Coins, Cards, and Counterstamps: The Currency of Nouvelle France (1608–1763) with Andrew Winger

Join us for a our monthly online presentations.

CSDA/CCAD Sundays: The Expert Series presents Coins, Cards, and Counterstamps: The Currency of Nouvelle France (1608–1763) with Andrew Winger

Session Details

This presentation will examines the unique evolution of money in Nouvelle France – what is now part of modern-day Quebec – highlighting the colony’s reliance on barter, various forms of coinage including counter-stamped foreign currency, and the world’s first use of playing card money. Set against the backdrop of early Canadian trade networks and socioeconomic circumstances of the time, it explores how European and Indigenous economic systems shaped the foundations of commerce in early Canada.

Speaker Bio

Andrew Winger is a Canadian numismatist and accredited appraiser with a background in auctions and a lifelong passion for historical artefacts. He holds degrees in History (University of Victoria) and Maritime Archaeology (Bournemouth, UK), with a thesis on shipwrecks and territorial claims at sea. Andrew is currently a consultant for Heritage Auctions, the world’s largest numismatic auction house. Based in Montréal since 2023, he frequently travels Canada for work and continues to fuel his curiosity through research, collecting, and learning French.

Moderator Bio

With more than 20 years of experience, Julie Riches, ISA AM, is an accredited, generalist appraiser and Principal of Riches Appraisals & Consult. She began her career in the auction industry, gaining extensive, hands-on knowledge across multiple fields. Areas of specialization include elements of decorative arts and design, textiles, fine craft, coins, and militaria. Julie offers appraisal services, object identification, and estate management across Canada and the United States.

—

Members attend free, $10 CAD to non-members. Our members enjoy access to past and upcoming presentations, receive our award-winning magazine, Ornamentum, and so much more. Join our community of decorative arts and design lovers – become a member today! 

Not sure you can attend live? We’ve got you covered! A video recording of this presentation will be made available to all those who reserve/purchase tickets.

—

The Canadian Society of Decorative Arts/ Cercle canadien des arts décoratifs (CSDA/CCAD) is a national, non-profit organization founded in 1981 for the study, appreciation, and promotion of design and decorative arts in Canada through programming and publications. The CSDA/CCAD publishes Ornamentum magazine twice yearly, with articles in both French and English written by makers, scholars, collectors, and journalists. Ornamentum is the only magazine dedicated to design and decorative arts in Canada. 

—

Image: Map cartouche from William Faden’s “A map of the Inhabited Part of Canada from the French Surveys; with the Frontiers of New York and New England, 1777”