Scarce Emergency Coinage Piece Discovered On Battle Site

It may be hard to imagine today, but there were times in American history when small-denomination coins such as quarters and cents were in very short supply. With a lack of smaller denominations to make change, it was very difficult for commerce to operate normally. It was not as simple as just going to the store with $1 and knowing that you would easily get the change you needed for a smaller purchase--the store (or you) might not have the change necessary! This resulted in the production of Cent-sized tokens and other emergency measures, such as cutting down larger coins.

In particular, cut-down silver coins were common to see in circulation in the Colonial period and the early 1800s. While the US Mint eventually formed and started making Half Cents, Cents, and other coins in the 1790s, many coins were in short supply. Cut down coins started their life as a larger piece, such as Spanish 8 Reales (a silver dollar-sized coin that was often used in the American colonies in the 1700s and 1800s). These coins were cut into segments to make change.

At times, local authorities would stamp their mark onto these cut-down coins. The Planters Bank is one such group, and their pieces are popular among collectors today. The Planters Bank counterstamped their mark onto both sides of these silver coin segments to add an air of authority.

As Heritage Auctions catalogers explain, "Circulating small change was in critically short supply throughout the South in the early 1800s, when cut 'two bits' pieces served as a stop-gap solution, taking the place of U.S. quarter dollars. In particular, Planters Bank of New Orleans was in dire need of quarters."

Existing crenate (scalloped) segments cut from 8 reales were removed from circulation and verified by the bank as an anti-counterfeiting measure. Circular countermarks were struck on both the obverse and reverse - an elaborate script P.B. within a chain-link circle on the obverse, and NOUVELLE ORLEANS surrounding an eagle on the reverse (eagle's head under V). In subsequent years, Planters Bank supplied large shipments of bullion to the Philadelphia Mint in exchange for freshly minted federal quarters dated 1815 and 1825."

One such piece was discovered by a Heritage client, who enjoys metal detecting. He found it in 1991 on land where the Battle of New Orleans had taken place in 1815! It was discovered alongside musket balls and other remnants of the battle.

While we may never know if the cut segment with the Planter's Bank mark was originally carried by a British soldier or the Americans, this piece has great provenance given its discovery site. It has been consigned to the August ANA US Coin Auction #1318 and should be popular with coin as well as historical collectors! Similar pieces have sold in the $5,000 and up range in the past, but most of those do not have such a great story.

See the piece for yourself here:
https://coins.ha.com/itm/other/other-collectibles/coming-soon-/p/1318-66001.s

To read about the battle on Wikipedia, see:
Battle of New Orleans(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_New_Orleans)