Weekly Market Watch

This market watch examines ebay auctions from July 14 to July 20. This week no CTs sold for over $75, so I do not have any HD or D tokens to report.
     Fifty CTs were sold this week, five of them in Buy it now (BIN) sales. All told, 48 CTs sold for less than $20 with two of the BIN sales bringing in $51 and $43. There were 31 lots offered by one seller on July 19: Tomv007. The low prices reflect the thin market for common and low to mid-grade CTs. In fact, 24 auctions went to single bidders. On the positive side, it shows how easy it is to start a collection with many CTs available for cheap.
     One seller has been offering a grouping of Canadian stock CTs for very low prices -- seven sold in the past two weeks with most trading below $10. These particular tokens were made by James Croil (ST200 in the Charlton guidebook). They seem to be selling for well below the listed value -- overall, they appear to be in VF condition.

Molva molva anyone?
The tail is quite distinctive on Ling.

     One other CT deserves mention in my opinion, as it is one of my favorites. On July 17, a nice oval dated 1809 from Northmaven in the Shetland Islands (Burz 5316) sold for the paltry sum of $17. Three bidders vied for it. Unfortunately, the CT was pictured with a crack (as made) on the upper left edge -- usually this is all it takes to knock down the price. Nonetheless, it is an interesting CT to be on the lookout for, as it shows a plump image of a fish. The fish is rendered in high relief and includes gills and fins. Certainly this is more ichthyologic detail than would be included if the fish was meant as a Christian symbol.
     It turns out that Northmaven (land north of the isthmus -- the Mavis Grand in this case) is known for its fishing. In the nineteenth century, the seasonal catch was the mainstay of the economy. Big fish such as Ling (a cod-like fish) as well as Herring were exported to points south. So the fish on the token is perhaps what the hearty islanders were thankful for -- it certainly was important enough to be placed prominently on the token. Hook one if you can!