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V16 2013 INDEX       E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 16, Number 5, February 3, 2013, Article 17

A THEORY ON THE 1811-DATED "OIE DIOE" TOKEN

OIEDIOE token obverse OIEDIOE token reverse

From Budapest Dave Hirt writes:

I have been following the story on John Kraljevich's 1811-dated "DIOE" token. Great buy John - congratulations. It is interesting how numismatic items lost for years turn up again. I wish I was at home to check my JNT Levick sale of May, 1884 to see if that token was there. When it came to tokens, that sale had everything, and to see how W E Woodward cataloged it.

Dave Lange writes:

I should have written last week, but I waited to see what others would say about John Kraljevich's token. Since no one had an opinion, I'll throw out mine.

The style of the leaves and some of the letters/numerals look very similar to what I've seen many times on California fractional gold pieces of Periods 2 and 3. It may be that this token was just a trial piece made by some late-19th Century die sinker to test his punches. The 1811 date would thus be fictitious, too.

Sounds like a reasonable theory. So I asked Bob Leonard, who's very familiar with the California fractional gold pieces. -Editor

Bob Leonard writes:

I don't believe that there is the least connection between this dime-size item and the gold dollar-size and smaller California gold pieces. I agree with Henry Chapman that it is of the 1835-1840 period because of the German silver/Feuchtwanger composition. Since it is dime size, I take the inscription to be intended for ONE DIME, either very badly punched in or deliberately blundered to avoid problems with the Treasury Department after the suppression of Hard Times tokens in 1838.

Perhaps the snake and 1811 is a tavern sign, which would be recognized by its patrons. If this token is ever to be attributed, we will need to find what part of the country (as exactly as possible) it comes from. Rural New York is a good place to start.

Thanks, guys. Evidence is scant. Other theories are welcome. Maybe someday some evidence will appear; on the other hand, this could remain another Unsolved Mystery of numismatics. At least we can have some fun trying to puzzle it out. -Editor

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: MORE ON THE 1811-DATED "OIE DIOE" TOKEN (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n04a15.html)

THE BOOK BAZARRE

Introducing the Almanac of United States Coins: an entertaining, richly illustrated guide to coin collecting, from Whitman Publishing. 192 pages, softcover, perfectbound, full color. Order your copy for $9.95 at Whitman.com or call 800-546-2995.


Wayne Homren, Editor

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The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com

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