This is strange hand made coin spoon.
At the finial is a twisted heavy silver wire which is soldered onto a twisty stem
I suspect that it was supposed to be a bow or something.
Perhaps this was a school project.
INTERESTING STORY OF UNUSUAL RELATIONSHIPS
The bowl appears to be a coin featuring a profile of Queen Victoria
Part of the back of the coin has been deliberately removed leaving only the border decoration.
The bowl front features a left facing profile of Queen Victoria
The bowl obverse coin details have been deliberately removed and the back is
engraved "Victoria BC" along with some tiny branches with leaves.
This relatively tiny demi sized spoon features an unusual simulated gold nugget star design at the finial
I spent several hours researching this spoon. I finally figured out that the coin was made by Britain for use in Hong Kong.
This silver coin then had the back obliterated and was engraved with "Victoria B.C." The spoon was then gold plated.
That is a lot of work for a souvenir spoon so it was probably a custom design.
Later I was working on my British coin spoons and I found another spoon with a very similar image of Queen Victoria,
but this coin was intact and was not gold washed.
The crown on the two coins is slightly different, but they are close enough for me to believe that they are substantially the same coin.
Canadian half dollar love token spoon
The spoon handle features a twisty stem and topped by a round finial which is engraved "L.A.S."
I don't know if those are the initials of the giver or the recipient
The bowl is a silver fifty cent coin which has been modified into a spoon bowl shape
The front of the coin features Queen Victoria while the back of the coin was removed and the following was engraved
"Victoria B.C. May 28, 92"
I suspect that somebody had a very memorable date.
Love Token History
In the late 18th century and through the 19th century, engraved coins were widely given as an expression of love. Often, men could not afford to buy their sweetheart a ring, so instead, they would save up to purchase the largest coin denomination they could afford, personalize it, and give to their love upon asking for their hand in marriage. One side of the coin would be sanded down and engraved with the girl's initials or sometimes their name. The coins sometimes had embellishments such as a border or or other design added as well.
The coins were carried by the woman throughout the marriage. Many times a hole was added and it was worn around the neck, or a pin back was added and it was worn near the heart.
Engraved coins were also often given by sailors to girls as promises that they will come back to them after their journey, and so that the girl might have something to remember him by.
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