To celebrate her return to the city, in 2003, Abramson got a small tattoo on her right shoulder that replicates an old subway token.

NEWYORKER: Changing Times

The below-street-level New York Transit Museum Store in downtown Brooklyn takes underground standards to a new level with antique subway token cufflinks, monogrammed mosaic tiles and subway map shower curtains.

BBC: One-of-a-kind holiday shopping in NYC

Think of the utility of a subway token in preference to cash, or (as in Monopoly), how much easier it is to move a game piece around a board than your physical self.

FORBES: Tokenization And The Collapse Of The Credit Card Payment Model