Catalog
1 Penny - Morris Marks Auckland
| Issuer | Morris Marks |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Trade tokens (1857-1881) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Plain field enclosed by two concentric raised rings with a beaded outer border. Within the inner ring, three raised ovals are arranged in the traditional pawnbroker's pattern: one oval positioned centrally in the upper half and two ovals side by side in the lower half, replicating the internationally recognised three-ball symbol of the pawnbroking trade rendered here in flattened oval form. The overall design is simple and uncluttered, with no additional lettering or devices. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | ND - A341/R337 |
| Additional information |
Morris Marks operated as a general merchant in Auckland during the 1850s–1860s, a period when the colonial currency supply in New Zealand was chronically inadequate for small retail transactions. Private traders routinely commissioned token coinage from British die-sinkers — most Auckland pieces of this type were struck in Birmingham — to fill the gap. The Andrews, Robb, and Gray references all cataloging this piece reflect decades of competing New Zealand token scholarship that has never fully resolved into a single authoritative census.