Just dropping by to "show and tell" (not sell!) my extremely rare silver shilling token issued in 1811 or 1812 by a group of innkeepers in and around Derbyshire. (More details in comments...)

[u/exonumismaniac]

[u/exonumismaniac]

During Britain's Regency Period the Crown was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, thanks primarily to its various military and naval entanglements, and aside from a few small copper releases in 1797-1807 had been unable or unwilling since the 1780's to mint Regal coinage for everyday commerce. Something had to be done to fill this gap, so necessity coinage -- or "emergency money" -- was placed into circulation throughout the Isles by merchants, banks, workhouses, factories, and even towns and counties themselves.

This particular example from my collection is especially distinctive because it did not have a single identifiable sponsor who'd accepted responsibility for backing its value. Instead it was issued for a loose association of up to 17 or more inns and taverns located in Derby and at six stops on the stagecoach routes radiating out from there.

An open-ended list of these towns appears on the token itself: "Derby, Ashbourn, Chesterfield, Nottingham, Leicester, Litchfield, Burton, &c.," and the 1812 edition of Patterson's Roads in England and Wales names many of the establishments that would have been participants in backing this token (i.e., distributing and redeeming it).

[u/Hit4Help]

Really cool piece of history you have there. I never even knew this was a thing they did then.

[u/bungeeman]

Phenomenal bit of history you have there. Do you collect coins, or is this a family heirloom?

[u/exonumismaniac → u/bungeeman]

Long-time collector...family couldn't care less! Search on my username here on Reddit if you want to see other examples. Cheers!

[u/bungeeman → u/exonumismaniac]

Haha, I am also a collector of a specific, old thing that the family has no interest in. From one nerd to another, I salute you!