Historical information

Coin collections have a long and varied history. Coins were often collected in churches in a box located near the entrance/exit, and later via a collection plate that was passed amongst the congregation Funds were used to repair the church or feed the poorest of the parish. The donation of coins is and was considered part of religious life and mentioned in Christian, Jewish and Islamic texts. With the need and expansion of charitable works occurring outside religious life, charity boxes began to spread into hospitals, orphanages and asylums.
The need for non-fixed boxes grew with the rise in charities and their activities outside a fixed building. Collection boxes could be large (and therefore hard to move) or could be held by individuals acting as collection agents, working at a specific location, moving between dwellings or at events. In this example, the Vision Australia tin could be used gathering coins at events such as Carols by Candlelight or other special marketing days.

Physical description

1 metal coin collection tin with paper wrap

Inscriptions & markings

Paper wrapper around tin: Help me to break down the barriers
and achieve greater heights
Vision Australia
blindness and low vision services

Paper on top of tin: Thank you for your support
Vision Australia
blindness and low vision services