Convict love token for Abraham Lawley

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Type: Convict love tokens
Date: 1828
Place: England; Tasmania, Australia; New South Wales, Australia
Materials: Copper
Collection: Convict Love Token collection no. 1
Accession number: 2006.0086.0003

Description

Convict love token in the form of a circular copper disc stipple-engraved with decorative details and text. Side one is impressed with a hot air balloon. It has "A / L" to the left and "A / P" to the right. A boat-shaped basket is attached to the base of the balloon, which is flanked by a tree or flower, and a love heart. Side two is impressed with "ABRAH / AM [a love heart] LAW / LE Y20 TR / AN SPORTE / D 14. A KEEP / ANN PEMB / UTTON 12 / 1828".

Abraham Lawley, 20, polisher, was convicted at the Warwick Quarter Sessions on 13 October 1828 for stealing a handkerchief. He was sentenced to 14 years' transportation. He had already served two years in prison for a previous conviction. He sailed for New South Wales on the Layton on 17 June 1829. On arrival in the colony, Lawley was assigned to W Shelly in Parramatta and later received his ticket of leave. He was recorded in the 1841 census as living in Goulburn, and later ran an inn at Araluen, near Braidwood. He was listed for insolvency and last recorded at Port Macquarie in 1871 where he was on trial for four counts of larceny.

About the collection

This collection is comprised of three convict love tokens, made from stiple-engraved, shaved down 1797 pennies: The first (circa 1830) has the words "Thomas/Lock/aged 22/Transptd/10 Years" on the front and "When/ This You/ See/ Remember/ Me When/ I.am. Far/ From The(e)" on the reverse. The second, has the words "James/Godfrey/ Hannah/ Jones, T.Boulton, S.Stevens" on the front and "When in/ Captivity/ Time/Goeth/ Very Slow But/ Free As Air/ to roan now/ Quick the/ time/Doth/ Go" on the reverse.. The final token is engraved with "A/L A/P" either side of a balloon and on the reverse "Abraham Law/ In Y 20. Transporte/d Agakeep/ Ann Pemb/uttom 1828". Convict love tokens, typically made of smoothed down coins and engraved or stippled with a message, provide a poignant, personal insight into the transportation system, as well as its transnational character. Also known as 'leaden hearts', the tokens stem from traditional sailors' farewells. Convict tokens were made for the whole of the Transportation period in New South Wales and Tasmania, with the majority produced during the 1820s and 1830s. As objects purposely made by or for convicts to give as mementoes, to be left behind when the prisoner was transported, the tokens are a unique part of the record of a convict's transportation experience.

Read live from the Museum's Collection API (12/11/2026, 5:44:37 am). Record last updated by the Museum 2026-08-10. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.