1857 UPPER CANADA COPPER Half Penny / BANK TOKEN___St George Slaying the Dragon

Description

A COPPER Half PENNY / BANK TOKEN OF UPPER CANADA DATED 1852 .
the Photos is the coin you get, has a ding but it is a great add to your collection.
A good Pocket Piece?
The St. George motif was designed by Benedetto Pistrucci for the British sovereign of 1817.
LARGE COPPER 1/2 PENNY
OBVERSE – St. George slaying the dragon. Lettering surrounding and date below BANK OF UPPER CANADA
EDGE - Plain
During the nineteenth century many British Colonies suffered from severe shortages of small change. While it was unlawful for the colonies to strike coins of their own to alleviate the difficulties, there were ways around the law.
The Bank of Upper Canada was established in 1821 in York (Toronto, Ontario) under a charter granted by the Province of Upper Canada in 1819. When Upper and Lower Canada were united in 1841 to form the Province of Canada, it was decided that only the bank that held the government accounts should have the right to issue copper tokens. This privilege was enjoyed by the Bank of Montreal until 1848.
Following the passage of the Rebellion Losses Bill in 1849, rioting in Montreal led to the destruction of the legislative buildings and the capital of the province was transferred to Toronto. As a result, the right to issue tokens passed to the Bank of Upper Canada.
Between 1850 and 1857 the Bank of Upper Canada issued a series of penny and halfpenny copper tokens. The obverse of a penny token features a St. George and the dragon motif encircled by the legend BANK OF UPPER CANADA and the date. The St. George motif was designed by Benedetto Pistrucci for the British sovereign of 1817 and is considered to be the definitive representation of the theme.