page_title: Exonumia
section_title: Exonumia that is studied and collected
hierarchical_section_title: Exonumia / Forms of exonumia: tokens and medals / Exonumia that is studied and collected
caption_attribution_description: English: A Geocaching Geocoin
context_page_description: Exonumia are numismatic items other than coins and paper money. This includes "Good For" tokens, badges, counterstamped coins, elongated coins, encased coins, souvenir medallions, tags, wooden nickels and other similar items. It is related to numismatics, and many coin collectors are also exonumists.
  Besides the above strict definition, others extend it to include non-coins which may or may not be legal tenders such as cheques, credit cards and similar paper. These can also be considered notaphily or scripophily.
context_section_description: The following categories are typical. This is not all-inclusive but is a sampling of the wide variety of Exonumia:
  Tokens
  Modified/Augmented:
  Love Token: A coin with hand engraving, generally on one side
  Hobo nickels Indian Head/Buffalo nickel: Engraved by hand mostly in the era 1913–38, usually a modification of the Indian head
  Carved Potty coins, usually Trade Dollars, to show lady Liberty sitting on a chamber pot
  Counterstamped / countermarked coins (done by merchants or governments)
  Elongated coins Rolled out with advertising, commemorative, or souvenir designs on one side
  Encased Coin: Generally in a ring with advertising
  Encased Postage: Actual postage stamps mounted into a round frame with advertising on the other side
  Colored or Painted Circulation or Bullion Issues
  Play-Game money / Arcade Amusement / Novelty
  Arcade tokens
  Amusement
  Game Counter
  Play money
  Novelty money
  Peep Show
  Casino/Slot tokens/Casino chips
  Geocoins used in geocaching
  Government Services & Non-National tools to Facilitate Commerce
  Car wash tokens
  Jeton tokens: Used as counters when verifying totals or weights of coins for commerce and exchange
  Evasion tokens: 18th century semi-counterfeit were made to look like kind of but not exactly like actual currency
  Sales tax tokens: Issued by states and merchants
  Parking tokens: for meters or gates
  Dog license tags
  Post office tags
  Food stamps
  Slave tags - slave hire badges (Tax Receipts)
  Transportation Tokens
  Ferries and watercraft
  Buses
  Subway
  Trains
  Trams
  Trolleys
  Closed Community / Membership
  Company Store
  Ingle Credit System script
  Lumber
  Mining
  Plantation
  Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
  College Currency
  Military Challenge
  Military Store and Entertainment
  Picker tokens for crops
  Prison and Correctional/Asylums
  Fraternal
  Masonic
  Elks
  Moose
  Eagles
  Woodmen of the World
  Communion tokens (given to congregation members in good standing to permit them to participate in Holy Communion)
  Unique material / shapes
  Wooden nickels
  Cardboard or paper
  Hard rubber or vulcanite
  Advertising pocket mirrors
  Movements and ideals
  Temperance
  Anti-slavery
  Religious (including Temple tokens
  World's Fair (Expositions around the world)
  Locations
  City or state anniversary
  Of a Personal nature - Personals
  Key tags (e.g. In case lost return to …)
  Badges
  Company
  Occupation
  Hand-engraved or uniquely counterstamped coins, as pocket pieces
  Watch fobs
  By Issuer or for a Specific Person
  Milk/dairy
  Beer
  Pub/bar/saloon
  Billiards/pool
  Cigar/smoke shops
  Restroom tokens for pay toilet use
  Doctors (including Apothecary tokens)
  Automobiles
  George Washington medals
  Presidents, governors, other politicians
  Inventors and other important persons
  Modern items under the exonumia umbrella include:
  Credit cards
  Gift cards: Gift cards have been replacing the giving of cash for events
  Telephone cards
  Music cards
  Rulau in his 1700-1900 book historically breaks down American tokens into these general time periods:
  Early American
  Hard times tokens were made during the "hard times" after President Andrew Jackson shut down the Second Bank of the United States. These also were issued privately to circulate in the local economy as a one cent coin. They had a wide variety of subject matter, anti-slavery, anti-Jackson
  Merchant (including modern Gas Tokens, ex: Shell tokens)
  American Civil War
  Trade tokens
  Gay 90s
  Even though the following are legitimate categories for exonumia, they are not included in the 1700-1900 reference.
  Amusement tokens
  Military
  Prison
  Telephone tokens
  Political campaign tokens
  Transportation tokens
  Medals 33mm and larger
  And others (ex: Fisherman tokens, SEX tokens)
  Typical ways exonumists may collect these items are by region, topic, type, shape or material. These different collecting preferences may change the ways tokens are documented. Frequently there are guides for particular states (by Region), but conversely the guide could document National or International amusement tokens (Type)
  The general distinction between Tokens from Medals is that medals (both privately minted and minted by governments,) primarily do not have an ac
caption: A Smokey Bear Geocoin
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