Communion Token (Aberdeen)
Issuer
West Church of St Nicholas
Date1829
Object NameToken
MediumLead
ClassificationsTokens
Dimensions23 x 23mm
AcquisitionPresented by Isobel Lawrence.
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDMS007899
About MeA square token bearing inscriptions within circles on both sides: Side 1: Aberdeen 1829; Side 2: West Parish. There is also decoration in the form of three towers on Side 1 and three mullets (stars) on Side 2.St Nicholas West was rebuilt in 1755 following a roof collapse some years earlier. It survives today as a splendidly-preserved example of an 18th-century church, a fine memorial to its architect, James Gibbs.
During the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion the then-ruinous West Church was used as a store and stable by the Duke of Cumberland's forces. At the time of communion token's issue in 1829 the minister was Dr George Glennie, previously Professor of Moral Philosophy in Aberdeen University.
