Foundlings at the exhibition "Filhos de todos… filhos de quem? Os expostos da roda de Lisboa"

Foundling tokens

The "tokens" of the foundlings left on the Lisbon Wheel are one of the great hallmarks of the Historical Archive of Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa.

Tokens of foundling children

Foundling no. 458 of 1809 Token of Doroteia Magna

Foundling no. 1126 of 1810 Token of Manuel António da Costa

Foundling no. 1732 of 1810 Token of Ana Maria da Conceição

Foundling no. 1400 of 1812 Token of Mariana Gertrudes

Foundling no. 292 of 1814 Token of Maria Isabel

Foundling no. 1277 of 1815 Token of Maria do Carmo

Foundling no. 255 of 1816 Token of Francisca

Foundling no. 758 of 1820 Token of Manuel Gaudêncio do Espírito Santo

Foundling no. 905 of 1820 Token of Maria

Foundling no. 119 of 1823 Token of Maria da Conceição de Pinto Machado

Foundling no. 1419 of 1823 Token of Veríssimo

Foundling no. 1609 of 1829 Token of Miguel

About the tokens

These “tokens” are mostly composed of a ‘note’, i.e., a textual document, usually on paper, in which the parent or someone designated thereby, recorded information regarding the child that was considered necessary or useful. The “token” essentially served as a mark and individualizing element of the child, but sometimes it was also used as a means of sharing anxieties, the causes of abandonment, and also the conveyance of requests regarding the child’s future.

Some of these documents, in addition to the ‘note’, were accompanied by other pieces that, from a symbolic point of view, aimed to place the abandoned child under the protection, shielding or intercession of the divine (through images of saints, medals, crucifixes, etc.), secular objects (charms, clovers, amulets, playing cards, etc.), or even affective items (ribbons, embroidery, socks, mother’s hair, etc.).