102001 | NETHERLANDS. Maastricht. St. Martin cast brass Funeral Token.

102001  |  NETHERLANDS. Maastricht. St. Martin cast brass Funeral Token (Begrafenisloodje). Dated 1733. Receipt for prepaid funeral expenses (32mm, 13.13 g, 5h).

 

Skull and crossbones; star below // S MARTINI, Saint Martin riding horse left, head right, giving his cloak to a beggar to right.

 

Minard 357. PCGS EF-45. Yellow-brown surfaces, with lighter hues on the higher points; cancellation punch (as intended) on each side. Rare and interesting. The finer of just three seen in the PCGS census, and by far much more attractive and detailed than the other two.

 

Begrafenisloodje served multiple roles in the Low Countries during the 16th-19th centuries, acting as payment for gravediggers, pallbearers, or other funerary expenses, or acting as a commemorative for the funeral of the deceased—either to those attending the ceremonies or to the respective church in remembrance of the departed. Where they were utilized to indicate payment, a punch was generally placed upon one or both sides to act as a form of "cancellation" for the services rendered and payment received.

 

Upload: 20 October 2023.

 

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