Spade Guinea Gaming Token - George III In memory of the good old days

Reverse

Crowned spade shield with a large harp that has three strings. Small date

Script: Latin

Lettering: IN MEMORY OF THE GOOD OLD DAYS 1768 (Heavily worn)

Comment

A gaming token of minimal value and used for gambling. Typically they are imitations or fractions of the most valuable coins in circulation, but on the whole, were not produced to deceive the public into thinking they were actual spade guineas or half guineas.  Often holed for a watch chain (most likely to be the cause of the wear on this example), they were frequently given out to theatre audiences as mementoes during the Georgian and even into the early Victorian period (the date is unlikely to reflect the actual year of manufacture).  There are numerous examples with a variety of dates and designs, often with slightly different detail or wording, with some having the initials of the manufacturer in place of ‘In memory of the good old days’.   This example has a large harp and Fleur de Lis, a small date, and the largest laurel leaf on the King's head points between the numerals of George III.  Other examples may have spots or diamond shapes to represent a crown's jewels, with both spots or just lines around the crown's arches, as with this coin.