Hi all. Found a morrin and Co trade token today with my nox in the middle of the creek in Ross. Its pretty beaten up, not surprised as Mr Google said its circa 1860! What’s also amazing is no one else found it. Any ideas if I should try and clean it? Will probably leave it with the museum.
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I would ask the museum if they have a conservator, I’ve seen a lot of stuff rotting in ‘community’ museums, for want of a better word, because no-one there knew how to, or didn’t have the budget to preserve the items.
Looking at the poor condition, I would say museums would only be interested if they a) didn’t have an example, or b) it is better than their example.
Personally, I doubt there would be any interest in this item given it’s not particularly rare, and in poor condition.
It does feel good though, going to a museum and seeing your stuff on display 
Cheers for the reply MW, I did show them before I worked out what it was. They seemed keen on any history from the area and it must have been there since the start of the rush. I will leave it with them as they have a little display cabinet of coins and stuff. I was happy to find something so old but it wasn’t what I was swinging for 
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Great find and feel sorry for the poor guy who lost it…all the settlers had in NZ was tokens and english coinage before we managed to have our own currency. The museums can wait until I pass away before they get all my labelled stuff. Dont think Ive found anything the archeologists havent found yet.
Yep coilpower I keep thinking how annoyed the guy who lost it back then was and what it was worth to him, Ross would have been pretty crazy in the 1860s. You could still read parts of one side when it was wet, I struggled to get a better photo. Left it with the local info centre for their display, they were truly amazed at the date and that it was only just liberated from the creek.
When NZ was first visited by whalers, sealers and traders and foreign currency was used. Not just British but a bit of French, some American. It isn’t unlikely to find foreign stuff in some of the areas which were settled early, eg Moeraki, Waikouaiti where m got a very early American coin and other areas where foreign ships visited and foreign whalers frequented.
The early tokens though are interesting and l once found a very early English one. What its use or value here would gave been l have no idea but concluded at the time that it was probably thrown away as being of no value. It may have been for use on a canal or something…must see if l can find it.