Silver Du-Passe
Tokens or Counters, struck under the reigns of James 1st and Charles 1st, circa
1616 - 1638
Monarchs of
Machine-pressed silver tokens
or counters depicting the monarchs of England, issued in sets (thought to be
thirty six), composed either of pieces of different monarchs or repetitions of
the same type. Thought
to be primarily used as markers or counters "for reckoning and for play". The dies were very cleverly sunk to give the
impression of a hand-engraved silver token.
Some of these counters were executed early in the 1616-38 period by
Nicholas Hilliard, jeweller; goldsmith and engraver to Elizabeth 1st and
afterwards to James 1st. In 1617,
Hilliard received a patent granting him the monopoly for twelve years of all
the engraved portraits of the King and the Royal Family. He subsequently sold licences to other
engravers to execute these counters, one of which was to Simon de Passe and his brother, both of whom excelled in the art of
engraving. This sub-licence to the de Passe brothers was issued late in the reign of James
1st. Collectively, these tokens are all
termed De Passe tokens for convenience.
Some of the following are very rare and desirable
indeed, including the Edward V and Richard III examples; the former is not to
be found on any coinage.
SAXON:
Edward the Confessor
WJC-9333: (1) Edward the Confessor :
1616-38 Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1042-1066. Nice grade and a monarch that seldom
turns up. 
£185
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Harold II
WJC-9334: (2) Harold II : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1066 only. Excellent grade and a rarer
type. £275
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
William 1st
WJC-9335: (3) William 1st : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1066-1087. Better grade and although not a rare
monarch in the series, this depiction is one I've not seen before. £195
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
William II
WJC-9336: (4) William II : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1087-1100. Excellent grade and a much harder
monarch to source. £245
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Stephen
WJC-9337: (5) Stephen
: 1616-38 Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1135-1154. Excellent grade and a key monarch in
the series. £245
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
MEDIEVAL:
Henry II
WJC-9338: (6) Henry II : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1154-89. Outstanding grade. £235
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Edward II
WJC-9339: (7) Edward II : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1307-27. Twenty years on the throne but just as
he was all but invisible in his achievements at the time, so he is a rare
monarch in this series. £225
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Edward III
WJC-9340: (8) Edward III : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1327-77. Outstanding grade. £225
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Henry V
WJC-9341: (9) Henry V : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1413-22. Of rousing speech & £175
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Henry VI
WJC-9342: (10) Henry VI : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1422-1461 and 1470-1471. Even though there were two bites of the
cherry, still a monarch not often encountered in this series. £195
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Edward IV
WJC-9343: (11) Edward IV : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1461-1470 and 1471-1483. Full length depiction of the
king who famously reigned twice. £185
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
WJC-9344: (12) Edward IV : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1461-1470 and 1471-1483. Top half only depiction of
the king who famously reigned twice. £185
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Edward V
WJC-9345: (13) Edward V : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1483 only (just two short
months). High
grade. Top half only depiction of
the boy-king who never was, thanks to the overriding ambitions of Richard
III. I've never seen any variety
before. Incredibly
rare. £575
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
WJC-9346: (14) Edward V : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1483 only (just two short
months). High
grade. Full
length depiction of the boy-king who never was, thanks to the overriding
ambitions of Richard III. I've
never seen any variety before. Incredibly rare. £575
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Richard III
WJC-9347: (15) Richard III : 1616-38 Silver
Simon de Passe Token. 1483-1485. High grade. Top half only depiction of the king who was
much maligned by Shakespeare and, as recent research has indicated, perhaps
fully justified. I've never seen any
variety before. Incredibly
rare. £575
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
TUDOR:
Henry VIII
WJC-9348: (16) Henry VIII : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1509-1547. High grade. Something of a resigned
expression on this famous monarch's face. Rare. £295
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Edward VI
WJC-9349: (17) Edward VI : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1547-1551. Top half only depiction of the
boy-king. Nice grade and a rarer
monarch. £175
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
WJC-9350: (18) Edward VI : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1547-1551. Full length depiction of the
boy-king. Nice grade, a rarer monarch
and a more appealing portrayal. £175
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
Elizabeth 1st
WJC-9351: (19) Elizabeth 1st : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1558-1603. Something of a startled expression on
this famous monarch's face. A very popular monarch today, although not always so during her
reign, and long-lived. However, a seldom seen monarch in this series. £275
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
STUART:
Charles 1st
WJC-9352: (20) Charles 1st : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1625-49. The most popular monarch you'll come
across in this series as those that opted for x36 single monarch sets over the
different monarchs invariably went for Charles 1st. A striking full length
depiction in very good grade. £225
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
WJC-9353: (21) Charles 1st : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. 1625-49. The most popular monarch you'll come
across in this series as those that opted for x36 single monarch sets over the
different monarchs invariably went for Charles 1st. Top half only depiction of
the famous Civil War king. Nice
grade. £195
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.
The future Charles II
WJC-9354: (22) Future Charles II : 1616-38
Silver Simon de Passe Token. An interesting, obviously late in the period
silver token depicting Charles, the future King Charles II, seated as a boy on
the throne of £155
Provenance:
From a collection put together over a great many years;
dispersed by Spink.