1/8 Penny Mac Gregor Laird

Descrizione del dritto	Central field divided vertically by a decorative stem, flanked by two ribbon banners bearing the motto SPERO MELIORA. The name LAIRD appears prominently in large raised letters across the upper portion of the coin. Below the banners, the denominations 1/8 PENNY and 1/400 DOLLAR are inscribed in two columns to the left and right of the dividing stem respectively. The date 1858 is positioned in the lower exergue in large numerals. The entire design is enclosed within a beaded border.
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Legenda del dritto	LAIRD SPERO MELIORA 1/8 PENNY 1/400 DOLLAR 1858 (Translation: I hope for better things)
Descrizione del rovescio	Accedi per vedere i dettagli
Scrittura del rovescio	Accedi per vedere i dettagli
Legenda del rovescio	Accedi per vedere i dettagli
Bordo	Accedi per vedere i dettagli
Zecca	Accedi per vedere i dettagli
Tiratura	Accedi per vedere i dettagli
Informazioni aggiuntive	Macgregor Laird was a Scottish shipbuilder and merchant who pioneered steam navigation on the Niger River, founding the African Steamship Company in 1852 and securing British mail contracts for West African routes. These tokens were almost certainly struck for use in trade along the West African coast, where small-denomination British coinage was chronically scarce and private merchant tokens filled the gap. Laird died in 1861, just three years after this piece was issued, leaving his trading operations to fold into broader imperial commercial networks.