A NEW UNITED SOUTH TOKEN DIE VARIETY

It's always great fun to discover something new, but to find two at the same time is exciting! A previously uncataloged reverse die has now brought to three the known varieties of the rare A UNITED SOUTH token. At just 12.9mm, they are slightly smaller than the 14mm US silver three-cent pieces.The obverse is silver with A UNITED SOUTH at top, 1861 below, and a Confederate flag in the center. The reverse has 15 stars around a cotton plant with stalk, leaves and bolls in center. With a mere dozen or so specimens known, the discovery of a new die variety is quite significant.

The two examples were brought to my attention by Mr. Jon Sullivan (www.sullivannumismatics.com) in an email about them. Jon also noted that the two specimens (shown here) had very faint reeded edges as opposed to the plain edges usually reported.

Over the years I've noted perhaps four or five of the B861-116, only one of the 116a, and now two of the 116b. Under the heading of "treasures are still out there", the ringed token shown was found by a metal detectorist near Stones River Battlefield in Tennessee!

A detailed history of the token may be found in Confederate Numismatica - Part 1 pg 37-38, available at www.ConfederateNumismatica.com .

Wayne Homren, Editor

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