News & Blog

We at Token are still very much up and running (following government guidelines of course, everyone is bring kept safe we promise) and we are still producing COIN NEWS and MEDAL NEWS just as we always do. We realise that a lot of the usual shops aren't open for you to buy your copy but we can...

When we went to press with MEDAL NEWS April we had all hoped, against hope, that the Britannia Medal Show on April 26 would still go ahead but, as has become increasingly obvious recently,  that is now not going to happen and now we have the official word - the show has, sadly, been cancelled.  ...

Standing strong together FIRST things first—I hope you are all well and that this current crisis hasn’t impacted on you too much. I am aware that many of our readers are over 70 and I hope that you will be taking whatever precautions you feel necessary to stay safe. We are, in a way, amongst...

In a letter to all OMRS members Robin Thomas, Orders and Medals Research Society President has made the following announcement regarding the Convention due to be held in Bristol in September. It is with great regret that I am writing to advise that your Committee has taken the decision to...

If you find yourself at a loose end whilst staying at home why not catch uyp on your research, cataloguing or reading?  We're still here fulfilling orders (with a skeleton staff all at a safe distance, of course) so why not buy that book you've always promised yourself? You'll have the chance...

Dear MEDAL NEWS and COIN NEWS readers Please note that in response to Covid19 and the temporary on/off restriction of movement that this is likely to entail for many of our customers across the world, we are planning to utilise all of our online capabilities to host an increased number of...

As was perhaps inevitable the coin fairs are bearing the brunt of the Government's measures as far as numismatics are concerned. We can still collect, auctions can go online but sadly you can't have a Coin Fair without mixing with people.  The latest shows to announce that they are cancelling...

Do you now find yourself with a bit of extra time on your hands? Well don't forget as a subscriber to either COIN or MEDAL NEWS you have full access to all the electronic back issues of both magazines - just log into your account and look under back issues, they're all there...! If you're a COIN...

Mark Carter has taken the difficult decision to cancel the April Aldershot show, originally scheduled for Sunday, April 19. The next one at the venue will take place on Sunday, November 1. 

Those were the days THIS month we learn that the Bexley Coin Club, the last numismatic society in Kent, is to close its doors after over half a century. Falling membership has, inevitably, led to its demise; it wasn’t the first victim of those circumstances and unfortunately we doubt it will be...

Then and now ONE of the most fascinating things about medal collecting is, of course, the history behind them. We most likely wouldn’t be medal collectors if we didn’t have an interest in the past, but the news this month that the British Red Cross is going to stop issuing the Voluntary Medical...

Worth a look THE end of January saw one thing dominate the news in the UK—that was, of course, Brexit and, from our point of view, the Brexit 50p. The COIN NEWS team (well Phil anyway) was called on to do numerous radio interviews and asked by various websites and newspapers to give a viewpoint...

Today's the day! Yes on 20/02/2020 (see what they did there) the new £20 featuring JMW Turner, the "Painter of Light" and his famous painting " The Fighting Temeraire ". The new polymer note (made of the same material as the Churchill £5 and the Austen £10) has a number of new security features...

Before they fade THIS month’s “News and Views” features notices that two more veterans of World War II have passed away—the last known member of the Glider Pilot Regiment, Ralph Norbury, and one of the last of the “Few”, the pilots of the Battle of Britain—Maurice Moundson. That these gentlemen...

Defining boundaries AS IS our habit we are once again dedicating the February front cover of COIN NEWS to the Chinese Lunar New Year coins that already abound. This year, as Dr Kerry Rodgers so eloquently points out in his article (pages 39–41) is the Year of the Rat (or more precisely the year...

Treasured possessions THE recent court case surrounding the metal detectorists who discovered a Viking hoard of coins and jewellery in Herefordshire in 2015, has attracted a great deal of attention and debate in recent weeks. We discussed details of the hoard back in July and John Andrew’s...

We must remember them too BACK in the summer it was announced that there was to be a new “Office for Veterans’ Affairs” launched to provide lifelong support to military personnel. That launch officially took place on October 16 when it was also announced that the new head of the OVA will be...

What a year DECEMBER is always a good time to take stock of the year, whether that’s personally, professionally or numismatically. What, I wonder, have been your highlights of 2019? Have you added much to your collection? Have you perhaps disposed of some of it and rationalised a little? Have...

Fading away IT hardly seems credible that it was a year ago that I was writing about some silly students who were campaigning to ensure that Cambridge University Student’s Union didn’t promote Remembrance Day commemorations as such things “glorified war” (see “Editor’s Comment”, November 2018...

The Famous Who? THE RECENT announcement that a coin celebrating the life and work of our childhood favourite, Enid Blyton, was vetoed for fear of a social media backlash seems to have attracted a reasonable amount of media attention, but why? The decision, which was actually taken in 2016 and...

Stolen in a burglary at Haverhill, Suffolk earlier this year Family group stolen in a burglary earlier this year. 1) Basil Oliver Bradley, RA: 1939-1945 star, Africa Star, Burma Star, Defence & War, Territorial Efficiency, Police long service and the Dunkirk medal. 2) 1343 (later...

Stolen during a burglary in Hertfordshire recently:   Worshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers’ Renter Warden’s Badge Inscribed on reverse ‘ ‘Worshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers’ and ‘Renter Warden’ on a shield Waterloo medal issued to John Hamilton of the First Regiment...