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The Reign of Terror, associated with the French Revolution, lasted from 1792 to 1794. This was a period of great instability and danger for France's traditional aristocracy, and their sympathizers. Over 17,000 were executed, with many others dying in prison. Many sought an exit plan: to flee France to a safer haven abroad. To that end, in 1792 an enterprising Frenchman, Pierre (Peter) Chassanis formed a corporation, La Compagnie de New York, secured French and Swiss financing, and traveled to America in search of land for the colony he envisioned. Chassanis was able to acquire 630,000 acres along the watershed of the Beaver River, in upper state New York, close to the eastern shore of Lake Ontario. The intent was to subdivide this tract into 4.000 50 acre farms. The settlement, to be known as Castorland (Castor means beaver in French) was to be governed pursuant to a constitution, with Chassanis as its leader, and with 6 commissaries. The beaver may have been chosen as a symbol for the jeton, because it was an important source of income, an therefore a strong inducement to early settlors.
Ultimately, the proposed colony was destined for failure. Among the factors that contributed to its demise were: harsh winters; disease that decimated livestock; incompetent surveying; and even the stealing of company funds by an insider.
The Castorland jetons, more akin to medals than coins, were fashioned in silver as a form of compensation for directors attending organizational meetings held in Paris. These "tokens of presence" were designed and engraved by the prominent Pierre Simon Benjamin Duvivier, whose expertise in fashioning quality medals was recognized by French kings. The jetons, distributed in pairs of two, were struck at the Paris Mint in 1796, and display the engraver's initials "DUV" on their obverse. It is estimated that 30 to 60 surviving originals were produced in silver; 5 to 8 in copper with reeded edges; 2 in copper with plain edges; and 1 in brass. PCGS has slabbed 47 original silver pieces, with 7 attaining the highest grade of MS 64. NGC has graded 17, with 2 MS 64s noted. Many surviving examples exhibit appreciable wear.
The Paris Mint retained the original dies, and over the years has produced many restrikes. These restrikes are identifiable as to the date when struck by: edge wording such as cuivre for copper, oro for gold, and argent for silver; and by symbols (privy marks) peculiar to the respective mint directors. All original silvers have a reeded edge.
Pictured above, is an original 1796 Silver Castorland Medal/Jeton, graded MS 63 by PCGS. The piece, which once resided in the prestigious collection of Sydney F. Martin, has been variously categorized as: Breen-1058 and W-9100. Its obverse features a female head. representative of the goddess Cybele, associated with fertility, the wilderness, and protectress of the people, as reflected in her traditional walled crown. On the reverse, Ceres, the Roman goddess of grain and harvest appears to the left of a draining maple tree. She holds a cornucopia in her right hand, and a drill for taping maple syrup in her left. At her feet is a sickle and sheaf of wheat. A beaver occupies the exergue area. The Latin peripheral legend translates into: "Hail Great Mother Of Crops".
Because the Castorland jetons were produced over a number of years, the distinction between originals and restrikes can sometimes be murky. PCGS grading standards permit a specimen to be classified as an original, even if it exhibits no or very slight rusting in the area adjacent to the right cistern handle on the reverse. However, no originals can have the faintest whisper of a crack at the "S" in Parens, which eventually evolved into a full bulging.
Recent scholarly research in this area has been published by Chester L. Sullivan.