A north-east charity has received a massive boost after discovering an incredibly rare 124-year-old suffragette coin under an antique bowl.
Smile Scotland’s founder and trustee Clive Hampshire was ‘shocked’ when he came across an ornate bowl dating back to the 1910s or 20s from a house in Fochabers.
But as soon as he turned it over, he discovered the item was hiding an even more surprising secret on the base.
Inside the base he saw an 1898 coin stamped with the phrase “votes for women” – a remnant of the suffragettes’ historic protests in the early 20th Century.
Less than a dozen are thought to still be in existence – with one even in the British Museum.
The item will be auctioned off at the charity’s premises in Oyne this week, with proceeds going toward education and training for people with physical or mental illnesses, a criminal background or are homeless.
‘Suffragettes known to have defaced money’
Clive knew the coin was of major historical significance as soon as he laid eyes on it.
He said: “We were very surprised because when we went and looked at it we thought ‘that’s stamped with votes for women.’
“Then when we looked it up with one of the museums they said there was only eleven known to exist and it looks very much like the same type of markings and stamp.
“We thought maybe this is the twelfth or maybe its one of the eleven known, but where it came from, I’d think it would have good provenance.
“The house it came from had a mixture of people who had lived in Holland and also lived in Scotland.”
He added: “During the Suffragette movement, they were known to have defaced money to advertise their cause whilst protesting against a political system controlled by male authority figures.
“This activity occurred in the early 1900s following the perceived failure of more peaceful protests.
“This penny coin has been stamped with the words ‘votes for women’ across the body of Britannia – in the same manner as known to have taken place with confirmed examples.
“There is a hole punched through the top of the coin, which suggests it may have been worn as a pendant previously.”
‘Importance of challenging discrimination’
Clive believes that the penny serves as a reminder of the sacrifices of women to achieve the right to vote and challenge prejudiced attitudes.
“Whilst it is not possible to verify the authenticity of the defaced coin, it does provide a reminder of a key moment in the fight for women’s right to vote,” he said.
“When we started reading about it and looking it up, it just reminded us of what the charity does – no discrimination – so we thought it was fitting that it fell into our hands.”
The auction will be held from 10am on Saturday, September 3 at Smile Scotland, Oyne.
In previous years it has discovered all many of weird and wonderful curios – including “the finest piano in Aberdeen,” a former Lord Provost’s letters and even a pair of plastic feet.
Read more:
Smile Scotland charity to appear on Bangers and Cash with restored 1950s pushbike
Charity Smile Scotland prepares for first auction income of 2021 with new sale
North-east charity to host region’s first post-lockdown vintage and antiques fair
Conversation