G.W. asks: I have an old coin I inherited and I would like to know about it. It is gold in colour, 2.5cm in diameter and quite thin. On one side is has “Georgivs III Dei Gratia”. On the other it has “A. Fattorini”, “Goldsmith” and “Harrogate”
Great Britain went through an economic and political upheaval during the period of 1790 to about 1812. The emergency money produced by private companies and even individuals was cataloged by James Condor and was first published in 1798. It wasn’t until 1892 that this body of information was formally updated.
The tokens were half penny and penny size and were used as these denominations in lieu of money from the government. The tokens became almost a directory of all the names of the small towns in England as well as a record of historical events and political attitudes of the time.
Years after the Condor tokens, jewelers sold them as nostalgia or as badges of the Town mentioned on the token. Your piece sounds like a bronze token that has been gold plated. It is signed by the jeweler and has his location, Harrogate, probably in London. Though this token is probably not a Condor piece, though it follows the style, it might have been made to commemorate the death of George III in 1820.