USA, ILLINOIS, Masonic penny, 1926

DescriptionFraternal tokens generally were used as passes to get you into the meetings. If you were from out of town and you had your lodge “penny” it would get you to the local meeting for some fellowship and perhaps some hospitality. The “penny” part is by way of misdirection. Of course its not a penny.There are two kinds of things that are called “medals.” One is things that look like coins but don’t express a value. Sometimes those medals are considerably larger than most coins. The other kind of medal is a metal thing designed to be displayed on one’s chest, often a reward for something, often in a military context. If the medal is small enough it is sometimes called a “medallet.”The word “exonumia” is used to describe all kinds of things that are “like” coins but are not coins. I wrote a blog post on that subject. Basic categories: 1. used like a coin but not issued by a national government, 2. looks like a coin but not made for spending, 3. other things that we are interested in.