½ Stampee François Desclos

François Desclos was a baker in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, who stamped his initials on various halfpenny-sized coins. There is some confusion in the sources as to his name: Declos, Desclos, or Duclos, but based on several items in the Port of Spain Gazette and the Trinidad Royal Gazette from the 1840s to the 1860s, the name “Desclos” is most likely.

The value of the countermarked coins was ½ stampee = 1¼ cents. This greatly facilitated the buying and selling of the "half-stampee loaf" of bread until the colonial government forbid the countermarking of coins in 1874.

The numismatist Fred Pridmore has given the dates circa 1854–1874 as an approximate period during which the scheme was in operation. However, an editorial column in the Port of Spain Gazette, dated October 30th 1861, shows that the year 1861 is much more likely for the start of this scheme.
Desclos' scheme was so successful that many imitated him and put his initials on coins. There is, therefore, a wide variety of styles of the punch letters.
Many host coins for Tn#1.1 exist including:
- US 1 cent
- Canadian bank and merchants' ½ penny tokens
- East India company ¼ Anna
- France 5 Centimes
- French Colonies tokens
- Venezuela 1 cent
The weights of the hosts vary between about 5 and 10 grams.
For some reason, the Krause World Coins 1801-1900 catalog lists H.E. Raspey's ½ stampee token separately as a host (Tn#1.2). Rapsey was a baker and grocer on Fredrick street in Port-of-Spain.