Coffee Mills Tokens
The majority of the copper tokens were issued by Coffee Mills in Ceylon during the years when there was a dearth of small change prior to 1870. A minority were struck later until the early 1880's. When the decimal currency system was introduced in 1869 and coins expressed in cents or divisions came into circulation in 1872, the need for special tokens or tallies decreased and by the year 1890 the majority of the estates and firms were using the legal coin. No copper tokens were ever struck for the Government factories.
Coffee-Planting in Ceylon is described in article published in 1851 June by Harper's Magazine, New York.
In 1889, J. Atkins included 5 specimens in his list. In 1895, Lt. Col. B. Lowsley cataloged 43 in his monograph on the Coins and Tokens of Ceylon which appeared in the Numismatic Chronicle. In 1940 and 1945, Sidney K. Eastwood lists 47 in Numisma which was privately printed in Pittsburgh. In 1953 Scaife of Pittsburgh lists 65 in a series of articles in the ANA Numismatist. In 1961 Pridmore catalogs 120 of which the extra are mostly of local fabrication. Only about a dozen have mint dates. Mitchiner lists a subset of 15 pieces struck in well equipped mints in England or India and are listed below with a few more. The other dates give below are from published records if available.
1843< George Steuart & Co., GS&Co counter-mark 1828 Half-Farthing coin
1853 Alistons, Scott, & Co. Columbo token
1858 J. P. Green & Co. Colpetty Mills token
1859 A & B Scott & Co, Borella Mills token
1860 Darley, Butler & Co., Colombo, Ceylon token
1866 Keir, Dundas & Co. Kandy tortoise tokens; Ship token; elephant token
1866 Ceylon Company Limited, St. Sebastian Mills A token; B token; C token
1867 Lee Hedges & Co, Colpetty Mills token
1868 J. M. Robertson & Co. Vauxhall Mills token; Oil Yard token
186? Unknown M.D.D.&Co. tokens; G.R.P.&Co. token
186? Pilo Fernando Mill at Slave Island 2D¼ token; 4D½ token
1872 G. & W. Leechman, Hultsdorf Mills token Vulcanite
1873 Carey Strachan & Co., Union Mills token
1876 James Perera Jayatilleka, token
1876 Lee Hedges & Co, Demattagodde Mills token
1876 Colombo Commercial Co. Ltd., Slave Island Mills token
1877 Sabonadière & Co., Ambewatte Mills token
1881 George Steuart & Co., Wekanda Mills token
See also
184? A. A. 3-Anna token (Indian)
As Tea cultivation took over from coffee, the old mills were pulled down or converted to other purposes such as pressing cinchona and balking and packing tea and cocoa.
Scaife(1953) says he was fortunate to aquire many of his specimens from a comprehensive collection formed by Mr R. H. Bassett, of Kandy, and of the Ceylon Civil Service, where he was Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. Mr Bassett stated that during 1932 he had agents combing all of the former coffee plantations and other areas in his behalf, so as to obtain as many specimens and varieties as possible.
Pridmore in the Ceylon section of his catalog Lists Lowsley(1895), Sidney Eastwood(1940) and Verner Scaife(1953) in bibliography while acknowledging William Woodside. I find it an interesting coincidence that the last three numismatists named are from Pittsburgh, USA where I presently reside and purchased the first few Ceylon Coffee Tokens for this Collection in 1998. I have reason to believe that most of the Coffee Tokens I have purchased in Pittsburgh came from their collections.
These tokens are difficult to find in nice condition useful for scans. In addition to being interested in purchasing tokens from any dealer at an affordable price, I also welcome contributions from any collector of 300 dpi images of tokens not posted at this website.
The tokens linked with italics are to images contributed to this site and I still need to purchase for this collection.
Bob Lyall a collector in UK who knew Fred Pridmore fairly well, informs me in 2002 October that he has 70+ pieces, mostly lacking the locally made pieces that I think Fred got when stationed in Ceylon during his army career. I hope I will be able to get scans of these tokens from this collection to complete this website.
Reference
* Coins and Tokens of Ceylon, Lieut. by Col B. Lowsley, 1895; Num. Chron. Sr III Vol. XV
* Coffee Tokens of Ceylon by Sidney K. Eastwood, 1940 and 1945; Numisma Vol 1 #3 and #5
* British Colonial Coins and Tokens J. Verner Scaife Jr. 1953, The Numismatist Vol 66 #8 814-822 ; #9 926-931
* The Coins of British Commonwealth of Nations to the end of the reign of George VI 1952
Part 2 - Asian Territories by F. Pridmore, 1965, Spink & Son Ltd., Tokens
* Oriental Coins AD 600 - 1979 by Michael Mitchiner 1979
Tokens put online at LakdivcCoins Collection website.