A glimpse of seventeenth century St Thomas
Farthing token issued in St Thomas in 1666
From the collections at Plymouth Museum, RAMM No. A3363
Detail from 1666 token: woolcombers at work
From the collections at Plymouth Museum, RAMM No. A3363
Reverse of token from St Thomas in 1666
From the collections at Plymouth Museum, RAMM No. A3363
A trade token with woolcombers, issued by David Hart
By RAMM Curatorial team
This is a trade token. The scene on the token shows people working in front of a house. It is believed that they are woolcombers drawing wool through their long-toothed combs. The other side of the token shows one of these woolcombs. The words say "David Hart of St Thomas 1666".
There was a shortage of coinage during and after the English Civil War. Tokens like this were issued in many places across England by rich traders. David Hart of St Thomas is the trader who issued this token. They weren't strictly legal but they were used locally in place of small change. It is one of many which were used, especially by poorer people. This token had the value of one farthing - a fourth(ing) of a penny.
How much was it worth?
The Kingston Museum website reveals that enough fine woollen cloth to make a doublet cost 10 farthings in Kingston (near London) at this time. Some of the cloth on sale in Kingston probably came from around Exeter! If you want to find out more about the value of money in the seventeenth century try this: Can you afford Cromwell's party?
Another trade token
There is another trade token from St Thomas in the RAMM collection. That one was issued by William Snow (Accession No. 300/1988/E40).