(to see the "Griqua Town patterns"
click on image right)
The "Griqua town token coins" never circulated in the interior of South
Africa between 1815 to 1820 or at any other time. While these Griqua
Town token coins do exist they were not used as currency by the Griquas at
any time. They were, unlike their 1890
pattern counterparts, simply failed tokens that the Griqua refused to accept
in about 1820
- (to see the "Griqua Town patterns"
click on image right)
They have no real numismatic value and little direct relevance to South African coinage. They were minted in the UK and most likely never left the canvas bag they arrived in until long after 1820. Their entire association with S African numismatics is a complete fabrication - largely protected by those who have most to lose (ie collectors who hold a few of these pieces). As a result of this fabrication high prices are sought for these pattern pieces which have no real value. A very bad investment in what is nothing more than a novelty piece.
| The Cape Coloured People
1652-1932 by J S Marais, is a lengthy and well researched work (over
60 books referenced). The book includes a detailed report on the Griquas
at Griqua Town (Chapter II pgs 32-73) but makes no reference
to any coinage being used there. Marais, the Professor of History
at the University of the Witwatersrand, refers at length to Campbell's book
and the meeting where the Bastards adopted the name "Griqua", incorporated
new laws and in which Campbell mentions the idea of coins. It is clear that
Marais had, by his omission, completely discounted the theory that Griqua
town token coins had ever circulated at Griquatown. This observation is supported
by Marais' own commentary in the book that between 1814 and 1820 Griqua
Town was a "ghost town".
The 1947 book by Senator D H van Zyl "'n Griekwa "ietsigeit" incorrectly states that the coins were issued in 1874 as patterns. |
Fifty factually supported reasons why the Griqtown token coins never circulated:
The "1815/16" (should be 1820) Griqua town token coins have
no demonstrable relevance to South African numismatics at all.
There is no date on these coins, this is common to patterns and token coins - no one is sure when they were minted.
The London Missionary Society's report 1815-16 states that there was
"no money in Griquatown" -
source here.
It is probable Rev Campbell brought these coins to South Africa in 1820 on his second trip.
There is no identifiable denomination on the coins (like other South African patterns of this time)
The bronze pieces are as rare or rarer than the silver pieces - common to pattern issues and making the concept of giving change a nonsense
There are several records of the Griqua town token coins being struck in other metals like gold and even others with a value of "100" - common to patterns - see images right and below.
Trade token coins issued in South Africa from 1860 (such as
Durban Club;
Strachan and Co) to 1932 all carried values
based on British currency - such as 3d, 6d, 1/- and 2/-.
Practical issues with the Griqua town token coins
The gap between the "IIIII" in silver and the 1/2 in bronze requires ten coins to change one silver - a nonsense, no currency has a gap this big
Read Scott's view on the values here.The coins had no parity with British coins or the Rijksdaalder making them useless.
There was no store at Griquatown in 1815/16
There was no bank at Griquatown in 1815/16
There was nothing on which to base their introduction into the community at Griquatown
The London Missionary Society's resident missionary at Griquatown, Anderson, gave the great majority of the coins to Rev Helm in 1820. Helm complained at this time that the Griquas refused to accept them - source here.
Traders south of the Orange River refused to accept the coins making them worthless - source here.
The entire "trade" of the Griquas (spread throughout
the region) was worth only
ZAR100 per annum - even this figure
(by Campbell's own admission is exaggerated).
Reference to trade claim "From Barter to
Barclays" by Eric
Rosenthal.
Even Campbell noted in his second trip in 1821 that regular trades did not exist in Griquatown
All trade in Griquatown at and after this time was by barter - as
described in various reports by Missionaries and
hunters
Image right: The Griqua 100 Pattern in bronze
Griqua Town was a "ghost town" in 1815/16 (the time it is alleged they "circulated as currency" - the population scattered in 1814. Campbell confirms just under Griqua 700 adults spread across the entire region in 1813 BEFORE they scattered.
The resident population of Griquatown scattered in 1814 and became nomadic after a major fall out with the missionary, Anderson. Less than 100 men, women and children remained. . See Rev Philips comments about this at this link.
The coins were not holed so could not be carried with their beads
around their necks - they would have been lost. Examples of holed copies
found today are those used as jewellery - but never circulated.
Lack of mention in contemporary records
There is no contemporary written record of the coins ever circulating at Griquatown (not even by the Missionaries Moffat, Philip, the resident missionary Anderson, Livingstone or Campbell or in the LMS Reports).
The coins were only issued after 1816 - as in the LMS report (1815-16) they talk about issuing silver token coins as there was no money in the region. (Source Karel Schoeman, "The Mission at Griquatown 1801 - 1821".)
Both Moffat and Campbell refer to Rix Dollars being occasionally accepted by Griquas when trading in the Cape before and after 1815/16
In Campbell's 1834 personally edited journal of his first trip he omits any reference to the Griquatown token coins (the 1815 book on Campbell's travels to South Africa is a transcript of his diary compiled on this same trip). His omission confirms the fantasy - details and scans at this link
Not one Griqua met by Balson know anything about these coins. (Balson has met with the leadership of all the main Griqua communities around S Africa in 2006 and 2007). The only leader to have heard about them was Waterboer at Griquatown and that is because of coin collectors approaching him in the past. (Griqua history is verbalised and past events are recorded in stories and fables passed down from father to son - none mention the Griquatown token coins).
The Rev John Philip accompanied Rev John Campbell on his second trip to South Africa - having been in the country from the early 1810s. In Volume Two of his 1828 book "Researches in South Africa" he quotes the London Missionary Society's William Anderson verbatim at length. Anderson while describing life at Griquatown makes NO REFERENCE AT ANY TIME to the "Griquatown token coins" (pg 57-62) during the key 1815-16 period. This evidence can be seen by going to Google Books at this link, searching on "Anderson" or the relevant extract copied to this website at this link.
Karel Schoeman's book on "The mission at Griquatown 1800-1821 based on extensive research into the London Missionary Society and Cape Archives reflects the fact that the coins were a dismal failure and never circulated.
Prof Arndt's 1928 book... The coins were of
four denominations, viz: ¼ and ½ in copper and IIIII and 10 in
silver. These were sent at a time whn these coloured people had not the slightest
notion of the advantages of a metallic currency. Moreover their entire trade
at the time di not even amount to fifty pounds per annum. Accordingly it
is not surprising that “the dove of peace soon flew away and the money
of which never a single farthing was in circulation accompanied
it”. The only permanent memorials of Campbell’s visit turned out
to be the names “Griqua” and “Griquatown”.
(Source: Prof Arndt (p 127)
"Banking and Currency Development
in South Africa 1652-1927").
Campbell, the weak man, prone to drinking and fantasizing
Moffat clearly slates Campbell as being a liar and "building castles in the air" and
states that Campbell was a drunk who, in this state, would fantasize, eg the diary note about introducing coins
Campbell admits he was prone to writing fantasy
The
Quarterly Review (1815) slammed Campbell's book as nothing more than
a largely inaccurate record of his trip. The 22 page review provides documentary
evidence of lies and distortions in the work in which Campbell flags the
idea of having coins made for the Griqua.
Interestingly, the use of the dove and olive branch
image, the emblem of the London Missionary Society, was first used
in the 1790s on token pieces issued for the London Corresponding Society
(LCS) run by a group of individuals wanting to reform the British Parliament
-
more on LCS at Wikipedia. The two groups were
closely aligned. These earlier tokens sell today for just a few dollars
(see image right).
The inability of the Griquas to use them
Without a store how and where would they have traded them?
The only place they could be traded was south of the Orange River and trading stores DID NOT recognise them - source here.
The Griquas were illiterate - could not read nor write - there was no school north of the Orange river
The Griquas could not count - they would not have known what to do with the coins or how to use them. (Let's get real. How could a Griqua understand fractions? A large percentage of today's "educated" adult population doesn't!)
The Griquas were inherently lazy and not industrious - their only activities were shepherding their livestock, hunting and barter.
The entire male population in the region around Griquatown was just 291 in 1815, see points below, and this number fluctuated greatly as it was a transient population - many living off plunder and the chase.
The Griqua leader Waterboer refused to accept the Griquatown token coins and was paid for his services in Rijksdaalder - source here.
The Griquas would leave Griquatown and travel inland to other settlements for months at a time hunting and horse riding
Between 1814-20, the very time the coins were supposed to be circulated in Griquatown, the settlement became a "ghost town" with just a few few nomadic Griquas using the station as a temporary camp before moving on.
The only permanent resident at Griquatown in 1815/16 was the Missionary William Anderson, the only gardens those of the Missionary.
As recorded by Rev Philip the Griqua lost trust in the London Missionary Society's resident missionary Anderson over the Cape Regiment fiasco in 1814.
In 1812 BEFORE Griquatown became a ghost town it boasted just 25 traditional Griqua huts (made of branches and mud), three kraals for livestock, a Church, a Missionary store room (for produce harvested from the Missionary's garden) and the Missionary's mud house (see image below).
In 1821 Rev Helm refers to having a bag of Griquatown
token coins that were never used and asks the Society what they wanted
to do with them. (Source Karel Schoeman, "The Mission at Griquatown 1801
- 1821".)
How did fantasy become "fact"?
All subsequent references to the Griquatown token coins being "accepted as currency in Griqua Town in 1815/16" can be tracked back to just one article - by H A Parsons - republished from an earlier Spinks catalogue in 1927
Many of Parson's assumptions made in this article have been shown on this page to be flawed and not based on fact (for example his fabricated claim that they circulated from 1815-16)
Parson's research is extraordinarily poorly researched. He documents the limited (three) sources behind his work - naming only Moffat, Livingstone and Campbell (not his later work where he omits any reference to the coins). The all-telling drawing by Burchell, below, and Philip's telling observations were somehow overlooked.
As recently as 2008 Brian Hern in his catalogue on South African coins continued to push the lie that the Griqua town token coins circulated in 1815/16. Hern is aware of this website and has never replied to the facts presented above. You can see Balson's responses to Hern's most recent claims at this link.
The reason the points above are ignored by Messrs Hern etc.. are financial. If they were bona-fide numismatists they would either enter into a debate on this issue, do their own research in what has been raised here and rebut the evidence or accept that the whole thing is a hoax. Spink have already accepted that Parsons was wrong.
If you are still not convinced then look at the drawing below of Griquatown as at June 1812 - a picture tells a thousand words. The drawing was undertaken by William Burchell on behalf on the Missionaries at Griquatown and is bound into his book "Travels into the Interior of South Africa" (See Volume One page 282)... click the thumbnail image below to see details... Moffat reports Griquatown as appearing the same ten years later - long after the Griqua town token coins were supposed to have circulated there "as currency".
| Travels
in the interior of South Africa - William Burchell
Extract pg 350-52 (volume one) But the first glance now convinced me how false may oftentimes be the notions which men form of what they have not seen. The trees of my imagination vanished, leaving nothing in reality but a few which the missionaries themselves had planted; the church sunk to a barn-like building of reeds and mud; the village was merely a row of half a dozen reed cottages; the river was but a rill; and the situation an open, bare, and exposed place, without any appearance of a garden, excepting that of the missionaries. |
Scott Balson's visits to Griquatown:
[1815/16 Griqua Town "coins"]
[1860: Durban Club 6d]
[1862 Durban Bank £5 Bank Note]
[1868: Griqua £1 Bank Note]
[1874: Mount Currie Express Stamp]
[1874/1932: Strachan and Co Currency Tokens]
[1876 Pietermaritzburg Franklin Penny]
[Other E Griqualand Tokens]
[1870s Griqua Town
Patterns] [1890: Griqua Patterns]
[Other Serious Griqua Coin Collectors]
[The History of the Griqua People]
[Griqua Token Coins, Coins and Bank Notes]
[Web Site Text Site Map]
[Tokencoins.com Home Page]
[Other South African Metal Token Coins]
