(c.1860) Token Sage's Historical No. 5 Copper The Old Jersey

Coin Details

Description

Sage's Historical token number 5 in copper depicts the Old Jersey, a reference to the infamous British prison ship HMS Jersey that was anchored in Wallabout Bay off Brooklyn during the Revolutionary War. The Jersey and other prison ships held thousands of American prisoners of war in conditions so horrific that an estimated 11,500 captives perished aboard them — far more than died in any single battle of the Revolution. Bodies were buried in shallow graves along the Brooklyn shoreline, and their remains were later interred in the Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument in Fort Greene Park. The prison ship Jersey was one of the most reviled symbols of British cruelty during the war, and its inclusion in Sage's series reflects the enduring anger over the treatment of American prisoners that persisted well into the nineteenth century.

Rarity Notes

Copper striking. Prison ship Jersey is a powerful Revolutionary War subject. Higher PCGS number indicates later catalog addition.

Cross References

PCGS #969776; Sage's Historical Token No. 5, Cu, The Old Jersey