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Lot 2101

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1846 W.W. WILBUR Slave Auctioneers Token

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Black History

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“W.W. Wilbur” Slave Auctioneer’s Token

1846 W.W. Wilbur Slave Auctioneer’s Token, Fine to Very Fine.
Brass, 27.5 mm. Mottled toning near the outer rims. This is a scarce relic of the slave trade of the mid-1800s, being a copper promotional token, 1” diameter, issued by the Charleston slave auction house of W.W. Wilbur. The obverse of the coin shows an auctioneer standing with a gavel in his hand surrounded by the legend: “W.W. Wilbur Auction & Commission Merchant Charleston, So. Ca. 1846.” The reverse bears a palmetto tree. The token does not expressly identify Wilbur as an auctioneer of slaves, but Wilbur was a well-known slave auctioneer in South Carolina.

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