Written by Mikenna Richardson on behalf of the Orillia Museum of Art & History (OMAH)
In an era when gold ruled the economy, ensuring the authenticity of a sovereign coin was a matter of trust — and precision.
The sovereign scale, a small but ingenious device, played a crucial role in Orillia’s early commerce, protecting traders and businesses from underweight or counterfeit gold coins. A sovereign was a common coin in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These coins were minted in pure gold but were worth one pound, or one dollar in Canada.
Sovereigns were first a British denomination but spread to the colonies as they were so popular. With inflation, these coins would be worth about 190 Canadian dollars today, though now they are priced according to the price of gold.
In the days of the gold rush, the value of gold was not understated. For hundreds of years, humans have been participating in a practice called “coin clipping.” In the past, before coin minting had been industrialized, coins were made in smaller batches. This meant most coins looked slightly different from others of the same make. These differences allowed people to slice the edges of coins off without being easily caught. Doing this enough, someone may have been able to collect enough pure gold to forge money for themselves.
To stop coin clipping and forgeries, sovereign scales were invented. These scales were balanced against a weight that would balance with only the undamaged coins. A banker, a jeweller, or a shop owner could test a suspicious coin to determine whether they were receiving the proper tender. These scales continued to be in common use while the sovereign and half sovereign coins were in circulation.
Scales like the one pictured could have been found in local financial institutions like the Toronto Dominion Bank that was located at 82 Mississaga St. E. at the corner of Peter and Mississaga streets. Or perhaps it was used in Orillia’s post office, the building where OMAH is located today.