London, Cabbage Society 1814, ticket or pass:
Obverse: CABBAGE SOCIETY , around a cauliflower.
Reverse: 1814 within a laurel and palm branch wreath.
Diameter: 38mm. Weight: 26.42 grams.
Edge: Centre grained. (Soho mint?)
DW p.113.103-4. MG 1009. Withers 1755.

There are three earlier tokens, a penny dated 1796, a halfpenny and a farthing dated 1780, which also bear this curious device and name. On the earlier three is the word 'PURIM' which could inicate that the Cabbage Society was a Jewish organisation.

Purim is a holiday that celebrates the deliverance of the Jewish people from their enemies, on which there is jollification and feasting. The cauliflower usually comes into season around the time of the Purim festival.

These pieces may have a connection with a society of Jewish tradesmen who met in Paternoster row, underneath a cabbage painted on the ceiling.

Sold May 25