features a kneeling African American woman in chains with arms raised in supplication, surrounded by the inscription "AM I NOT A WOMAN & A SISTER." The reverse reads "LIBERTY 1838" within a wreath with "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA." Commissioned by the American Anti-Slavery Society in New York, this is among the most historically significant Hard Times tokens. The design directly adapts Josiah Wedgwood's famous British anti-slavery medallion "Am I Not a Man and a Brother" (1787), but modifies the gender to highlight the specific plight of enslaved women. The female variant emphasized the sexual exploitation, family separations, and particular indignities suffered by enslaved women—issues that abolitionists increasingly foregrounded in their arguments during the 1830s. This variety (HT-81A) represents a different die pairing from the primary HT-81 issue. The "Am I Not a Woman" tokens were struck by a New Jersey firm and released into general circulation, where they served simultaneously as cent substitutes during the coin shortage and as portable abolitionist propaganda. They are among the most sought-after Hard Times tokens, collected by numismatists, Americana enthusiasts, and specialists in African American history.

Rarity Notes

Scarce. Die variety of the anti-slavery abolitionist token. Historically significant.

Cross References

Rulau HT-81A, Low-54, DeWitt-CE-1838-19