We’d all like a touch of good luck, now more than ever to ward off ills, but this is nothing new.
One of several fascinating lots in Hansons’ Feb 25-26 Historica, Coins and Banknotes Auction is a rare Charles II gold touch-piece coin, estimate £600-£800. Charles II (1630-1685) was king of England, Ireland, and Scotland from 1649 to 1685.
A touch piece is a coin or medal believed to cure disease or bring good luck. What most touch pieces have in common is that they have to be touched or in close physical contact for the ‘power’ to be obtained or transferred. Once this is achieved, the power is assumed to be present in the coin.
Since the Middle Ages it had been believed that a touch from royalty could heal the ‘king’s evil’ or scrofula – a swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck caused by tuberculosis. This became formalised in ‘touching ceremonies’ which allowed the monarch’s divine powers to be witnessed by the masses.
Demand for the royal touch was so high bronze or copper admission tokens were introduced to keep a record of numbers. At the ceremony, the sufferer was presented with a gold touch-piece, which would commonly be hung on a ribbon and worn as a necklace, hence the hole in the coin.
At one time, medallions showing the ‘Devil defeated’ were minted in Britain and distributed to the poor in the belief they would reduce disease and sickness. The tradition of touch pieces goes back to Ancient Rome when the Emperor Vespasian (69–79 AD) gave coins to the sick at a ceremony known as ‘the touching’.
Entries are invited for all future coins and banknotes auctions. For a free valuation, email William Hayward: [email protected].
Entries close for our next Coin Auction on February 5.
