From esylum at binhost.com Sun Jul 3 23:33:36 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Jul 3 23:35:22 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#27, July 3, 2005 Message-ID: <42C8AE10.5090102@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 27, July 3, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. THE FORMER KRAUSE PUBLICATIONS SOLD AGAIN Russ Rulau writes: "On Wednesday, June 22, it was announced that Providence Equity Partners had resold KP (formerly Krause Publications) for an undisclosed sum to ABRY Partners LLC, like PEP, another private equity firm. ABRY since 1989 has acquired 450 media properties, supposedly making it the largest media-focused private firm in North America. Stephen Kent, president of F+W Communications, the PEP subsidiary which has owned KP since 2002, was terminated June 22 and Rick Groth, a KP publisher in Iola, was cut on June 24. Neither were numismatists. For those who may not be aware, Chet Krause won his suit before the U.S. Trademark & Copyright Commission and KP may not use the Krause name on anything. His other suit for wrongful dismissal on Oct. 20, 2002 remains in litigation. The KP logo is the property now of ABRY. The effects on the numismatic division, already downsized since 2002, are unknown at this time. I remain a freelance author and writer for KP unless notified otherwise." MUNZEN UND MEDAILLEN LIBRARY SALE RESULTS George Kolbe writes: "The finest international numismatic library ever dispersed was sold on June 23rd and 24th, 2005 in Osnabr?ck, Germany by the firm of Fritz Rudolf K?nker. Comprising a total of 3,589 lots, the library formed by the venerable Basel, Switzerland coin firm of M?nzen und Medaillen AG brought approximately 890,000 euros or, including the 15% buyer premium, a total of 1.23 million dollars. After the June 1, 2004 sale of Part I of the John J. Ford, Jr. Library (1000 lots @ 1.66 million dollars), it is the highest price ever achieved for a numismatic library in a single auction sale. Bidders from all over Europe, and a few from the United States, attended the sale and prices were generally quite strong. A few highlights follow: a leather-bound set of Forrer?s "The Weber Collection: Greek Coins" brought ?2600; a rare offprint by von Fritze on the ancient coins of Ilion sold for ?1000; an extremely rare volume of proof photographs depicting the entire collection of ancient coins formed by S. Pozzi opened at 2400 and ended up bringing ?7250; Robinson and Clements? rare 1938 work on "The Chalcidic Mint" sold strongly for ?2700; Brause-Mansfeld?s two volume work on siege coins opened and closed at ?1600; Papadopoli?s classic on the coins of Venice sold for ?1700; classic nineteenth century works on Russian coins and medals reflected the current strong market for works in this field; key works on Islamic coins brought typically good prices; Dugniolle?s classic work on Dutch jetons sold for ?1700; Habich?s classic multi-volume work on German Renaissance medals realized ?5200; Hill and de Ricci?s two volumes on Renaissance medals and reliefs in the Dreyfus collection sold at ?6500; numismatic periodicals brought strong prices, including Revue belge de numismatique, 1842-2000, @ ?15,000, Revue numismatique, 1836-2003, @ ?18000; Rivista Italiana, 1888-2003, @ ?17000, and Zeitschrift f?r Numismatik, 1874-1935, @ ?26000. The principals and staff of the K?nker firm are to be congratulated on a job very well done. A longer report will appear in a future issue of The Asylum." STOLEN MILLION-DOLLAR STAMP COLLECTION RECOVERED It's non-numismatic, but numismatists can appreciate the tenacity and attention to detail which led to the recovery of a stolen stamp collection stolen worth today nearly a million dollars. The following excerpts are from an Associated Press story which hit the wires just before noon today: "A Florida man with an eye for detail led the FBI to part of a stamp collection that showed up on eBay more than two decades after being stolen from the home of a collector. Stamp collector Michael Perlman, of Fort Lauderdale, had pored over the black-and-white records of Charles J. Starnes' collection. The original collection, with distinct pen marks and imperfections, was taken in 1983. So when Perlman was browsing Internet auction site eBay in May and saw some of the same pen marks and imperfections in color, he knew he had found part of Starnes' collection, which was worth an estimated $350,000 when taken. "It was a thrill to see it," Perlman, who had used Starnes' book on the collection as a reference for 15 years, told The Midland Daily News for a story Sunday. "You could see the hand markings, and you see pen strokes, and you could tell this thing was an exact item." After spotting the eBay listing May 21, Perlman called authorities and was in touch with the FBI the next day. He decided to buy the 16 items on sale ? a small portion of the collection ? to help find the seller. After making a $11,400 bid for the set, Perlman contacted the seller, who told him that she had more items in Tampa. Perlman withdrew cash from the bank and set out for Tampa with an FBI agent. The two entered the seller's home on May 24, while other FBI agents waited outside. Perlman said the seller ? a widow of a deceased coin collector ? acted surprised when told the stamps had been stolen." "FBI spokeswoman Sarah Oates in Tampa said she was told the collection could be worth nearly $1 million." The collection was expected to be returned to Starnes' survivors." To read the full story, see: http://tinyurl.com/b6kw7 The AP article was based on a story that appeared this morning in the Midland Daily News. Midland, Michigan was the home of Charles Starnes, who assembled the collection. "The collection comprised six volumes made up of over 400 "covers," or envelopes with rare stamps and markings, his most notable collections including U.S. "officials" -- stamps that had been issued by various departments of U.S. government, and "destinations" -- covers that had traveled to and from the U.S. and showed foreign rates from the mid-1800s. The thief or thieves who robbed Starnes's home must have staked out his property for some time, said Starnes's friend Robert Belfit, since the robbery occurred while Starnes was hospitalized for severe arthritis. The thieves ripped open his safe and stole nothing from his home but the covers, Belfit said, and police never found a suspect. But Starnes knew that one day the stamps would surface. He turned over a complete set of black and white copies to the FBI and told Belfit that in 20 years a collector would recognize the set and in turn notify the authorities. His prophecy was fulfilled May 21." "Although Perlman got to keep his bag of cash, he didn't bat an eye at the risk of losing almost $12,000, plus airfare and travel costs. "Stamp collecting is like a fraternity, and we all have a lot of mutual respect for each other," he said. "I'd like to think if I were a guy (who had lost stamps), and some 40-year-old guy had the chance to recover my collection, he'd take the initiative. We're like that." No arrests have yet been made, but the FBI is currently investigating." To read the full story, see: http://tinyurl.com/anduw [OK, I thought of a numismatic connection. On one of my many visits to Jules Reiver's home in Wilmington, Delaware in the mid-90s, he related a story about the handling of a coin estate. The bank handling the estate was told of Jules' expertise, and they brought him in to inventory and appraise the collection. When finished, Jules asked the trust officer, "where are the other coins?" On being told there were no others, Jules said that he had seen the collection before the gentleman died and noted several valuable pieces were missing. After being reassured that there were no other coins, Jules off-handedly said, "It doesn't matter - if they were lost or stolen we'll find them when they turn up." When the trust officer asked him what he meant, Jules said that since he was the national expert in these coins, no matter where they turned up in the country, the coins would ultimately be sent to him for attribution. And since the coins were unique, Jules would know instantly that they were stolen and from whom. "Don't worry - no one will get away with stealing those coins." Well surprise!, surprise!, surprise!, as Gomer Pyle would say. The trust officer "remembered" that there was one place he'd forgotten to look. He came back with another package containing the coins. Both Charles Starnes and Michael Perlman are true collector's heroes, and numismatists would be well advised to follow their lead: Starnes for documenting and publishing his collection, and Perlman for putting two-and-two together and acting quickly on his discovery. Perhaps Perlman, a Florida native, could be asked to speak at next year's F.U.N. show as a shining example to numismatists everywhere. -Editor] WISCONSIN WWII MEDAL COLLECTOR PROFILED On July 2 the Watertown Times of Watertown, Wisconsin profiled a local collector of WWII medals and memorabilia: "With over 300 medals, hundreds of photographs, dozens of uniforms, hats, boots and other World War II memorabilia, Keith Moran, of Watertown, spends much of his free time learning the faces and stories behind these items he collects. This Fourth of July he plans to take a little extra time reflecting on the veterans he's come to know." "The item doesn't really mean a whole lot to me when I first buy it," Moran said. "It's the story behind the medal or photograph or uniform that strikes my interest and keeps me looking for more." After Moran purchases an item he researches it in history books, on the Internet, writes the government and even tries to contact relatives or people who knew the person. Moran's medals are his most cherished World War II items. The purple heart, the air achievement and the distinguished flying cross medals are those that he has been collecting since he was 15. His interest lies in searching for medals from fighter pilots. With his over 300 medals only 13 of them are from fighter pilots." "Moran can put a story to almost every single name on the back of the medals he owns. One of his most rare medals is a purple heart from a soldier who was one of 50 men who died on the USS Nevada at Pearl Harbor." "Moran not only comes to appreciate his collection and the people behind the items, but he appreciates the holidays such as Memorial Day and the Fourth of July that are meant to remember war veterans." To read the complete article, see: http://www.wdtimes.com/articles/2005/07/02/news/news1.txt [To all of our readers in the U.S.. - have a happy and safe Fourth of July holiday. -Editor] FUN REDBOOK DONATED FOR NBS ANNUAL AUCTION Fred Lake writes (in a note to NBS President Pete Smith): "Florida United Numismatists (FUN) is sending four of the Special Edition "Redbooks" that were handed out at our 50th Anniversary Banquet to the Secretary/Treasurer of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society (we are sending all FUN clubs that number.) Hopefully, you will have them in time for the July 29th NBS book auction at San Francisco. They should help the treasury !!!" [Many thanks to FUN and Fred. NBS dues are kept low and funds raised at the annual auction help keep the organization running. Please consider making a donation of numismatic literature items. -Editor] MINT DIRECTOR FORE GRILLING CONTINUES On June 30th the Chicago Tribune reported "The White House on Wednesday allowed Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) to review portions of the FBI background file for a top State Department nominee, hoping to answer questions about her confirmation by resolving a concern over a controversial statement she made in 1987. Last week, Obama delayed a vote on the confirmation of Henrietta Holsman Fore as undersecretary of state for management, the top human resources job at the State Department. The senator sought access to her file, which he believed could clear up inconsistencies in her explanation of a racial comment she made during a speech at Wellesley College. With a lawyer from the White House counsel's office standing by, Obama studied the file for about 30 minutes in his office." "The file itself added to the confusion," Obama said. "I want some sincere expression from her as to what happened, why it happened and if she feels regret about it. "She gets one last chance," he said." "While it only takes one senator to delay a confirmation vote, no other senators have publicly voiced concern. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she stands behind Fore's nomination." http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0506300238jun30,1,16052.story JUNE WAS A GREAT MONTH FOR DONALD SCARINCI Dick Johnson writes: "Not only was New Jersey numismatist, attorney and E-Sylum subscriber Donald Scarinci named to the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee this June, but his book on one of the framers of the U.S. Constitution was published in June as well. Numismatic News in its June 14, 2005 issue carried the story of Scarinci?s CCAC nomination by a California Senator and appointment approval by U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow. Scarinci joins ten other members of the citizens? committee to advise both the Treasury and U.S. Mint on the concept and suitability of our country?s coin and medal designs. Congress recommends four of the committee?s members, the Treasury names the remaining seven. A 20-year collector whose initial numismatic interests were in America?s Colonial and early American era coins, Scarinci five years ago turned to art medals in a big way for the medallic beauty they contain. He has developed a keen eye and insight into what makes good design and great medallic art -- ideal for the work he must do on the citizens advisory committee. He has collected examples of great medallic art of the past plus the works of living American artists, as well as overseas art medalists. He has attended the last two FIDEM conventions of world art medalists in Europe and exhibitions in this country of the American medallic sculptors? group, AMSA. For 18 months Scarinci has been deep into another research project, this one on America?s most famed art medal series, The Society of Medalists. He is planning a comprehensive work on the fine art medal series as his next book project. Already he has interviewed the majority of living artists who had created Society issues and five officials of the Medallic Art Company which struck the art medal series over a 75-year period, 1930-1995. Last Monday, June 27th, New Jersey Media columnist Herb Jackson wrote in his column "Capital Games" about Scarinci?s new book. It?s about someone you have never heard of, David Brearley, Jackson notes. Brearley just happened to be a Colonial jurist, a chief justice on the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1779 and one of the framers of the U.S. Constitution. Sorry he is so obscure. Perhaps that is one reason Don wrote about him ?? he wants to change that. Don served as legal councel to the governor?s transition team in 2002. The transition office in Trenton was across the street from the New Jersey State Archives. Don?s searching there discovered a cache of letters and documents about Brearley, including such issues of modern-day importance as how much power the president should have versus Congress to appoint judges, government ministers and ambassadors. Brearley headed a constitutional committee, Don relates in the book, "David Brearley and the Making of the United States Constitution." just one of its accomplishments was the creation of the electoral college. This effects us 212 years later, columnist Jackson points out, in how a president could lose the popular vote and still win a presidential election (a la, George W. Bush in 2000). "There is an interesting numismatic hook to David Brearley," Don told me recently. "He was a signer on New Jersey Colonial notes of 1780 and 1781. The John Ford example of the extremely rare uncut sheet of notes of 1780 from New Jersey is now in my collection." Scarinci is senior partner in Scarinci & Hollenbeck, a law firm in Lyndhurst, New Jersey, which has over four dozen lawyers on its staff and is councel to 50 New Jersey municipalities and government agencies. The growing firm recently moved to Lyndhurst for larger quarters from its previous offices in Secaucus. Read Herb Jackson?s article on Don?s new book even if you are not a lawyer. You just might want to read the book! You will find the article at: http://tinyurl.com/73qks GRATITUDE FOR COIN CLUB SUGGESTIONS Steve Woodland writes: "I would like to say a great big thank-you to those E-Sylum readers who responded to my request in The E-Sylum v8n23 for ideas, suggestions and references for starting a Coin Club for the children in my daughter's school in Metcalfe, just south of Ottawa, Canada. Response was both terrific and immediate. In fact, I was online when the E-Sylum issue arrived in my mailbox and I had received two responses by the time I had finished reading! I received several emails with offering encouragement, great ideas and suggestions, and material to help the kids get interested in coin collecting. Special thanks go out to Dave Allen, Larry Gaye, Jim Majoros, Katie Jaeger, Dick Johnson, Myron Xenos, Bill Fivaz, Lane Brunner and Wayne Homren. I'll keep you posted on how it goes!" CHARLES CUSHING WRIGHT INFORMATION SOUGHT Katie Jaeger writes: "I am finishing off researching a short bio of Charles Cushing Wright. On a list of specimens donated to the New York Public Library in 1939 by one of Wright's descendants, I found the descendant had written the following comment beside the listing for the Charles Cotesworth Pinckney medal of 1820: "The first die sunk in steel by an American artist in the U.S." Then in Hibler-Kappen's work on So-Called Dollars, p. 3, in the description of Wright's Erie Canal Medal, they refer to Wright as "America's first die sinker," prompting me to wonder if there are any earlier examples of an American-born die sinker creating steel dies for medals, coins, or anything else. I had the opportunity to do some new archival research and discovered an answer to my own question: In the New York American of Jan. 25, 1830, in an announcement that C.C. Wright had embarked on a series of medals of Washington, the writer noted that Wright was "the first artist in this country who engraved medal likenesses on steel". That seems a more plausible statement. So ... Does anyone know of an American die-sinker placing a portrait likeness on a medal die, prior to 1820?" OTHER ZEBULON PIKE MEDALS Dr K.A. Rodgers of Auckland, New Zealand writes: "You had an item about a Zebulon Pike medal in the recent newsletter. When he worked for the Franklin Mint in its early days, sculptor Philip Nathan (Britannia bullion designs among others) designed a Zeublon Pike medal. One was sold on eBay not so long ago." THE GREATEST AMERICAN ON MEDALS Dick Johnson writes: "I caught about ten minutes of NBC?s special "Greatest American" with Matt Lauer while channel surfing last week. It seemed to be a combination of team debate and pep rally. Then I read the results in the Monday paper after the Sunday finale. Ronald Reagan minutely squeaked past Abraham Lincoln in a five-way race with Ben Franklin, George Washington and Martin Luther King Jr. It set me to thinking who would be such a winner for Greatest American on Medals. No contest. George Washington would win hands down. More medals have been created honoring him in just about every aspect one could imagine. Abraham Lincoln would indeed be second. Then who? In sheer quantity of medals honoring an American, we might be surprised the astronauts would not be included. They would have except for the fact it was a team effort without one astronaut being singled out. There was a great outpouring of medals issued around the world following the 1969 Moon Walk but not a single Neil Armstrong medal. Team America won. Americans tend to pick individual heroes for "greatest American" as reflected in their medallic art. Here is a list of the top ten by number of medals issued: 1 ? George Washington 2 ? Abraham Lincoln 3 ? Benjamin Franklin 4 ? John F. Kennedy 5 ? Charles Lindbergh 6 ? Marquis de Lafayette 7 ? Thomas Jefferson 8 ? Thomas Edison 9 ? Mark Twain 10 ? Albert Einstein " SPANISH SHIPWRECK LOOTED According to a June 27th story in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippine museum officials "found out too late that fishermen on Rapu-Rapu Island had discovered late last year a sunken Spanish galleon that contained gold and silver coins, jars and other valuable treasures. More than a thousand 17th- and 18th-century Spanish coins were recovered from the wreckage but only fewer than 20 pieces could be left because the fishermen had quietly sold the items to treasure hunters and collectors, Legazpi Museum curator Erlinda Belleza said, citing a report by two residents of Barangay Viga in Rapu-Rapu." "The business was so brisk and profitable that fisherfolk in Barangay Viga and neighboring villages temporarily stopped fishing. Taiwanese, Japanese, Korean and Filipino businessmen and collectors coming from Manila had frequented the village to buy as many coins and other items as possible, the two whistle-blowers said. The price of each coin ranged from P6,000 to P10,000." "Out of curiosity, Charles said he bought four gold and five silver coins, which he believed were the only ones left of the old Spanish coins recovered from the sunken galleon." "The four gold coins were dated 1862, 1863 (two pieces) and 1868, while the five silver coins were dated 1792, 1801, 1867, 1882 and 1887." "Historians and anthropologists, both here and abroad, have considered Rapu-Rapu Island a sanctuary for galleons, based on historical documents provided by the Legazpi Museum. Due to strong waves from the Pacific Ocean, many Spanish galleons coming from Sorsogon found Rapu-Rapu a safe haven for their voyage to other parts of Albay. But some of them reportedly sank off the coast of Rapu-Rapu. "So, most likely, there are still many treasures left. That's why we are asking for the expertise of the National Museum on this matter before it's too late," Belleza said." To read the full story, see: http://news.inq7.net/nation/index.php?index=1&story_id=41577 [I'm not sure how many "galleons" sailed the high seas after 1887, but it seems the fishermen made a significant find. It's a shame the underwater archaeological site was disturbed and the coins dispersed. Had any of our readers gotten word of this source of shipwreck coins? -Editor] BIBLIOTHEQUE NATIONALE LOOTED Tom Fort, Editor of our print journal The Asylum, sends the following story from The Independent, published June 28, 2005: "More than 30,000 books, including 1,000 rare and priceless items, are believed to have been stolen from the French national library in Paris. So chaotic are the library's cataloguing and security systems it is impossible to know when books were stolen. Some may have been "lost" in an institution that houses 35 million objects. But a year-long investigation by the president of the Biblioth?que Nationale de France (BNF) found the library had been systematically pillaged over many years." "Many of these are relatively valueless copies of 19th- and 20th- century works of literature or history. The BNF, like the British Library in London, is given a copy of every book published in France. More disturbingly, 1,183 priceless books or documents from the library's "precious core" cannot be traced. More than 200 of these are medieval manuscripts or books from the dawn of the age of printing." "In 1996, the library moved to a new home, the Biblioth?que Fran?ois Mitterrand, beside the Seine in eastern Paris. Security is now said to have been greatly tightened. But many ancient texts and manuscripts are still stored in the original building in central Paris." http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/story.jsp?story=650181 Tom adds: "There is at least one highly important numismatic item among the missing material: The best preserved seal of the English ruler Edward the Confessor (1042-1066). It was attached to a writ granting an estate in England to the church of St. Denis in Paris. The strip of parchment connecting the two items disintegrated sometime before 1850. The last published photo of the seal (and the writ, which is not missing) can be found in T.A.M. Bishop and P. Chaplais, Facsimilies of English Royal Writs to AD 1100 (Oxford, 1957), pl. XVIII. This 11th century wax seal, which uses the same image that appears on the obverse on the king's Sovereign/Eagles type, went missing sometime in the late 1960s/early 1970s. One can only hope that the box containing it was simply misplaced in the massive BN collection." HOW TO MISPRONOUNCE "NUMISMATICS!" Dick Johnson writes: "Henry Grunthal, a long-time coin dealer who worked for the American Numismatic Society his last decades before retiring, had the greatest collection of "numismatics" misspellings. He had an advantage, however, in adding to his collection ? he just read the incoming letters from the public at the ANS office and set aside the envelopes with the best bloopers. He mentioned this frequently, especially at talks he gave before coin clubs. His favorite: "Numerastics." I flog anyone who mispronounces the word in my presence with a mnemonic device. Think of an attractive young lady you have never met lying on a rug holding a coin in her hand. New - Miss - Mat - Ics. Remember that! And if you can?t remember that mental image replace the attractive young lady lying on a mat with a new Miss America. And if THAT doesn?t work replace her with Donald Trump!" [I once had a similar collection of misspellings of my own last name from various mailing envelopes: Holmgren was a fairly common one. I believe Horman, Hommern, and Hemren were others. I relented and threw them away when my wife gave me a "God, how dorky is THAT" look. -Editor] Alan Roy writes: "I just wanted to add something to the list of "alternative" spellings of "numismatics." The Royal Canadian Mint produced this phonecard for a coin convention, specifically, the American "Numisimatic" Association Convention in Denver, "Colardo." Here's a picture: http://babyurl.com/SfWL7r " [The picture's caption notes, "Because of two spelling errors, only a little more than a hundred of these cards were issued." Affinity credit cards and phone cards for numismatic associations are an interesting collecting sideline. I was one of the members who first suggested the ANA produce an affinity credit card. I still have the first card somewhere. I believe there were versions produced with images of the 1804 dollar and 1913 Liberty head nickel from the ANA museum collection. Has anyone ever catalogued them? -Editor] WORSHIPING AT THE ALTAR OF NUMISMATICS Roger deWardt Lane of Hollywood, Florida writes: "Numismatics does get misunderstood! Your story on the misspelling of numismatics reminded me of a local story. I have told this several times over the years; it always gets a good laugh. Years ago, the Florida state coin association was holding their convention in Miami. The dealers were staying at the Everglades Hotel, a tall hotel on Biscayne Blvd, facing the park filled with stately royal palm trees. Several coin dealers were in the hotel elevator along with a family of tourists. The coin dealers each had the well-recognized large orange badges with the initials FUN. One of the tourists turned to the dealer and said, ?What does ?FUN? stand for?? The reply was ? "Florida United Numismatists." Hearing this, the visitor said, ?What church domination is that?? Well, the coin people got a good laugh our of this, and I have been repeating the story every since." GOLFER NICKLAUS TO BE FEATURED ON SCOTTISH NOTE Bloomberg News reported on June 30 that "Jack Nicklaus will feature on a 5-pound note to be issued by Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc to commemorate his last appearance as a professional golfer in the British Open at St. Andrews." "No living person other than a member of the British royal family has ever appeared on a Scottish or English banknote. ``That's pretty special,'' Nicklaus said on a conference call today. ` `The tribute that RBS has done for me is unbelievable and one I have a hard time fathoming.'' "Nicklaus said he could think of no better way to end his career than at the so-called home of golf. ``It's a very special place.'' http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=abIQ_dS.WTUk MORE NICKEL SIGHTINGS Larry Gaye writes: "I'll have to join Howard Spindel in my report of the new nickels in our area. To date, two Keel Boats, one Peace: nothing newer. I recall in a visit to Atlanta Georgia back in October 2004 I received 10 in one store. Portland, Oregon seems to be on the black list for newly issued coins." HETTY GREEN'S PETTICOAT Eric Newman writes: "In your most recent bulletin there was a comment about Hetty Green's long black dress which she wore until it wore out. I understand that the inside lining or petticoat of that dress had sewn-in security pockets so that she could safely receive and deliver bought and sold securities to and from her vault." RARE NEW ORLEANS MINT PAMPHLET Eric Newman adds: "As to the Charles J. Collins, Jr. book entitled "The History of the United States Mint in New Orleans" discussed in your recent comments, there is also a very rare pamphlet on the general subject published in 1845 by Riddell entitled "The New Orleans Mint and the Process of Coinage, " of which I have located only one other copy. The text of the pamphlet was reprinted in the April 1968 issue of The Numismatist." SCHULMAN AND FAROUK NAMES FOREVER LINKED. Dick Johnson writes: "A big "thank you" for the great Featured Web Site in last week?s E-Sylum. Carl N. Lester?s article was fascinating reading. Thanks too, to Heritage Auctions for keeping it up on their web site. Please don?t ever take it down. It also was cause for more Schulman memories to flood my mind. Everyone, it seemed, questioned Hans about his dealings with King Farouk. It was bittersweet remembrances for him. Hans may not have recovered all he was owed by the Egyptian government from the auction of Farouk?s collection after the king was forced to abdicate. With the expenses of attorneys in both Egypt and elsewhere it set him back for several years. The Palace sale was a boon to the American dealers and collectors who attended in person. They were invited to visit other parts of the palace (and view Farouk?s other collections ? one of which was a massive pornographic collection). The night life in Cairo was an attraction for those Americans?both dealers and collectors ?who flew to the Egyptian capitol. Can you say "belly dancers"? Hans related to me that in the heyday of his dealing with Farouk his office staff would come in each morning, fill the king's order of numismatic items, send it off registered mail, and take the rest of the day off. But it pinpoints the business error of having only one customer (or one supplier)! Even so Hans remained on friendly terms with Farouk. Once he sent me two Christmas cards he had received from Farouk. One pictured the Egyptian palace, the following year it was a commercial card. Several years later I mentioned to him I still had them and he requested he wanted them back. I complied. Farouk was an indulgent person. He indulged in anything that took his fancy. He was noted for liking poker, potato chips, and corpulent mistresses (perhaps to support his own massive weight). One story they tell about him - He was playing poker with friends, he held two kings, his opponent three queens. When the cards were shown, Farouk said "I win." "But you only have two kings," said his opponent. "I am the other king," said Farouk as he grabbed the pot." NOVEL COUNTERFEITING ARGUMENT On June 30, the Associated Press reported this story from Frago, North Dakota: "A lawyer for two sisters accused of making counterfeit money says his clients deserve a lighter sentence -- because the bills were so bad." "Attorney Monty Mertz argued at a federal court hearing that guidelines call for a lighter sentence when counterfeit money is so obvious that clerks are unlikely to accept it. He called the bills "Monopoly money.'' Secret Service Agent John Kelly testified that even though the bills were poorly made, most clerks at larger stores would take them." To read the full story, see: http://www.startribune.com/stories/389/5484074.html VOCABULARY WORD: KONIACKER Speaking of counterfeiting, while flipping though George Burnham's 1872 book, "Memoirs of the United States Secret Service," a word caught my eye: "Koniacker". One chapter in the book is titled "The Great South Western "Koniacker," Fred Biebusch" "Koniacker" means counterfeiter. Has anyone ever encountered this term before? COUNTERING THE COUNTERFEITERS While searching for the term "koniacker" I blundered across a document on the web titled "Countering the Counterfeiters: Counterfeiting, Counterterrorism and Homeland Security: Finding the Perfect Defense," a 2002 publication of Lancaster University's Centre for Defence and International Security Studies. Interestingly, Google found the word no where else on the web. From the document summary: "This Memorandum analyzes current and future counterfeiting threats, most immediately and seriously to the U.S. dollar, especially the $100 bill. It also puts these threats in the historical perspective of the centuries old struggle between governments and counterfeiters. The already urgent need to counter these threats from counterfeiters has been reinforced by the welcome success of the American, British and Australian campaign to liberate Iraq because, in the post-war reconstruction, U.S. currency reportedly may be used as an interim Iraqi currency." "With counterfeit-derived resources, terrorists can, in effect, self-finance. Along with ill-gotten gains from other criminal activity, this enables hostile groups to recruit new members and acquire new weaponry." To read the full document, see: http://tinyurl.com/a6ja7 COUNTERFEIT 50-CENT "POSTAL CURRENCY" In another book I recently discovered an interesting story of an 1865 seizure of fifty thousand dollars in spurious postal currency, also documented in The New York Times of November 20, 1865. From "Knots Untied: Ways and By-Ways in the Hidden Life of American Detectives" by George S. McWatters, 1873: "One exceedingly skillful engraver of bogus postal currency has been especially marked as the most dangerous operator, inasmuch as his execution was so perfect as frequently to deceive even the Government officials.... The man in question is an English engraver, by the name of Charles J. Roberts." "The counterfeit pieces which he made... were copies of the latest issue of fifty cent postal currency." Given the date of the incident I presume that by "postal currency" is meant what we now refer to as fractional currency. Today we properly refer only to the first issue of fractional notes as postal currency. THE ANATOMICALLY CORRECT BUFFALO RUMOR Several folks wrote in about my proposed rumor about the bison "body part". One can get away with zingers like that in an informal email publication, but they wouldn't get past the editor of a print publication. I just couldn't resist. David Lange quipped, "If a die crack forms there, will it be known as the Viagra variety?" FEATURED WEB PAGE: LAFAYETTE MEDAL COLLECTION This week's featured web page is from the Special Collections & College Archives of Lafayette College in Easton, PA. The page summarizes parts of the college's Marquis de Lafayette memorabilia collection, including metalware (plates and spoons), textiles (clothing, banners, drapery), personal accessories (rings, locket, watch) and weapons (swords, musket). The items either depict Lafayette, or have some documented or purported connection to him. Of interest to numismatists is the Medal and Ribbon collection: "... a fine collection of 18th and 19th-century medals and ribbons. Over 140 medals and medallions are housed in this collection, and were struck in France and the United States. Every medal in the collection is somehow related to Lafayette, with most medals carrying a portrait of Lafayette in relief on the obverse side. In some instances, the medals refer to specific historical events in which Lafayette participated, but do not hold a Lafayette portrait. More than 60 different medals are included as well as several copies and variations of specific medals. The earliest medal appears to have been issued in 1789, and the most recent medals date from the present day. Approximately 30 medals date prior to 1800 and were issued in commemoration of Lafayette's participation in the French Revolution. Approximately 50 medals date after 1800 and up to 1834. These medals refer to Lafayette's 1824-25 tour of America, his last political involvements in France ca. 1830, and his death in 1834. Another fifty-plus medals date from the latter part of the 19th century onward." http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~library/special/marquis/MarquisFindAids/memorabiliacollection3.htm Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum From esylum at binhost.com Fri Jul 8 16:17:03 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Fri Jul 8 16:19:39 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#28, July 8, 2005 JOHN J. FORD ISSUE Message-ID: <42CEDF3F.40504@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 28, July 8, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. JOHN J. FORD, JR. This special edition of The E-Sylum brings sad news. I've been informed by NBS Vice president John W. Adams that U.S. numismatic legend and bibliophile John J. Ford, Jr. died last evening of chronic heart failure at the age of 81, following an extended hospitalization. Dick Johnson writes: "What a loss to the numismatic field! Oh, if only he had written more of the numismatic facts and lore he had learned over a lifetime dedicated to numismatics." NBS President Pete Smith writes that "Ford was born on March 5, 1924, in Hollywood, California. I interviewed him in 1991 for my book, "American Numismatic Biographies." We sat outside the entrance to the ANA convention in Chicago. Our discussion was frequently interrupted by people who stopped to say 'hello' and chat. I doubt if I was able to distill 5% of our conversation into something I could print. He was great at telling stories about people he had met and done business with over the years. He continued to tell stories at the ANA Numismatic Theater with talks about "Back When Coin Collecting Was Fun." Interviews with Ford were published in "Legacy" magazine and one of the weekly coin papers. It would be nice to gather items from those interviews to reprint in "The Asylum" as a tribute to his knowledge, character, wit, and charm." George Kolbe's catalog of Part II of Ford's library sale (June 4, 2005) includes some great essays on Ford by Jon Hanson and Q. David Bowers. Dave adds, "I have enough JJF-iana to write a book," and hopefully he'll do just that someday. I believe my first encounter with John Ford was at the 1980 meeting of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society at the ANA convention in Cincinnati, OH, where John was the featured speaker. This was before I collected numismatic literature in a serious way, and his presentation sealed my fate as a numismatic bibliophile. Later I was enthralled to listen to his numismatic tales at "The Invasion of Louisville" during the next Cincinnati ANA, where I was honored to be among the guests visiting Armand Champa's numismatic library. Bumping into him at subsequent ANA conventions was always a thrill. I recall sitting with him at the Stack's table at the Detroit ANA, where I had been viewing his Nova Constellatio silver pattern set, which he was offering for sale through them. I was transfixed as I examined what I still feel is one of the most important sets of U.S. coinage ever made. John had told me about how he bid on the pieces he bought from the Garrett sales while we spoke at Champa's. I have an audio tape of his story of how he acquired the missing piece needed to reunite the set. My favorite personal story about John Ford involves an original Congressional Gold Medal, awarded in 1990 to General Matthew B. Ridgeway. At Ford's request, I purchased the medal for him at a local estate sale. I was somewhat in awe to hold the piece in my hand. I believe it was nearly six ounces of gold, and a beautiful piece of the engraver's art. The medal was presented to Ridgeway at his home near Pittsburgh, for he was too frail to travel to Washington. The medal was accompanied by a letter signed by the President, a large certificate, and newspaper clippings of the event. I packed it all carefully in a large box and shipped it to Ford. A couple weeks later, not having heard from John, I called him. He thanked me and said he'd received the package. "So what did you think of the medal?" I asked. It turned out, he hadn't opened the box yet. About six weeks later I called again, and he still hadn't opened the box. It was in his garage, safe from thieves, he reasoned, since it looked innocuous. Fast forward to the next ANA Convention. Spotting John coming down the hall, he saw me and laughed - "No, I haven't opened it yet," he said. "I should have mailed you a friggin' ashtray," I said - "What can I bid on for you next - an 1804 dollar?" (I didn't say ""friggin," but you get the idea). A few weeks later I did learn he'd finally opened the box and loved the medal. It was sold in one of the recent Stack's sales. Others wishing to share their reminiscences of Ford are welcome to email me. Some of the shorter ones I'll publish in upcoming E-Sylums, but others may be more suitable for our print publication, The Asylum. Our thoughts are with John's family. He was one of a kind, and he'll be missed. Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum From esylum at binhost.com Sun Jul 10 22:11:53 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Jul 10 22:13:54 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#29, July 10, 2005 Message-ID: <42D1D569.3060004@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 29, July 10, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. EDITOR'S CORNER Among our recent subscribers are Mr Chellappa Chandra and Michael Rae. Welcome aboard! We now have 769 subscribers. At the suggestion of Nick Graver, I will now publish our subscriber count with each issue. I'll also take this opportunity to expand the section to include occasional comments about the issue or general topics of interest. Thus, the "Subscriber Update" is now the "Editor's Corner." Sorry I couldn't think of a more original title, but I'm open to suggestions. World events sometimes intrude on numismatics. Following the September 11, 2001 attacks in the U.S., we published a number of items of how numismatists in New York were affected. How have this week's bomb attacks in London affected our friends there? Please write to let us know - we hope all is well. As an editor I relish the ability of e-mail to quickly get the word out on important events. We rarely stray from the weekly E-Sylum publishing schedule, but occasionally we publish an interim issue. This week brought an interim issue with news of the death of John J. Ford, Jr., bibliophile and numismatist extraordinaire who was a longtime friend of NBS. As Dave Bowers notes, Ford was not an uncontroversial figure, but as the catalogues of his library attest, his love for numismatic literature was both immense and contagious. One of the true greats of our hobby is gone, but hopefully some of his passion lives on in all of us. UPCOMING NBS EVENTS IN SAN FRANCISCO NBS President Pete Smith writes: "I look forward to seeing many of our NBS members at the upcoming ANA convention in San Francisco. Most of the time I will be stuck behind a dealer's table (Tables 622/721) but I will be happy to have the chance to talk to members. The NBS Symposium is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 28, in room 3003 of the Moscone [West] Center. Our speakers will be Nancy Oliver and Rich Kelly. They wrote "A Mighty Fortress" about the San Francisco Mint and a more recent book on coiner Joseph Harmstead. Our NBS General Meeting will be on Friday, July 29, in room 2012. We will announce the results of our election and hear reports from officers. Our guest speaker will be Nancy Green, talking about recent developments at the ANA Library. We will announce the winners of the annual contest for best article in The Asylum. Part of our program each year is a benefit auction of items donated by members. You may drop off items before the auction or send them to one of our officers to bring to the sale. Proceeds of donated items are used to keep NBS membership fees low." LAKE BOOK SALE #80 CLOSING JULY 12 Fred Lake writes: ""Lake Books reminds everyone that their mail-bid sale #80 of numismatic literature closes on Tuesday, July 12, 2005 at 5:00 PM (EDT). The sale may be viewed at: http://www.lakebooks.com/current.html Selections from the library of J. H. Cline and other consignors are featured with of fine assortment of reference books on United States numismatics and Paper Money. Bids may be placed by email, telephone or FAX prior to the closing." ON FORWARDING THE E-SYLUM Nick Graver writes: "I forwarded last week's E-Sylum issue to: A golfer who might enjoy the Nicklaus on currency story, another who is expert in French photo history, for the BN library irregularities, and another friend who is a graduate of Lafayette and will enjoy the last story. That might be the most forwarded E-S for a while. I often forward them to others." [This is a great way for us to pick up new subscribers. Please forward The E-Sylum to friends you feel may enjoy it and encourage them to sign up. There's always room for one more at the party. -Editor] B.E.P. ELIMINATES STAMP PRINTING Dick Johnson writes: "Paper money is the main product of the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing now, since it stopped printing postage stamps June 10, 2005. Private printers will now supply all stamps for the United States Postal System and the BEP will "concentrate on printing currency." After 111 years of producing postage stamps as "security certificates" BEP does not consider them on the same level now as currency requiring the tight security in the federal plants. U.S. Postal Service officials say will save tens of millions of dollars a year. "The Postal Service actually began to chip away at the government printing with a contract that gave some commemorative stamps to private printers in 1978. The private printers' share of stamp production grew steadily and accelerated when the agency turned to self-adhesive stamps in the early 1990s." [The following are excerpts from a June 13 Washington Post article Dick forwarded. -Editor] "The federal government printed its last postage stamps Friday." "Workers pulled a final roll of 37-cent flag stamps from an aging, four-color Andreotti press on the fourth floor. That simple act terminated a once-thriving business that the Treasury Department agency had monopolized for decades." "For Washington's 60 remaining stamp printers and many stamp collectors, Friday marked a sad transition. Lawrence T. Graves, one of BEP's senior stamp officials, called it "bittersweet . . . a sad day." "It's the end of an era that reflected some of finest workmanship in government stamp design and security printing worldwide," said Rob Haeseler, an official of the American Philatelic Society, the nation's largest organization for stamp collectors. Finances and what BEP Director Thomas A. Ferguson said was a decision to no longer treat stamps like currency led postal officials away from the hand-engraved stamps that were the bureau's hallmark and toward cheaper, lithographed stamps." "When the end approached, the bureau arranged buyouts, retirements and currency printing jobs for the stamp printers. They decided against a final ceremony, fearing it might prove "too maudlin," said Ferguson, who began his bureau career more than 30 years ago as a stamp quality expert." "Ironically, many of the stamps the bureau printed last week may never be sold. If the Postal Service wins its recent request for a two-cent hike to a 39-cent stamp, to be effective early next year, Hudson said, there will no need for the bureau's last stamp run." To read the full story, see: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/12/AR2005061201253.html JOHN J.FORD, JR. Dave Kellogg writes: "You compiled a wonderful tribute (Vol. 8, # 28, July 8, 2005) to John J. Ford, Jr., a man I had heard of but never met. I look forward to more contributions from E-Sylum readers." George Fuld writes: "Some of my recollections on John Ford were published in the Stack's Part IV Ford sale. He was a friend of many years standing as I was his first customer at New Netherlands in 1950, the week before he was hired by Charles Wormser. I only echo the thought that if he had put in writing more of his vast knowledge, his written memory would be unbelievable. Simply, an era has passed." Fred Lake writes: "My favorite John J. Ford reminiscence is the time at an NBS meeting when John showed the "slabbed" catalog of the Herman Halpern Paper Money sale catalog from Stack's. John had received two copies with somewhat bent corners or other problems. He had called Martin Gengerke (at Stack's) and requested a perfect copy. Martin put a fresh catalog between two sheets of Plexiglas, duct-taped the edges and sent it to John. Ford proudly showed this to the NBS attendees and I was lucky enough to get a picture of a beaming John with his "prize". More to the story....I carefully printed an 8x10 print of the picture, carefully framed it, packed it in bubble wrap, put it in a box and placed the mailing label on it. However, prior to placing all the contents in the box, I ran it over with my trusty Toyota truck so that the dirty tire tracks were quite evident. I even cracked the glass in the frame so that John would have something to bitch about. John, ever kindly, sent me a copy of my picture in another frame that is inscribed "To Fred Lake, a man who recognizes a Pioneering Effort when he sees one." John was a pioneer in his own right." Dan Hamelberg writes: "I can recall a John Ford story regarding my quest to complete all the plated Chapman catalogs. At the Cincinnati ANA, John brought a plated Sleicher with the 6 plates bound in at the end. As I recall, he was either going to sell it or loan it to Del Bland for Del's ongoing research. I got to John first. I convinced him that the plated Sleicher would be just fine in my library, and that I would be happy to loan it to Del for his research. As we negotiated a price, John told me the "story about the Sleicher". It was about the time he moved to Arizona, and the books in his library had be shipped ahead of time. When he arrived at his new home, he discovered that there had been a break in, and a few of the boxes of books had been ripped open with a sharp object. The Sleicher was near the top of one of the boxes ripped open. The sharp object (probably a knife) had gone thru a few of the pages with plates, but none of the coin images were affected. So John prepared a paste-paper mixture, and carefully repaired the small tears that were between the coin images on the plated pages in the rear of the Sleicher. The work was completed in typical John Ford fashion---perfect as usual. I could not tell where the repairs were made. Later at the ANA, after I had acquired the Sleicher from John, I saw Del. News travels fast at major coin conventions, and Del asked me about the Sleicher. We shared a good laugh on my "intercept purchase" and I gave the Sleicher to Del for him to continue his research, and told him to send it back to me whenever he was finished. I have written up the story of the Sleicher as above, and tipped it into the actual catalog for future bibliophiles. John was the ultimate perfectionist, and the Sleicher repair was just one story of many that highlighted "his way". We all owe a great debt to John for "his way". He accumulated and preserved a great collection of numismatic material as the recent Stacks and Kolbe sales illustrate. We will all miss him." Tom Fort, editor of our print journal, writes: "Naturally, the Summer issue of The Asylum should contain tributes to Ford. Thus, if anyone would like to publish one or know someone who would like to publish one, I will need the completed text by 1 August." [Tom's email address is etfort@comcast.net. -Editor] Q. DAVID BOWERS ON JOHN J. FORD With permission, below are a few excepts from Q. David Bowers' essay on John Ford from the recent Kolbe catalog of the Ford Library Part II sale: "Briefly, JJF is one of the most important, most influential figures in American numismatics. It is an irony that John has not been inducted into the ANA Hall of Fame, nor did he appear on the list of ?Numismatists of the Century? compiled by COINage magazine, from a survey conducted a few years back. While the COINage survey is history, I herewith nominate JJF to the ANA Board of Directors for inclusion in the Hall of Fame. And yet, JJF has had his share of controversy. The ?situation? concerning certain Western ingots and assay bars is still a matter of study and debate?and must be mentioned here, lest readers overlook the main thrust of this article and wonder why I didn?t mention it. So there! John might be but a footnote in numismatics today, had he not miraculously walked away from an airplane crash in the late 1940s. Returning to the ?most influential? part, JJF single-handedly revolutionized the techniques of American coin catalogues? introducing, with the help of Walter Breen, many comments about history, mintage techniques, numismatic tradition, and more. If you are in the slightest doubt of this, take a New Netherlands catalogue from, say, 1955, and compare it with the catalogues of anyone else. There is no comparison in readability or the transmitting of information." "In the 1950s, basic information about rare coins was difficult to locate easily, apart from what might be found in the current edition of the Guide Book. Building a library of old books (there were not many new ones) was not an option, it was a necessity for anyone interested in gaining knowledge and expertise. Most dealers were not interested in such things, which provided great advantages for those who were." "John was a virtual walking encyclopedia of numismatic knowledge. It would be very difficult to mention anything in the American or Canadian series for which he did not have information." "I made it a point to attend most of the New Netherlands sales in New York City in the mid-1950s. At one particular event there was a marvelous collection of Hard Times tokens, anchored by multiple examples of the rare variety known as Low-1, with the portrait of Andrew Jackson. John Ford was after some of these for his own account, and so was Donald Miller, the latter also being a fine friend of mine, and an attorney from Indiana, Pennsylvania. This particular sale was held high on the penthouse terrace of a New York City hotel, in which there were meeting rooms and also a bar, a setting ideal for a wedding reception or some other event. Don had a few drinks too many, and while passing a $500 bill around to the bar patrons to whet their interest and curiosity, found to his consternation that it had disappeared? nowhere in sight, no one knew where it was. To this day it is probably still missing. Miller was after one of the rarer sub-varieties of Low-1, as was Ford. I don?t remember all the details, but whatever happened, the two became involved in a vicious argument and shouting match on the open terrace outside of the bar. Miller grabbed Ford and pushed him against a low wall at the side of the terrace, with the street visible many floors below. A great struggle took place, and it seemed that Ford was about to be thrown to eternity, when a bunch of bystanders, including me, rushed to the scene and pulled Miller away, in effect saving Ford. If Ford had nine lives and used one up in the airplane accident, a second was used here! Luckily, calmness soon prevailed and the auction continued as planned. " IN MEMORY OF ROBERT KUTCHER AND LEONARD SAUNDERS John and Nancy Wilson, Ocala, FL write: "Over the past few weeks our hobby has lost two tremendous numismatists, Robert Kutcher and Leonard Saunders. Both of them were close friends of ours and we are very saddened with their passing. Robert Kutcher was a CSNS Board Member, who I (John) had the honor of serving with on that Board. He was a collector, exhibitor, researcher, coin club officer and wrote numerous articles on many different subjects. Besides serving in the military and collecting some issues from that area, he was a tremendous student of ancient coins. He brought them to CSNS shows and shared his collection and knowledge with anyone who was interested in that area of our hobby. Bob was also an expert at exhibiting and won many major awards at coin shows around the country. Leonard Saunders was a coin dealer and one of the most friendly and honest dealers in the industry. He was dedicated to his family and the numismatic hobby. He always had a smile on his face and a friendly greeting when you stopped by his table at conventions around the country. His knowledge on coins and other collectibles was amazing and he utilized it in an honest and fair manner in making transactions with other dealers or collectors. Though Leonard had cancer the past six years and was in pain you would never know it by looking or talking to him. He was always smiling, cheerful and friendly. Our prayers and thoughts to both of their families, and your memories will be with us forever." NUMISMATIC BOOK CARE AND PROTECTION Roger deWardt Lane writes "I am having a friend sell my 1,000-volume numismatic library on eBay, a dozen books at a time. I did not know how to take care of my library, and there seemed to be no one to tell me how to take care of the books better. To my great sadness - many of the books have some foxing on them, even the rare ones, which I am sure cuts way down on the value. Living in Florida did not help either, but I am sure if anyone had discussed the "Care and Protection of Numismatic Book" I would have done a better job. We learn from experience - but need to pass on the information to the next generation of collectors. This might be a great subject for The E-Sylum." Coincidentally, Ray Williams writes: "On a colonial study group, the question arose as to how to get rid of the musty smell that occurs in old books that might have been improperly stored. I was wondering if anyone here had any suggestions that I could share." [We've covered the topic before, but it's high time we revisited it. Thoughts and recommendations, anyone? -Editor] DOMINEERING AT THE ALTAR OF NUMISMATICS David Gladfelter caught an amusing typo in Roger deWardt Lane's story from a long-ago F.U.N. show. Roger wrote: "One of the tourists turned to the dealer and said, ?What does ?FUN? stand for?? The reply was ? "Florida United Numismatists." Hearing this, the visitor said, ?What church domination is that?? David wrote: "Is that Freudian? Some churches are pretty domineering." I had to read Dave's note a few times before I caught the spelling error - it should have read, "church DENOMINATION." Oops - sorry my spell-checker and I missed that one. EARLY PORTRAIT ENGRAVERS Regarding Katie Jaeger's question about Charles Cushing Wright, Pete Smith writes: "I have a few comments about Wright as the first American engraver to do a portrait on a metal die. Some of our colonial (pre-federal) coins had portraits including images of George III, George Washington and George Clinton. Diesinkers like James Atlee, Joseph Callendar, William Coley, Benjamin Dudley, and Jacob Perkins were producing dies for such coinage as early as 1785. Wright was probably not the first to do a portrait for a medal. Peter Getz did a Washington medal (Baker 288) as early as 1797. These are examples of the Joel Orosz rule. Whenever a writer goes "out-on-a-limb" to identify the first example of something, it provides an opportunity for other writers to mention earlier examples." Katie Jaeger writes: "I also had a response from David Gladfelter mentioning Trested (who was English-born), Samuel Brooks, Jacob Perkins and Joseph Wright. I'm beginning to think that CCW was likely the first American to have his subject sit while he modeled a likeness, and later engraved it on steel. All those mentioned by Smith and Gladfelter would have been made from famous portraits or drawings, while CCW did his from life. I don't think CCW was the type to make extravagant claims about himself. He didn't have to!" FREEDOM TOWER "COIN" CLASS ACTION SUIT FILED Jeff Schwartz writes: "I ran across your article on the Freedom Tower Silver Dollar. I work for a law firm that is planning to file a class action lawsuit against the company. If you or any of your readers purchased one of the coins, we can help. My email address is: miller4law@msn.com " We first discussed this topic in The E-Sylum v7n46 (November 14, 2004). Here's a link to the original press release from New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's office: http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/2004/oct/oct13a_04.html On July 5th, the South Jersey Courier-Post reported that a different law firm has already filed a class action suit in the matter: "A federal judge in the Southern District of New York has given class action status to a lawsuit filed by a Burlington County man who claims he was defrauded and tricked into the purchase of "Freedom Tower Silver Dollar" coins." "In advertising, the $1 coin was described as made of pure silver recovered from ground zero at the World Trade Center. It also was described as "a legally authorized government issue silver dollar" that was legal tender in the U.S." "The lawsuit describes the advertising campaign as "a shameless attempt to profit from a national tragedy." "Instead of being made of pure silver, Spitzer said in court documents, the medallion is an inexpensive metal alloy plated with one ten-thousandth of an inch of silver. Its value is about 1.4 cents, Spitzer said." http://www.courierpostonline.com/news/southjersey/m070505k.htm ZEBULON PIKE MEDALS Larry Dziubek writes: "Perhaps my memory needs "defragged", but you have been talking about the lack of a Zeb Pike medal. This may or may not be an issue of concern any longer,but I have had one and still may have it somewhere. Check out the Hibler-Kappen book of So-Called Dollars for Numbers 335 thru 339. This should serve the need for items of historic personalities. PHILATELIC WEST AND THE HUB COIN BOOK [The following is a note written by David Slocum to Q. David Bowers. Dave forwarded it to me for The E-Sylum; perhaps one of our readers can shed light on the two subjects. -Editor] David Slocum writes: "Recently I acquired about 25 issues of a curious publication. It is entitled "Philatelic West and Collectors World". It was published at Superior, Nebraska. My issues seem to be in the years 1915 and 1916, and November 1915 indicates that it is in Volume sixty-seven. It professes to be for collectors of stamps, coins, curios and postcards. I notice that the back cover has the standard ad of B. Max Mehl. The center sheet, making four pages, consists of photos of curiosities, collectibles and people. My small collection of the magazine commences in Oct. 1913. For that month and the next it is entitled "The West and Collectors World" and the cover proclaims Numismatics, Stamps, Medals, Relics, Coins, Curios, Post Cards. It and it's successor title are published at Superior, Neb. The content is mainly stamps. In Dec. 1913 it is the "Philatelic West and Collector's World. My copies carry through until May 1916. I can't say how many issues there are a year. The volume numbers do not correspond with the calendar year. They are priced at 10 cents, or 75 cents per year. I also have a softback version of the Red Book. I say that only because the cover is red. It is the "New HUB Coin Book of American & Foreign Coins, 30th Edition". It was published by I. & M. Ottenheimer of Baltimore. It was entered by Act of Congress, 1912. I don't know if that was the year of publication or if you add 30 years to that date. Any information you might have would be much appreciated." Dave Bowers writes: "The Philatelic West and Collectors World may have been widely circulated in its time, but it certainly is elusive today! It would be interesting to see a copy of one of the issues. The ?Hub Coin Book,? so called, takes its name from Boston, the ?Hub City,? where at least two people distributed it in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Apparently, this could be ordered with various imprints, and even B. Max Mehl, who soon had his own Star Rare Encyclopedia, had a ?Hub? catalogue early in his career." [So - can any of our readers shed further light on these two publications? I have a few copies of the Hub books in my library, but never attempted to assemble a set of the various editions. I was unaware that Mehl had distributed one. -Editor] ON RETURNING STOLEN COINS Regarding last week's story on the stolen stamp collection recovered after 20 years, Nick Graver writes: "A good friend had part of his stolen coin collection retrieved due to the inclusion of his specialized Half Dollar varieties. It seems specialist collectors know about most top collections, and when certain rare Die-Break and variety combinations appear on the market, there is only one home in the world that those exact coins could have come from!" [That was certainly the case with Jules Reiver and U.S. silver varieties. I'm sure the same is true of early copper and other coin varieties. Tracing paper money can be even easier if the owners record serial numbers. I don't have many U.S. notes in my collections, but every serial number is dutifully recorded in a safe place. -Editor] OHIO COIN SCANDAL UPDATE Hobby publications like Coin World are very much on top of unfolding events in the Ohio "CoinGate" affair. The Toledo Blade, whose investigative reports put the spotlight on the state's coin investments, has been playing catch-up. In a new article this week, they discuss various clues surrounding the missing coins, which were once thought to be part of the stolen duPont collection. To read the complete article, see: http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050705/NEWS24/50705001 LEBANESE COIN FIND Arthur Shippee writes: "Coins dating to Queen Victoria and Napoleon have been found in a trench in Lebanon. Good luck reading this article noted in The Explorator newsletter - the article is in Arabic: http://www.annaharonline.com/htd/BEAA050706.HTM " ARTICLE ON COINS OF THE SEPTIMIUS FAMILY Arthur Shippee also writes: "Here is an interesting feature on coins of the Severans (not the 'Septimius family'): "One of my customers told me that she was trying to interest her daughter of 25 years in coin collecting. The customer said, ?I told her collecting is all about the story behind the coins. My daughter told me, ?It had better be a pretty darn good story to interest me.? So that?s why I?m calling you. I need a coin collection with a great story.? ?What kind of a story do you want?? I asked. ?I?m afraid it?ll have to be a soap opera,? she replied. Almost immediately the story of the ancient Roman Septimius family came to mind. I knew part of the story because I had collected some of the coins, but little did I know just how convoluted this clan was. The more I researched it, the more intrigued I became." To read the full article, see: http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art33349.asp MORE ON HANS SCHULMAN Neil Shafer writes: "Concerning Hans Schulman, I really did not get to know him very well, but a couple of things may perhaps be of interest. I do recall visiting his counters at Gimbels in New York and purchasing a wonderful uncirculated Proclamation 2R Philippine piece of 1834 for the princely sum of $35.00. I also had in my collection a crude-looking 8R piece, rather squarish, with a palm tree on it! It had come from a Schulman auction, and I was told that sometimes he put such "items" in his auctions without a word about their authenticity or provenance. But the most telling part of my story has to do with one time when I was attending a speech he gave (some numismatic gathering) and he was questioned about his sponsorship and manipulation of the Andorra crown of 1960. During his reply, he indicated surprise that he would be questioned about it, since he owned only about 75% of the total issue!" Henry Bergos writes: "Hans was also related to Moshe Pragger, who had a table at one of the NY shows in the 1970s. He had a BU large cent that I was busy drooling on. I asked out of curiosity how much it was. He told me and I replied that I hadn't the money. He told me that he would take my check. I called him a fool. He also had a very sharp sense of humor. Hans was sitting in a shadow and chimed in. I recognized him and he said that he would ask 71 people before taking my check; the size of the ancient Sanhedrin. [the council of seventy-one Jewish sages who constituted the supreme court and legislative body in Judea during the Roman period, according to the Wikipedia -Editor] I said that they would say not to take my check. My word, yes; my check, no. We enjoyed a good laugh together; typical of any time we got together. His shop in NYC was sold through a non-numismatic auction house. I knew the company and the auctioneer through my fabric business. Mike knew/knows nothing about coins. I stood in the back of the crowd moving my head up or down telling him how much the stuff should sell for. I didn't get any thing at the sale and told him to remember my help the next time he sold fabric to my dad. He did." WHAT MAKES A LIBRARY? Dave Kellogg writes: "I have many books on coins, but my collection may not qualify as a numismatic library. How do serious collectors describe a true library? Should books be contained within a single room, a single bookcase or set of cases? (Mine tend to move around the house as I peruse or study them according to current interests.) Should there be a catalog listing the library's contents? And what form should a catalog take - just a bibliography or a brief outline of each book's contents? Perhaps I am like many numismatists, probably purchasing books as my interest in specific coin types broadens. After years, a nice series of references builds up, but does that make it a "library"? Then there are the fringe topics, each important within its own classification, such as the classics, historical novels, biographies, etc. Are they legitimate portions of a numismatic library? Of course the answer is a library is what the owner makes it, but what is the general consensus, habit or convention of serious numismatic collectors? [I would say that to be called a library, a collection of literature must be organized in some fashion so that reference material can quickly be found. A catalog is nice, but optional, and so is having the library all in one room. I suppose there is some sort of minimum number of books required before you could call a collection of books a "library," but I have no idea where to draw the line. I have about 3,000 volumes shelved in and on about ten bookcases. But at one point I had just a shelf or two of numismatic books. At what point did it become a "library"? As for non-numismatic books, I shelf these alongside the numismatic books they relate to - a book on the Gold Rush would be shelved next to my books on private and pioneer gold, for example. I certainly consider these tangential works to be part of my library, but I recognize that others may not feel the same. If I were to sell my library I would catalog these right alongside the "proper" numismatic books, but they might be a tough sell in the numismatic literature market. As you say, to each their own. What do our readers think? -Editor] TEN YEARS OF EBAY Dick Johnson writes: "We have all been exposed last week to the tenth anniversary hoopla of eBay in every media possible. EBay?s officials have acknowledged that coins, tokens, medals were sold in the early days of eBay?s existence. Numismatic items helped establish it and sustained it all along. But what started out as a means of people wanting to buy and sell collectibles has turned into a giant worldwide monster machine to market merchandise. Something manufactured yesterday could be listed today. Somehow, the heritage of collectible items of the past have been overshadowed by items no different from what?s at Wal-Mart or any department store. Now eBay claims 300,000 numismatic items are offered at any time. It has become a mixed blessing. Not all eBay phenomena has been beneficial. The losers and winners are extreme. Here is an analysis by your writer (who has only 88 recognized purchases -- but actually closer to 400 because I refuse to play eBay?s game to report on sellers ? thus they don?t tattle on me). Winners: 1) UPS and FedEx for moving this stuff around (and FedEx is now hauling all the U.S. Post Office?s packages). 2) Dealers who can easily locate the one buyer in the world who will pay the highest price. 3) Antique dealers who are clearing out a lot of stuff unsold for years. 4) Crooks who have mastered the way to cheat eBay buyers in many ways from not delivering the goods to proffering fake items. 5) IRS as this material is sold, often sold again, as material is churned. 6) Meg Whitman, who knows little about collecting, but makes $2.9 million a year at the helm of eBay. Losers: 1) Unknowledgeable sellers whose material is listed too high (and get no bids) or too low (and lose potential profits), often lacking accurate descriptions with little concept of what they are actually selling. 2) Collectors who are buying unguaranteed or even fake collectibles. 3) Both eBay sellers and buyers subjected to eBay?s dictatorial policies and heightened fees. 4) Heirs, inherited stuff often sold at way below its value. 5) Flea market operators as dealers drift away to sell on eBay in preference to selling person-to-person. 6) Storefront renters as dealers close up shop to operate out of their homes or less expensive digs. 7) Sellers who cannot type, write grammatically accurate text ?or in all caps?who infuriate literate buyers; or post out-of-focus pictures which do not reveal detail, or those who charge high "handling fees" for wrapping and shipping. After ten years what?s your opinion of eBay? Good or bad for numismatics?" [I tend to believe the good outweighs the bad on eBay, but must admit it's been years since I bothered to browse the listings - the amount of stuff offered is overwhelming. I've not bothered to set up automatic searches, but that's the way to go, if you can narrow down your wants to a manageable set of keywords. Frauds are rampant, but buyer beware. Because eBay is such an open environment, it empowers the do-gooders as much as it does the thieves. There are regular discussions on other numismatic email groups about the authenticity and attribution of items offered on eBay, and last week's story about the recovered stolen stamp collection shows that material can only stay out of the limelight for so long - inevitably someone will offer it up for sale where it can be found. Other thoughts, anyone? -Editor] A FIVE-LEGGED BUFFALO? Timothy Grat of The Gallery Mint writes: "I could not resist the silliness of the Bison Nickel comments, and cannot help but add my own! If there were to be a die crack that appeared at the back and below the bison, collectors would perhaps refer to these as the elusive "5-legged" buffalo! Anyhow, thanks for your work and keep up the fine job!" FEATURED WEB SITE This week's featured web site is recommended by Roger deWardt Lane, who writes: "I was surfing the web looking for information on a book on the popes, when I found this page - John Paul Adams' "Portraits of the Popes on Their Medals." http://www.csun.edu/~hcfll004/popes-medals.html Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum From esylum at binhost.com Mon Jul 11 13:41:09 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Mon Jul 11 13:48:26 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#30, July 11, 2005 LONDON BOMBING UPDATE Message-ID: <42D2AF35.1090908@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 30, July 11, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. EDITOR'S CORNER This special edition of The E-Sylum brings some happy news. Rather than wait until our next regular issue, I thought I'd publish the following update from our numismatic friends at Spink in London: SPINK NEAR LONDON BOMB SITE, BUT UNAFFECTED Douglas Saville writes: "I am pleased to say that as far as we are aware nobody here at Spinks was affected too badly on Thursday, apart from being inconvenienced, but that is hardly anything to complain about, given the suffering that has been experienced by some individuals. The London transport system is fast getting back to normal, with buses and the underground trains working virtually as usual today (Monday 11 July). The only affected areas are in those in the immediate vicinity of the explosions. Rescuers are still trying to release some of the bodies from inside the train deep underground in the tunnel, and no more than 700 yards from our offices. Spinks is about 300 yards from where the bus was bombed. We heard the explosion of course, and, since by then the underground had already been closed down for almost an hour, a large number of people were walking along the pavements of Southampton Row in front of the Spink offices. As one, it seemed, they turned around and looked towards the source of that explosion. Less than 5 minutes later a tremendous stream of emergency vehicles started to drive past our building, with ambulances from all over London, and from elsewhere, and unmarked police vehicles, and all that went on until at least midday, when Southampton Row was eventually closed to all but the emergency services. I would guess 200 or more ambulances and police vehicles went past Spinks. We were told by the police to keep inside the building until early afternoon when it seemed to be reasonably safe to venture onto the streets in the surrounding area. To my mind the emergency services seemed to react so swiftly, as to be astonishing, and this goes someway towards reflecting the preparedness we have become accustomed to in recent years. This was something we had been warned was inevitable, but until it happened one finds it hard to believe. Everyone believes the emergency services have dealt with the incidents in a truly professional and remarkable manner. So, sort of, "back to normal" again. All best wishes, Douglas." [We're so glad all is well - our thoughts are with you and all Londoners. -Editor] Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum From esylum at binhost.com Sun Jul 17 23:09:13 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Jul 17 23:11:18 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#31, July 17, 2005 Message-ID: <42DB1D59.4090507@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 31, July 17, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. EDITOR'S CORNER Among our recent subscribers is Jack Howes. A returning subscriber is Serge Pelletier. Welcome aboard, and welcome back! We now have 773 subscribers. Ron Thompson suggested "Homren's Hype" or "Wayne's World" as alternate names for the "Editor's Corner". I think I'll stick with the lame name for now. LAKE BOOKS SALE #80 PRICES REALIZED AVAILABLE Fred Lake writes: "The prices realized list for our sale #80 which closed on July 12, 2005 is now available for viewing on our web site at: http://www.lakebooks.com/archive.html Prices were very strong and our thanks go to all of the participants in the sale. Our next sale will be held in early October." NEW BOOK ON SANTIAGO COINAGE Alan Luedeking writes: "I'm pleased to announce the impending publication of Carlos Jara's fifth and most important work to date, his long-awaited study on the early coinage of Santiago (1749-1772), in English and Spanish. Before I say any nice things about it, the reader should know I am highly biased in its favor-- I was a co-author of the work! The 680 page book covers both silver and gold issues, about which a great deal had remained in the dark until Carlos's original research in the national archives of Chile uncovered the circumstances surrounding the creation and operation of this fascinating mint. For the first time, the actual mintage figures of all of the silver pillar and early gold issues is revealed, information which even the great Jose Toribio Medina had not been able to discover despite searching for decades. A history of the mint in its historical context is presented, along with English transcriptions of most of the key documentation. The documentary appendix contains hundreds of pages of original documents, all transcribed, in the tradition of the great Medina. A complete catalogue of all known issues is provided, each with its assigned rarity, and all of the non-extant dates which plague current reference catalogues are deleted. All of the known coins of the higher rarity ratings are pedigreed, most are plated, and a complete glossary, bibliography and index round out the work. The work will be printed in August in a limited, numbered hardcover edition. Anybody wishing to inquire about or order the book is encouraged to contact either Carlos Jara at [clejara@yahoo.com] or myself (Alan Luedeking) at [alan@ludeca.com]." NEW BOOK ON 1933 NEW ZEALAND DESIGNS Martin Purdy forwarded the following release about a new book on New Zealand coinage: "The Numismatic Birth of the Dominion - The 1933 New Zealand Coinage Designs" - a brand-new book by Dr Mark Stocker of Otago University, published by the Royal Numismatic Society of NZ (including the Wellington Coin Club) in 2005. A fascinating glimpse behind the scenes as NZ prepared to produce its first official coins in 1933, with lots of detail about designs that were proposed but never used. 36pp, semi-gloss paper, card covers, A5 format. A special publication issued as a supplement to the NZ Numismatic Journal." Martin adds: "I'm selling this on behalf of the Royal Numismatic Society of NZ, so there's nothing in it for me. Price including postage worldwide - USD 11. Payment: US cash in the mail to me at the address below; personal cheques, bank drafts or money orders (make cheques payable to "Royal Numismatic Society of New Zealand), or Paypal strictly to rita@translatelimited.com. (Because this is a private transaction rather than a business one, any payments to my regular e-mail address will be returned, less Paypal fees, sorry to say.) Link to a sample page (450 KB): http://www.translatelimited.com/stockersamplepage.jpg " AUGUST 2005 COLONIAL NEWSLETTER CNL Editor Gary Trudgen writes: "The August 2005 issue of The Colonial Newsletter (CNL) has been published. This issue provides our readers with interesting studies on three diverse topics in early American numismatics. In our previous issue, we were treated to an excellent review and study by Dr. John Kleeberg of a famous American land hoard, specifically the Stepney Hoard. In this issue we are again pleased to present another outstanding study of a legendary American hoard, the Castine Hoard. Based upon two old photographs of coins from the Castine Hoard, author Tom Kays has made a startling discovery which questions the time period in which the hoard was thought to have been deposited. He weaves this discovery into the history of the region and even treats us to a little historical fiction. Next, we present a study of the original 1881 heliotype photographic print of New Jersey coppers that was published by Dr. Edward Maris in his monograph titled A Historical Sketch of the Coins of New Jersey. Authors Dr. Roger Moore and Ray Williams, both enthusiastic students of this coinage, provide some interesting conclusions about the production of this plate. The authors have determined that the plate was produced using a four-step process. They came to their conclusion by comparing several original plates which, in itself, was a difficult task due to the rarity of the plates and their dispersal throughout the country. Our final paper takes us back to Bermuda and Hogge Money. We are pleased that Mark Sportack, an authority on Bermuda's early money, has provided CNL with a study concerning the re-emergence of Hogge Money. Acceptance by American numismatists of Hogge Money as the earliest coinage made specifically for North America came slowly over many, many years. Mark methodically traces the chronological sequence of discovery of the different denominations known today. It is an interesting detective study in an effort to uncover the facts from the mists of time concerning today's extant specimens. CNL is published three times a year by The American Numismatic Society, 96 Fulton Street, New York, NY 10038. For inquires concerning CNL, please contact Juliette Pelletier at the preceding postal address or e-mail pelletier@amnumsoc.org or telephone (212) 571-4470 ext. 1311." UPDATE ON THE FORMER KRAUSE PUBLICATIONS Russ Rulau writes: "After discussing my report on the sale of F+W Publications (owner of KP in Iola) by Providence Equity Partners to ABRY LLC, I have discussed the report in detail with Chet Krause, Cliff Mishler and Bill Bright, the latter the publisher of the numismatic periodicals division of F+W located in Iola. There is one error in my E-Sylum report which I wish to correct. I stated Chet Krause had "won" his suit before the U.S. Trademark Commission -- based on my understanding of statements made to me by Chet 2-1/2 months past. This is erroneous. Chet and his attorneys have won the right to pursue the removal of the Krause surname before the Commision, having provided sufficient evidence through depositions, etc. Other portions of my summation of the re-sale story I have reconfirmed with Chester L. Krause. A personal note to my colleagues among the numismatic bibliophiles: The publisher and staffs of NN, WCN and BNR in Iola are honorable folks who love "Chet" as much as I." RITTENHOUSE SOCIETY MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT John Kraljevich writes: "The annual meeting of the membership of the Rittenhouse Society will be held on Saturday, July 30 at 8 AM at a to-be-determined breakfasting location in San Francisco. A membership directory (never published or distributed, thank you) has been compiled, but we would love to hear from members with their most up-to-date email addresses for later communication. All Rittenhouse members are invited to contact John Kraljevich, Emergency Long-Term Secretary Pro-Tem, at johnk@anrcoins.com to RSVP, update their contact information, or generally harass the membership. Further details will be forthcoming as to location, most probably at the absolute last minute." [At the ANA Convention John Kraljevich is apt to be here and there, in and out, etc., but the best single place to find him or leave a note is at the American Numismatic Rarities bourse table. -Editor] FORD TRIBUTE BY JOHN AND NANCY WILSON John and Nancy Wilson of Ocala, FL, write: "We were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of John J. Ford, Jr. It is hard to imagine that this numismatic legend and icon is no longer with us. Over the years, we have attended numerous educational programs by John Ford, Jr. They were always well done, educational and interesting. We took photos and slides of him at some of his presentations. We used slides of John Ford in many of our presentations on famous numismatists we met during our numismatic travels. I remember at the 1990 sale of the ABNCo archives by Christie's when at the conclusion of the sale I had a chance to talk to him and Stephen Goldsmith of Smythe. John asked me what bidder I was, and I told him. He then said that I got a Santa Claus note, and he wanted to buy it. He evidently tracked the sale and had the buyer's bidder numbers of all the notes he wanted. Evidently he forgot to bid on the one we were successful on and wanted to buy it from us. I told John that it wasn't for sale and ever since then he always wanted to buy our Santa Claus collection. John Ford's wonderful Santa Claus notes were sold during one of the Stack's sales and generated some great prices. The sale of his phenomenal collection by Stack's will prove in time to be one of the greatest collections ever formed and sold. When all is said and done, the John J. Ford, Jr., collection will realize prices higher then any other collection that has been sold up to now. In any case though this legend of the hobby will be greatly missed. He was a passionate collector of numismatic literature and references along with related items. His other collections that are being sold are amazing. Many collectors and dealers are staying broke in purchasing this wonderful material. John was also a tremendous dealer, collector, speaker, researcher and author and served on committees for ANA and other organizations. John J. Ford, Jr. will be missed greatly in our hobby by the many thousands who knew him. We send our prayers and thoughts to his family and the memory of John J. Ford, Jr. will be with us forever." NEW YORK TIMES ON JOHN J. FORD Today the New York Times published an obituary on John J. Ford. Here are some excerpts: "John J. Ford Jr., a coin dealer and collector known for catalogs that brought new clarity to numismatics and whose collections, including the earliest American coins and prized Confederate pennies, have dazzled recent auctiongoers, died on July 7 at a nursing home in Scottsdale, Ariz. He was 81." "Michael Hodder, a numismatic consultant, said bidders had already spent $35 million on the Ford collections, and the final total may rival the three auctions of the collection of Louis E. Eliasburg Sr., who assembled every known American coin. These exceeded $55 million. Francis D. Campbell, the librarian of the American Numismatic Society, said the sales have expanded appreciation of Mr. Ford. "It's going to settle in that he was more important than we thought he was," he said." "John Jay Ford Jr. was born on March 5, 1924, in Hollywood, where his father liked to socialize with movie people. The elder Mr. Ford, a scientist and inventor, lost all his money in business failures and retreated to Queens. He borrowed haircut money from his teenage son. The son, already a stamp collector, bought his first old currency from a shop on Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn. He paid 15 cents for a Confederate bill that years later fetched $200. He quit his paper route, and got a job as a delivery boy for Stack's. By the time he was drafted into the Army, he had a thriving business making his own numismatic deals as he went about his errands. He was regarded as a wonder, having virtually memorized "United States Pattern, Trial and Experimental Pieces" by Edgar H. Adams and William H. Woodin, then a standard numismatic resource. Mr. Hodder likened this to memorizing all of a day's baseball box scores, only more complicated. After serving as an Army cryptographer, Mr. Ford did other kinds of work, before finding his way back to coin shops. He soon joined Charles Wormser at New Netherlands, becoming a partner in two years." "He is remembered for the no-nonsense bomb shelter full of valuable coins and currencies in the basement of the Long Island home where he long lived, not to mention his Cuban cigars. His stories, like the one about taking a $67,000 check written on toilet paper from a tipsy oilman are still savored: it was the only paper in the hotel room." To read the full article, see: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/17/national/17ford.html WHERE'S THE SLABBED CATALOG NOW? Michael Schmidt writes: "I have heard Fred Lake's story about John Ford's "slabbed" catalog before. Does anyone know if it is still slabbed? And if so, where it is? I didn't see it listed in either of the Ford library sales. I would also like to acquire a copy of the photo Fred mentioned. I've asked Fred about it before but he was unable to locate the photo. He did tell me that he thought it had been printed in the Asylum at one time. Does anyone have a copy of the photo?" JOHN J. FORD, JR. - INFORMATION HOARDER? Refering to the controversy surrounding John Ford which Dave Bowers alluded to, Richard Doty writes, "..and how 'bout those Western Gold Bars, huh?" As noted previously in The E-Sylum, Kleeberg and Prof. T. V. Buttrey, Jr. maintain a website about western gold bars and Mexican gold bars. On the site Kleeberg has published his viewpoint on Ford and the gold bars. With permission I've excerpted a couple sections from his most recent piece mentioning the dearth of Ford's published writing on numismatics, which Dick Johnson and others have lamented. Kleeberg writes: "Yet his career resulted in him being remembered not for the work he did, but for his notorious habit of hoarding information and never publishing it;" "From Olga Raymond he bought the rights to Wayte Raymond?s publications. Unfortunately, since Ford had a phobia about publishing, this resulted in the deep sixing of many useful numismatic series, such as the Standard Catalogue and the Coin Collector?s Journal." "Ford?s coin collection and his library were auctioned beginning in 2003. Collectors were astonished. Here were coins, paper money, books, and research papers that they had not seen for half a century. Many researchers were deeply angered by Ford?s dog in the manger attitude, which had hidden away from them items that were vital for their research." http://www.fake-gold-bars.co.uk/johnfordobituary.htm [Aside from his auction cataloging, Ford published relatively few articles and nothing of book length, with the exception of his 1967 report to a committee of the Professional Numismatists Guild investigating allegations of false USAOG coins; "The Franklin Hoard of United States Assay Office of Gold Coins: An Answer to Eric P. Newman." Ford tightly controlled the distribution of these, making originals very rare today (although photocopies have been made over the years). I can't speak for other research efforts, but when I was involved in the research that came together in Fred Reed's book on U.S. Encased Postage Stamps, Ford made available an inventory of his collection and contributed information on how EPS could be altered or switched. Certainly, from other accounts I've heard or read Ford was selective about what information he would disclose and to whom. Just as certainly, no one is ever obligated to share their information with others. I'm sure our readers have thoughts on the subject. It must be frustrating to work on a research project knowing that information that would be useful is not being made available. In some cases I'm sure, the lack of time to respond to information requests is one factor. Karl Moulton's recent survey of numismatic auction catalogs is one example, where he notes that a number of collectors approached did not respond. I know that I might have been in this category myself, but was able to contribute at the last minute, with the urging of Tom Fort. -Editor] FRED SCHWAN ON JOHN J. FORD, JR. In MPCGram 1311, Editor Fred Schwan reprinted our recent item on John J. Ford, and added the following: "I especially liked Wayne's story about JJF and the Ridgeway medal. First, I consider the medal a military numismatic item and I too would have liked to just hold it. (Was it in any of the Ford auctions?) I also liked the black hole aspect of the story. John had a standing order for BNR Press books. To say that they had to have special packaging is an understatement. Essentially, John insisted that his books be MS-70. More than one time, he returned books because he could see, feel, or otherwise sense a dinged corner. Even though the returns had undergone an extra shipment by the time that I had received them, I usually could not find any flaws, but, of course, sent off another copy." [Yes, I believe the Ridgeway medal was in one of the prior Ford auctions, but I was unable to relocate the lot listing . Can anyone help? -Editor] WHAT MAKES A LIBRARY? At the other end of the book condition spectrum is Dick Johnson, who writes: "To answer Dave Kellogg: One book makes a door stop. Two books keep bookends apart. Three books make a library. It's not the count, it?s the content. ...and how often they are used. Books in super mint condition ? even numismatic books ? are not serving their purpose. I have mentioned this before in The E-Sylum: I "consume" books in my library. Ragged dust jackets and dog eared leaves prove I have poured over the pages many times. I seldom read, I often refer. I look up a lot of individual facts (like for writing these E-Sylum items). It?s called research and reference. That?s what numismatic books are for. And that?s what makes a numismatic library." [I'm not a Ford-style perfectionist when it comes to book conditions, but like most of us I do like to have nice copies on my shelves when possible. Back before I had a wife and kids to slow down my book acquisitions, I did a lot of wheeling and dealing in numismatic books, buying frequently from book dealers and purchasing the occasional library. I would often purchase the same book several times over, each time keeping the best and selling the duplicate. So the copy with the ketchup stains from my lunch has long since found a home elsewhere, and a new copy is here waiting for the next time I need to refer back to that book. But as much as I like nice clean books, I appreciate Dick's point that if you're not using them, why have them? Last week, I wrote: ""I suppose there is some sort of minimum number of books required before you could call a collection of books a 'library,' but I have no idea where to draw the line... " David Gladfelter writes: "I don't know where that line is either, but the same question could be asked, what makes a coin collection? In the catalog of the Milton R. Friedberg extensive fractional currency collection sold by Currency Auctions of America (now part of Heritage) in 1997, appeared lot 172 consisting of the following: "A 1962 Proof Set in its original mint wrapper, a 1909 VDB penny in Very Fine, a Spanish Piece of Eight badly clipped and corroded -- apparently, a salvage piece, two 1921 Morgan dollars both Extra Fine, a 1924-S Peace Dollar Fine, a 1911 $2? gold piece Extra Fine and a 1912 Liberty nickel Good. Offered without estimate because this ain't our bag. Should be examined. No mail bids on this lot please." This lot was captioned "Milt's Coin Collection." -Editor] BAGHDAD LIBRARIES REBUILDING From a recent USA Today story, libraries in war-torn Iraq are slowly getting back on their feet: "Driven away by bombs, dispirited by shelves emptied by looters, visitors to the public library in Baghdad's Khadamiya district are now starting to return. There's still work to be done. Stolen books and looted furniture must be replaced. But seeing the return of readers is inspiring enough for Alya Abdul Hussein, a librarian here for 20 years." "Some libraries, such as the one in Khadamiya, fend for themselves. Opened in 1947, it's one of the oldest operating libraries in the city. It's a plain, two-story structure, small and dusty, with books resting on bare metal shelves. The ground floor is used by women and children; men visit the second floor. The ground floor opens onto a garden, with a view of the nearby Al-Ama bridge, that is often used by students. In April 2003, in the chaotic days following the fall of Baghdad, looters broke into the library, Hussein says. Her husband brought his gun from home and the two stood sentinel over the building, but not before looters made away with about 10,000 books and magazines, leaving about 5,000 volumes behind. One day around that time, a U.S. tank pushed into the property and punched a hole in the wall, Hussein says. Military interpreters told her they were looking for Iraq's former leader, she says. Hussein says she used her first paycheck from the city to patch up the hole and mend the fence outside. Soon after, she visited area mosques and posted signs asking residents to return her books. "Some people came by themselves and brought them back. Others started to leave them behind the wall of the library (because) they didn't want to be known," she says. "Other people began volunteering their own books." To read the full story, see: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-07-14-baghdad-books_x.htm ON PHILATELIC WEST Len Augsberger writes: "There is a set of the Philatelic West at the Smithsonian philatelic library. There is another in Lincoln, NE at the state historical society. The ANS has miscellaneous issues which are virtually crumbling. Orville Grady had a batch of a fifty or so issues a few years back which I was the underbidder on. They do have numismatic content and are waiting for careful researchers. I've been wanting to get to one of the complete sets in Lincoln or Washington for awhile. Philatelic West was the forerunner of Hobbies, which had some marvelous numimsmatic content provided by Thomas Elder in the twilight of his career. " [ I love these obscure publications; you never know what great info/gossip/whatever is waiting. -Editor] KELLEY REPRINT LIST OFFER Henry Bergos, who once sold an extensive holding of Kelley reprints of economic and numismatic classics, has updated his offer to those wishing a copy of his old (and now obsolete) price list. Those who expressed interest in this earlier may send me their mailing address and Henry will forward a copy of the list to you gratis. Since the initial response was small, sending Henry an SASE is no longer required. A NUMISMATIC SUGGESTION While looking for other things this week, I came across a web site offering the followng book for sale: Weber, F. Parkes. Interesting Cases and Pathological Considerations and a Numismatic Suggestion. 1956 Lond: H.K. Lewis & Co., 1956. 8vo. Or.printed boards (slightly worn and soiled). (IV,78pp.)." So... has anyone else come across this title? What could the "numismatic suggestion" be? "Numismatists have an interesting pathology"? ON SCHULMAN AND THE U.N. PATTERN COIN Dick Johnson writes: "Sorry, Neil Shafer, it was not Hans Schulman who ran the coin department in the Gimbles store in New York City where you bought your Proclamation 2R Philippine piece of 1834 ? it was Robert Friedberg. At the height of his empire Bob Friedberg had 33 perhaps 35 coin departments in Gimbles and other department stores across the country. He is the same Friedberg who wrote the standard works on world gold coins (1958) and British coins (1962). He published these, and the book on so-called dollars (compiled by Hibler & Kappen, published 1963) under the imprint, Coin and Currency Institute, while he ran the Capitol Coin Company and the thirty-some leased coin departments. [Bob died in 1963 but the business was carried on by his sons, Arthur and Ira, who published the U.S. paper money book (1964) after he died and have updated it often.] You are correct, Neil, in that Hans was involved with the Andorra crown coinage of 1960. He was also involved with the United Nations Pattern Coinage of 1946 which hasn?t been mentioned yet in recent E-Sylum discussions of Schulman?s life. Hans, and another famous coin dealer in New York City at the time, Abe Kosoff, got the idea when the United Nations was formed in 1945 that the UN could issued their own coins. They formed a new corporation, Coin Associates, Inc, then created this struck pattern to show U.N. officials what could be done. The pair chose the denomination name "ducaton" and took their idea to Medallic Art Company, then also in New York City. Medallic Art commissioned sculptor Karl H. Gruppe to prepare the design and make the models. Gruppe did an excellent design with the flags of the Big Five nations, and a reverse with the theme of the Four Freedoms (religion, want, speech, fear). Like Thomas Elder a half-century before them, who had issued private pieces, Hans and Abe ordered the "coins" struck in as many compositions as possible, because collectors love a lot of varieties. It was fascinating pouring over the records of these when I cataloged this piece for Medallic Art in 1969 (MAco 46-21). Because we classed this as a medal (not a coin) for the firm?s internal records, it was called the "Four Freedoms Medal" in all company files. Hibler & Kappen list only three compositions -- gold, silver bronze -- for their HK 871?873 (page 138). But I found in MAco archives Hans and Abe had ordered more than these three! First no silver was struck, it was bronze silver-plated. The same design was also struck in eight other compositions: aluminum, aluminum-bronze, brass, copper-nickel, nickel, steel and zinc! That?s seven. To further add frosting on the cake, it was also stuck in platinum ? in single and double thickness ? and gold in FOUR different thicknesses! Can you say PIEDFORTS? If you would like a list of quantity struck of these varieties email me -- at dick.johnson@snet.net -- and I?ll send this by return email. [This is your Numismatic Alert System testing how many people actually read down eight paragraphs for a free offer buried in the center of a paragraph.] Put "Four Freedoms Medal" in the subject line. A message is not necessary. These were all struck with one pair of 1 1/2-inch (38mm) dies. The two dealers had also wanted to issue the same design in half this size, 3/4-inch (19mm) size. Samples were struck in gold, silver and bronze. But the small size was canceled before any quantity were struck. These are legitimately scarce numismatic items today. You find an Andorra 1960 crown a hundred times quicker than a U.N. pattern "ducaton." THOUGHTS ON EBAY Last week, Dick Johnson asked, "After ten years what's your opinion of eBay? Good or bad for numismatics?" In response, Howard Spindel writes: "This is a bit of a hot button for me. I'll try to keep this brief enough for publication!" [I have edited this down further, but those wishing to correspond with Howard on this matter can write to him at howard@sci1.com -Editor] Howard continues: "My opinion is that eBay is, at best, a mixed blessing for numismatics. For someone who knows what he is doing, eBay is an opportunity to locate rare and unusual items that he otherwise might never see. Furthermore, due to clueless sellers and eBay's Buy It Now, occasionally one can buy a rare coin for a fraction of its worth. The downside is that eBay is dominated by clueless sellers and clueless buyers, not knowledgable numismatists. Numismatic fraud is rampant. Budding numismatists are easily turned off permanently to our hobby the first time they bring a "rare" coin won on eBay to a coin dealer and are told it's worth a fraction of what they paid. I have personally done considerably more than rail against the situation. When the ANA and eBay announced their liaison to better police numismatic auctions, I was happy to see the recognition that a problem existed. eBay posted a new web page where one could report problem auctions and tell why that auction was a problem. I spent a few months reporting problem auctions in two main areas: 1) common 1882 filled 2 shield nickels erroneously offered as rare 1883/2, and 2) silver plated pot metal replicas of tough date Morgan dollars with deceptive auctions designed to fool the unwary into thinking they were receiving the real thing. Much as I would have liked to report other numismatic frauds, I have trouble keeping up with the eBay auctions I regularly watch let alone taking on more. (If you think that these aren't problem auctions, let me tell you that I've seen the pot metal replicas sell as high as $450. The manufacturer of these things only charges $15.) During this time I did not see any effect from my reports. Auctions proceeded to their conclusion and buyers were defrauded. Occasionally, a seller would respond to my note about the erroneous shield nickel attributions and voluntarily take down his auction and thank me for the information. Invariably, the sellers who did this were small time, certainly never a Power Seller or a high feedback seller. The latter probably don't care - they are laughing all the way to the bank. To make matters worse, eBay recently changed their reporting form so that when one reports a problem auction one can only supply the auction number, not a reason for the report. Perhaps they tired of reading my reports? How can eBay possibly know why I reported an auction if they took away the mechanism for doing so! For those of you interested in reporting problem eBay auctions on your own, the link is at the bottom of this page: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-coins.html where it says "Report problem auctions...". In the last month I've seen a reduction in the pot metal replica auctions. Perhaps I finally had some effect on them. I have no way of knowing. In the meantime, I will continue reporting problem auctions as I have been. I am probably tilting at windmills. My hope is that if enough people tilt at windmills eventually they have enough power to topple them. Perhaps readers of The E-Sylum will find a bit of Don Quixote within themselves and join me." Ron Abler writes: "Count me among those who feel that the advantages of eBay far outweigh the disadvantages. I started collecting U.S. 1876 Centennial medals less than three years ago. My collection is already quite extensive, enough for me to be actively working on a book for publication. I attend as many coin shows as I have time and resources to reach, and I peruse the inventory of every coin shop I can walk into. Nevertheless, I have obtained more than 90% of my collection off of eBay. I conduct 20 different searches on eBay at least every other day, sifting every possible way to net even the most poorly described or incorrectly categorized medal. After more than 600 eBay transactions, I have had only two unsatisfactory experiences. Other than that, my eBay experience has been all positive. I have purchased Centennial medals which are totally unlisted and unknown, even to major dealers. I have gotten to know many many sellers whose knowledge and customer service rival any of the store-front dealers I know. And I have done most of it from the comfort and convenience of my own home office, with my collection, my numismatic library, and the research potential of the Internet immediately at hand. Try that at a show or in a dealer's shop! I believe that eBay has provided an extraordinary leveling service that has brought hitherto unknown material to the marketplace, educated users in the ever-changing laws of supply and demand, and opened markets previously unknown and/or unavailable to collectors and dealers alike. With a modicum of common sense and a large dose of caveat emptor, anyone can benefit from eBay to a degree that, in my opinion, outweighs the risks. In fact, I have been duped far more often in the past by store-front dealers than I ever have on eBay." THE HUB COIN BOOK Ken Bressett writes: "I have only one issue of the Hub Coin Book. It is the 24th Edition, and also carries the original date of 1912." WHERE'S WILLY? Steve Woodland writes: "In the v2n10 issue of The E-Sylum (March 8, 1999), you featured the Where`s George? website (www.wheresgeorge.com)/ where "Readers can enter the serial numbers of dollar bills passing through their hands and track their later progress around the country with the help of like-minded bill trackers." There is a similar site for Canadian Currency called Where's Willy (after Sir Wilfred Laurier, the first French Prime Minister of Canada (1896-1911), who is featured on our $5 note). The site address is www.whereswilly.com Both sites were created by Hank Eskin." SAVE ME FROM THE ?DO-GOODERS!" Dick Johnson writes: "Please tell Jeff Schwartz I don?t want a refund on a purchase of a Freedom Tower Silver Dollar, I don?t want to join his law firm?s suit against "the company" which put them out. As I recall these were promoted at just under $30 each. I don?t remember "the company" holding a gun against the head of everyone who bought one. Sure, there was some lose verbiage about the silver coming from silver stored under the Twin Tower. Have you ever heard a coin dealer in a bourse room trying to make a sale to a tough customer? Worse than that! Irrespective of the fact less than two cent?s worth of silver plated a copper piece, the price is $30, or whatever it was. It was a buyer?s choice, a free will act to make the purchase -- or pass it by. Perhaps the vendor wasn?t entirely truthful in its sale pitch. Isn?t that trade puffing? It is, after all, Buyer Beware as in everyday life. Caveat emptor! So they put 2 cents worth of silver on a copper blank which cost maybe 12 cents, and it cost $1.10 to strike it; the dies cost $1200 and they had to pay an artist several thousand dollars. The advertising cost perhaps $10 per order. There was some administrative costs. My goodness, they might make $15 profit! Please save me from the "do-gooders" ? who believe this was a crime! I believe the "do-gooders" are more harmful than "the company" selling the item. But I would state the company did not need to stretch the facts like they did. When you have a good product and good timing, you will make your sales. If I had bought a Freedom Tower Silver Dollar I would have wanted it for what it memorializes, not the fact I paid perhaps twice what it cost to make. I believe those who have one would be short sided to ask for a refund. (An inflexible rule exists in numismatics ? the fewer the number, the greater the value-- with some other provisions like condition and demand.) No, Jeff, I don?t want a refund on a Freedom Tower Silver Dollar. I want to BUY one!" ZEB PIKE MEDALS Bill Spengler of Colorado Springs, Colorado writes: " Yes, Virginia, there is a Zeb Pike medal. Thanks to Larry Dziubek for confirming this and citing the Hibler-Kappen reference in the last (July 10) E-Sylum. If you want to see these medals honoring Lt. Zebulon Pike's "discovery" of famous Pikes Peak in 1806 come to Colorado Springs and at the same time have a glimpse of the peak (14,114 feet according to a recent re-measurement) and Pike's statue downtown. In fact, you can easily reach the summit of the peak by car or cog railway, and not so easily by foot. By the way, did you know that officially there is no apostrophe in Pikes Peak? It is one of the few such exceptions in American geographic placenames as recognized by a U.S. Government agency. (Marthas Vinyard. I believe, is another.) As it happens, only recently I sold my modest collection of ten Zeb Pike medals and two large 1905 G.A.R. Pikes Peak bronze medals to nationally-known dealer (and former A.N.A. President) Ken Hallenbeck of the Hallenbeck Coin Gallery here. It included Pike medals in various metals and configurations -- with and without hasp, with suspender, with ribbon, with bar -- a nice assortment. They were issued originally for the Pike centennial here in 1906, and a stash of them was discovered in the vault of a local bank during the sesquicentennial observances in 1956. I understand that a local group is planning to issue an entirely new Pike medal in gold (limited number), silver and bronze for the bicentennial next year." YET ANOTHER PAINFUL MISSPELLING OF "NUMISMATIC" A nameless subscriber typed the word "numimsmatic" in his submission this week - that's a misspelling I'd not seen yet. -Editor FEATURED WEB SITE This week's featured web site was suggested by Roger deWardt Lane, Hollywood, Florida, who writes: "This one is in Spanish, but it has great pictures of Bank Notes." http://www.notofilia.com/ Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum From esylum at binhost.com Sun Jul 24 22:08:38 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Jul 24 22:10:44 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#32, July 24, 2005 Message-ID: <42E449A6.5010307@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 32, July 24, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. EDITOR'S CORNER We have currently 773 E-Sylum subscribers. John H. Burns writes: "I'll second the motion to rename the "Editor's Corner" to "Wayne's World!!" George Kolbe adds: "I, too give "Wayne's World" a thumbs-up!" Ex-squeeze me? "Wayne's World?" Well, it was our readers who helped coin the E-Sylum name back when I was pushing for "The Babbler." This publication is about numismatic literature and research, but it's also about having some fun with our hobby. On the other hand, it's not about me, which is why I'm reluctant to put my own name front and center, even in a goofy way. But if another week passes without further suggestions (or an uproar against it), we'll switch to "Wayne's World", at least for a while. While on the subject of what The E-Sylum is all about, it's worth noting a few things: First, although many, if not most submissions are published verbatim, a number are at least lightly edited for spelling, style and length. For better or worse, very few submissions are rejected outright (and in eight years these probably amount to only about a dozen or so). In nearly every case, the deleted content is less numismatic than it is political or personal. In the few cases where I've felt such content was borderline and allowed it, I've often come to regret my decision to publish it, for it inevitably leads to counter submissions which only lead us further and further away from our core numismatic subject. The most recent such radioactive topic relates to the late John J. Ford, Jr. I felt the bulk of a recent submission was inappropriate, and submissions this week of opposing viewpoints included phrases I felt were equally inappropriate. In each case sections small and large were cut or edited for publication, or not published at all. For example, as much as I might savor colorful phrases such as "crap," "vile" and "the demented yapping of a rabid Pekinese!!!", these have been edited out, as have earlier phrases such as "corrupter of numismatic fact" . On a topic more on-target with our mission, thanks and congratulations are in order for David Lange and other authors this week, for we have no fewer than five new book announcements in this issue. Get your checkbooks out, bibliophiles! We begin this week's issue on a sad note, however. ART KAGIN 1919-2005 John and Nancy Wilson of Ocala, FL write: "Another great numismatic luminary, Mr. Arthur A. M. Kagin has passed away. Art was truly a gifted numismatic dealer over many decades, and also served on the Board of ANA, and other organizations. He was probably one of ANA's greatest promoters, and always had an application for membership on him. We knew Art since becoming involved in the numismatics and have learned a lot about the hobby from him. We were very fortunate to have Art as a friend. We send our prayers and thoughts to his children Don and Judith, along with the rest of the Kagin family. Rest in peace Art as you will always be in our prayers and thoughts." ANA MUSEUM RENAMED In a release from Colorado Springs, CO dated Saturday, July 2, 2005, Mike Ellis writes: "Today in a joint press conference and dedication ceremony held by Christopher Cipoletti, Executive Director of the American Numismatic Association; Chet Krause, founder of hobby giant Krause Publications; and Cliff Mishler, Krause Publications past President and longtime company spokesman announced a $500,000.00 donation to the American Numismatic Association. The ceremony was held in the upper gallery of what was formerly known as the ANA Money Museum. Today the name was changed. While unfurling an approximately 15 foot long, heavy duty canvas banner attesting to the name change it was announced that the donation was given in honor of naming the museum the "Edward C. Rochette Money Museum." Half the money was raised by Krause Publications to help support the ongoing renovation while half was given by an anonymous donor in honor of Ed Rochette who had done so much for the organization. Among the many contributions Ed has made include being a past president, a multiple times past Executive Director, responsible for the $1.00 per year lease agreement for the permanent location of headquarters on the Colorado College campus and founder of the highly successful annual Summer Seminar. Ed currently enjoys the well-earned title of Executive Director Emeritus of the ANA. It was also announced that Mr. Rochette had just accepted a position on the initial board of directors for the new Gallery Mint Museum Foundation, a not for profit corporation dedicated to the preservation and advancement of the numismatic arts." NBS AT THE ANA CONVENTION NBS President Pete Smith writes: "This is the final E-Sylum notice before the American Numismatic Association convention in San Francisco. Our NBS Symposium will be on Thursday at 1:00 p.m. in Room 3014. Scheduled speakers are Rich Kelly and Nancy Oliver who wrote "A Mighty Fortress" about the San Francisco Mint and a more recent book about coiner Joseph Harmstead. Our General Meeting will be on Friday at 11:30 a.m. in Room 2012. We hope to see you there. We expect to have reports from officers and a benefit auction of donated literature. ANA Librarian Nancy Green will also speak about recent developments at the ANA library." [I'm afraid I won't be attending the convention this year, so I'll miss the NBS events. Please email me any reports and be sure to spread the word about The E-Sylum. If you're at the convention and meet anyone who might enjoy reading it, please get their email address. Can we reach 800 subscribers by the end of the year? -Editor] CCAC OPEN MEETING AT CONVENTION Mitch Sanders writes: "On behalf of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC), I would like to invite the readers of the E-sylum to a public business meeting and public forum be held at the upcoming convention of the American Numismatic Association in San Francisco. At our public business meeting we will evaluate proposed designs for Platinum proof bullion coins for 2006, 2007, and 2008. Immediately after the business meeting, a public forum on ?Coin design: past, present, and future? will be held. The purpose of the forum is for the members of the CCAC to hear, first-hand, the opinions and input of numismatic experts and the general public with regard to coin design and coinage issues in general. We hope that you will visit us at the convention, to watch coin design history being made and then lend your ?two cents? to the CCAC at the public forum. We encourage you to join a lively discussion with members and others on U.S. coinage ? past, present, and future. The public business meeting begins at 2:30 PM on Thursday July 28, 2005 in room 2008 on Level II of the Moscone Center in San Francisco, with the forum following immediately after the CCAC public business meeting concludes. Established by Public Law 108-15, the CCAC advises the Secretary of the Treasury on any theme or design proposals relating to circulating coinage, bullion coinage, Congressional gold medals, and national and other medals. It also advises on the events, persons, or places to be commemorated by the issuance of commemorative coins; and recommends the mintage level for commemorative coins." UNION 1, BOOKDEALER 0 Numismatic literature dealer John H. Burns writes: "Due to the avarice of whatever union inhabits the docks of the Moscone convention center I won't be having a table at this year's American Numismatic Association convention in San Francisco. I was informed that it was MANDATORY for the union to unload me at a cost of $117 per hundredweight. Considering that I bring approximately 4,000 pounds of books, I'll let you do the math. I think it's an absolute obscenity that something that I do dozens of times a year (unload my van by myself taking maybe 90 minutes total, or pay somebody $20 to get it done in 45 minutes) would have cost me more than I was likely to gross for the entire show. Unfortunately, there was nothing the ANA's convention manager Brenda Bishop could do. She tried everything in the book (and a few things that aren't!). She's a great lady and an indispensable asset to the ANA. Oh well, maybe next year in Denver. Forget selling books; I'm joining the UNION!" CHARLES DAVIS AT THE ANA There will however, be at least one numismatic literature dealer at the show. Charlie Davis writes: "I will have table 345 at the American Numismatic Association Convention in San Francisco next week." [I'll bet his inventory weighs less than John's - that, or he has a brother-in-law in the Moscone center union. -Editor] NEIL SHAFER ON KAGIN AND FORD Neil Shafer writes: "Sorry to say I'll miss seeing everyone at the ANA convention because of hospital complications. I am better now and home but can't travel yet. The main reason I'm writing is to help memorialize two true luminaries, of course John J. Ford, Jr. and Art Kagin. Art sold my Philippine Islands (PI) coin collection in 1975, and it did very well considering it was that long ago. I could always talk to him about a number of things, and he was ready and eager to share many insights into various subjects we discussed over the years. I will certainly miss him greatly as will we all. About JJF, there's another story. I first bumped into him quite by accident when I visited the New Netherlands (NN) shop in 1960. I was fresh from having done extensive research on PI coins and paper at the Bureau of Engraving and National Archives, and had all the facts and figures in place for publication which happened in 1961 (coins) and 1964 (paper). I was actively seeking examples of both kinds, and in due course simply came to visit NN to see if they happened to have anything of interest to me. Well, John heard what I was asking about, came over to me and we started talking PI. He knew more about the paper currency than anyone else I had ever met, especially considering the fact that the material I had researched appeared to have been totally fresh - in other words, how could anyone have known such things if they had not done this very research? Except for one thing- he was close when he said something as fact, but just not quite right- he would say, for example, that the PI series started out in 1903 and consisted of values from 2 to 500 pesos. Almost correct- it did start in 1903 but was for only 2, 5 and 10 pesos, and payable only in silver. The higher values were approved in 1905 but never were issued until after the law of June 23, 1906 allowed them to be backed by gold as well as silver. I had seen the overprint to that effect. Well, it went on pretty much that way for a good while- John would say something, and I would agree in part, or point out that what he really meant was.... well, you get the picture. Finally he said, "you know what? You are the first person I ever met who knew what he was talking about when it came to these notes. Tell you what I have..." At which time he pulled out a fantastic frame of face-back pairs of the 1903 2-5-10 pesos, and I knew this had to be one of only 4 sets made since I had seen reference to them! He let me buy it for the princely sum of $200, and I promptly carted it away, went back to Washington, DC by Greyhound where I lived then- I stuck that wrapped frame on top in the carrying spaces and went to sleep! Was the frame a deal? I certainly thought so, even though at the time I was a music teacher in Montgomery County, MD making a total of $3.500 per year, so think again about the percentage of my yearly salary that went towards that frame. It adorned my office for years. One other of those 4 frames came up some years ago, this time cut apart but still with all six note sides together- owned by J. Roy Pennell, I think it brought around $3000 or so when sold, Mine subsequently left me, and years later on the market it brought $18,000 I believe. I do not know where it is now. Over the years I did get to know JJF quite well, and of course had tremendous respect for him both personally and as a fantastic numismatist. Late in 1985 I took over the position of Editor-in-Chief of what we called the New England Journal of Numismatics, sponsored by the New England Rare Coin Galleries out of Boston. The first issue was Summer 1986 and had articles by Breen, Julian, Doty, Slabaugh, Ball, Liza Clain-Stefanelli, Zander and others. The second (and last) issue came out as Autumn, 1986 and continued along similar lines. In the Letters-to-Editor section JJF wrote: Discussion on the $50 Gold Pieces "You are to be congratulated on the quality of the first issue, as is your publisher, Dana Willis. You are almost in the same league as the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine (a worthy publication to emulate!). Ever since the sad demise of the American Journal of Numismatics, collectors have needed a learned journal of opinion, one free from stale reporting of unimportant news and ridiculous 'get rich quick' oriented, advertising. I only hope that you will receive the help and cooperation that you will need to stay afloat. "The article by my long time friend, Doug Ball, on the Unique, hand drawn CSA essay note, was of particular interest to me, as I sold it and the rest of the group to him back in 1963. I well remember his excitement at the time. Items of this caliber couldn't find a better home than with D.B.B. (regarding)..."Mrs. Stefanelli's story of the two 1877 Barber designed U.S. $50 gold pieces, in her well written article...I'll add to it some day. Someplace, I have the original bill-of-sale for the two fifties, Haseltine to Woodin, the letter of seizure from the Treasury Department, and the Woodin effort to get his $20,000 back from Haseltine, Nagy, et al, the latter consisting of memos and correspondence, It is all quite interesting. (He then goes into a critique of her article pointing out a couple of errors). "Nit-picking aside, I found the first issue of your journal all it was advertised to be and more. Keep up the good work! John J. Ford, Jr. Rockville Centre, L.I." On another subject, the purchase of my 1834 Proclamation 2R Philippine from HMF Schulman, it was absolutely not purchased from Friedberg as Dick Johnson suggested - it was sold to me at that Gimbels in NYC by HMF who at least worked there if he didn't run the place. Actually, I may have met Robert Friedberg once...or not, I am not sure at this point, so I know for a fact that it was not he who sold that coin to me." I HOPE YOU DIDN?T SAY FRIGGIN? Peter Koch writes: "There?s little doubt of John Ford?s station in American numismatics. The landmark New Netherlands? catalogues were pioneering and influential; and as the Stack?s Auction sales attest, his accumulation of Americana is staggering ? and there are more sales to come! But, there are also more Ford stories to come. Like Wayne Homren?s eloquent account of the Ridgeway medal [E-Sylum Vol.8 No.28 July 8, 2005] brings out a side of us that wants to say? Yes, Wayne, you should have sent a friggin? ashtray! Your phone would have been blistering off the hook." MORE ON THE FORD RIDGEWAY MEDAL Alan V. Weinberg writes: "The gold Congressional medal awarded to General Matthew B. Ridgeway was auctioned as lot 263 in the Stack's John J. Ford Jr Sale # 7 on January 18, 2005. It opened at $5500 and hammered for $13,000 to collector Michael O'Shea of San Diego. To my recollection, Ford paid $10,000 for it years earlier. The medal 's original availability was extensively advertised in a half page ad , as I recall, in the Maine Antique Digest. I did not pursue it then as I felt it was "too modern" and apparently the current sale price also reflected this general feeling as similar "old" gold medals in the Ford collection have sold for tens of thousands of dollars more. I am amazed that a federally-funded institution or museum like the Smithsonian or West Point did not pursue the Ridgeway medal and allowed it to fall into private hands again." [The $10,000 figure is basically correct. The medal was actually auctioned twice - the original buyer at the first Ridgeway estate sale did not pay, and it was reauctioned later - that's when Ford learned of it and brought me in to bid for him. A local coin dealer was the underbidder the second time around. I don't know what the initial hammer price was, but it was less than $10,000. As another example of how Ford liked to hold his cards close to his vest, he asked me not to let on that I knew anything about numismatics when I went to the auction house to view and bid on the medal. "Go in dressed like a farmer," I recall him saying. This was no country auction, though, and dressing in bib overalls and chewing on a piece of straw would not be a way to blend in with the crowd at a high-end antique auction house in the swanky end of town. But no one would mistake me for a high roller anyway, so I went disguised as myself. The auction took place on a Saturday morning, and the room was filled with antique collectors and dealers from around the country. The auction lots were posted on the Internet and there were online and telephone bidders from around the country (or around the world, for all I knew). Like most auctions, the lot was hammered down in a few minutes. I believe I had to go back the next week to pick it up. I had the medal for a few days and packed and shipped it to Ford within a week. -Editor] ON THE KLEEBERG FORD ARTICLE John H. Burns writes: "Just when I didn't think it could get any worse I made the mistake of reading Kleeberg's "obituary" on John J. Ford. I know you have to present "both sides" but this was over the top." George Frederick Kolbe writes: "It is way past time for fair-minded coin collectors, dealers, researchers, and scholars to publicly condemn the rantings of a small yet significant segment among us. The latest insult is John Kleeberg's so-called obituary of John J. Ford, Jr., posted on the Internet and publicized in the last issue of the E-sylum (for those who have read only Wayne Homren's excerpts, believe me, he exercised great discretion - read the whole sordid mess at the peril of losing your appetite, or worse). I do not know with certitude whether John J. Ford, Jr. was "the greatest forger ever" or if he is innocent of all serious charges. I do know that the personal invective spewed out by Kleeberg and others brings them only dishonor, and for those of us who remain silent, complicity in this calumny. I propose that: 1) honorable numismatists decry the ad hominem attacks of Kleeberg and others; 2) support honest research to determine the authenticity of controversial pieces and the genesis of any pieces deemed false; and 3) cast personal agendas, pro or con, aside in reaching honest conclusions." LANGE'S MERCURY DIME BOOK UPDATED David Lange writes: "A new and highly revised edition of my book, The Complete Guide to Mercury Dimes, is expected to arrive from the printer on Thursday of the ANA Convention in San Francisco. Of course, the publisher and I had hoped to have it in hand before the show, but there was a last minute addition prompted by a coin I saw at the Mid-America show in Chicago last month. There may be a few copies available during the final days of the ANA Convention; check with me or John Feigenbaum (David Lawrence Rare Coins). Also, the ANA booth may have them, assuming they arrive on schedule. Of interest in the new edition is an exhaustive history of this coin type's conception and the long trial-and-error process in creating usable dies. I spent several days last winter at the National Archives regional office in College Park, where the records of the Philadelphia Mint and all the correspondence between it and the branches are stored. Many letters not previously published are included in the new book. Among the revelations is that the two pattern Mercury Dimes held by the Smithsonian (both J-1981) are actually two die states of the same die pair. The many differences in appearance between them has confused generations of researchers, but these are simply the result of severely lapping the original dies. Adolph Weinman had prepared his models with sculpted, textured fields, this being in favor among medalists at the time. Charles Barber and his superiors had a difficult time seeing the virtue in this style, and so the dies were lapped to give them the smooth, reflective fields to which the Old Guard were accustomed. Large, sharp photos by Tom Mulvaney of both specimens are included in the new book, along with excellent photos of the other pattern varieties. In the past I have had prepared deluxe, leatherbound editions of all my books, but I don't anticipate doing this with the new Mercury Dime book. The market for limited editions has declined to the point where I could not sell all 25 copies within a reasonable amount of time. Since it isn't fair to those persons holding the higher numbers of previous books to not make these numbers available, I can't see doing just 10 or 15 deluxe copies. I may reconsider this issue, if enough interest is shown in a deluxe edition. The Mercury book is pictorial hardcover only, list $42.95, and it can be ordered from the ANA or David Lawrence Rare Coins." LANGE'S NEW BOOK ON THE U.S. MINT AND COINAGE David Lange writes: "A second new book is actually a very long term project that it is finally seeing print. "History of the U. S. Mint and Its Coinage" is a work that began ten years ago as an ANA correspondence course commissioned of me by then ANA Education Director James Taylor. I was to write the history chapters, and J. T. Stanton would write chapters about current Mint technology and variety coins. I submitted the first draft of my history to James near the end of 1995, and it kicked around his office for a couple years, while we awaited J. T.'s submission. When it became evident that this was not to be, my portion of the project became a stand-alone item. I continued to refine it, adding more material to justify a separate publication. Before it could be published, however, Taylor left the ANA, and it went forgotten until Gail Baker took over as his replacement and began looking through old files. Gail was excited with the prospect of publishing it, and she asked me to add new chapters, sidebars, etc, and I began selecting images from NGC's archive of Photo Proof coins. The ANA board of governors authorized funding for its publication during the Early Spring Convention in 2000, and everything was good to go. Before the text and images could be assembled, however, the Harry W. Bass Foundation loaned the coins that are still on display at the ANA Museum in Colorado Springs, and the ANA's graphic designer, Mary Jo Meade, was put full time on preparing that exhibit. After that work was completed, Mary Jo and I spent a couple more years preparing yet further material, while she drafted some additional sidebars based on the images she found in various archives. Endless correspondence between us resulted in a richly detailed study, as we went back and forth trying different phrasings and layouts. By this time Rudy Bahr of the ANA's Money Market division had assumed control of the project. It was no longer to be a correspondence course, as the ANA people were sufficiently pleased with the illustrated work that they wanted it put out as a book for general distribution. Some very nice cover art was designed by Mary Jo in 2003, and it appeared that everything was go for publication by the ANA. It was at that stage that the ANA staff underwent a purge, and Rudy and six other employees left. The book was once again set aside, the splendid cover art abandoned, and I was beginning to think that my work would never see the light of day. Finally, early this year the ANA made a deal with Whitman to have it published commercially. This book was actually published in April, but problems with the first press run caused this to be discarded. Only this month have sufficient copies become available for purchase. I'm pleased with the final result, and I believe it fills a very real need for a general history of our coinage from the colonial era to the present. Don Taxay's book, while certainly not hard to find in the stocks of numismatic literature dealers, is largely unknown to the present generation of collectors. In addition, it lacks coverage of the past 40 years in U. S. Mint history. For better or worse, the majority of current collectors are focused on modern coinage, so the new book fills a popular demand for information. The titles of both books are similar, but this proved unavoidable if potential readers were to understand the scope of the book. Another criticism that I anticipate is the lack of citations throughout. My original manuscript was fully notated. This feature was removed at the request of the ANA when the project was still expected to be a correspondence course, since it was thought that the notes at the back would make it difficult for users to perform the question-and-answer portion which, of course, has since been deleted. The ANA may yet use this book as a correspondence course by making the actual course book a separate publication to be used in connection with the history book. This detail hasn't yet been worked out yet. This book is not a scholarly work in the true sense, but it does contain a great deal of information that has not appeared under a single cover before. It is meant to be entertaining, as well as informative, serving as an introduction to our rich numismatic history. It is the hope of everyone involved that this work will be widely distributed in general bookstores, unlike most numismatic books which are little known outside the established community of collectors. I long ago signed an agreement to write this book solely as a donation to the ANA, so I won't make any money from the deal. That doesn't matter at all, since I'm just so relieved that ten years of work has finally borne fruit. I can't compliment Mary Jo Meade enough, as she contributed all sorts of great ideas that prompted me to go back to the writing desk for yet more material. I also want to thank Gail Baker for her persistence and faith in the project. Because of the repeated delays, I sometimes had sharp words for her and other ANA officers, but I believe all of us are satisfied with the end result. I'll be at the NGC booth during the convention in SF, should anyone want to discuss either of these books. As usual, I don't anticipate that I'll be able to attend NBS functions or any other meetings during bourse hours, but I certainly hope to see some of my fellow bookies at the table or after hours. The Mint book lists at $19.95, pictorial hardcover only, and can be ordered from either Whitman or the ANA." NEW BOOK ON THE RUBLE COINAGE The following is taken from a July 21 report by the Russian News and Information agency: "The Patriarch's Palace of the Moscow Kremlin will host the presentation of a book dedicated to the history of the ruble on July 22, the www.museum.ru website said. The book, "The history of money in Russia: the 350th anniversary of the one-ruble coin," written by expert coin collector Sergei Zveryev and published by Moscow Kremlin Museums, is based on the museums' coin collection. The Russian ruble is one of the oldest currencies in Europe. According to historical sources, the word "ruble" appeared in Novgorod in the 13th century. In 1654 under Tsar Aleksei Mikhailivich the first silver rubles were circulated, re-coined from Western European talers. The history of the ruble has coincided with Russian history, as any historical milestone led to a change in its features, including weight, image of the ruler, and national symbols. Throughout the centuries the ruble has remained both a method of payment and a symbol of state power. The presenters of the exhibition include the Moscow Kremlin Museums' administration and leading research fellows, and officials of the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange (MICEX)." To read the full report, see: http://en.rian.ru/culture/20050721/40946702.html [The museum's web site is in Russian. Can anyone decipher how those of us elsewhere can order the book? Will any of the numismatic literature dealers among our readership attempt to stock copies? -Editor] NEW BOOK ON LATIN AMERICAN BANK NOTES A new book by Ricardo M. Magan on Latin American Bank Notes is based on the archives of the American Bank Note Company (1865-1965). From the press release, the book is a ".. catalogue of Latin American banknotes produced by the American Bank Note Company for the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Uruguay and Venezuela. Over two thousand banknotes are listed from two hundred and seventy two banks and government issuing authorities throughout Latin America. Hundreds of illustrations and information from the original production records (production dates, quantity of banknotes printed, serial numbers, series letters, dates, signatures and much more). This book is an essential reference for any collector or historian of the paper money numismatic field. 210 pages // Limited Edition ? 8 ? x 11 printed in Opaque paper) *Price: $ 42.00 *Shipping and handling in the USA: $ 5.00 *Shipping and handling in Mexico and Canada: $ 10.00 *Shipping and handling rest of the world: $15.00 To order send check or money order to: Ricardo M Magan 505 Dighton Avenue Taunton MA 02780-7145 Phone: (508) 880-6188 E-mail: Sally1904@comcast.net " For further information, see: http://www.signature-book.com/New2Books/magan.htm NEW BOOK: GOD IN THE OVAL OFFICE - ST-GAUDENS WANTED TO ELIMINATE THE MOTTO Dick Johnson writes: "It?s a long trail and this is fifth handed (this is a report of a news story of a review of a book) but there is a story of Augustus St-Gaudens in an unlikely new book. It covers religion and politics ? two subjects rarely mentioned in The E-Sylum ? but this might be of interest to anyone researching St-Gaudens. The book is "God In The Oval Office" by John McCollister. He tells the story of Theodore Roosevelt?s correspondence where St-Gaudens wanted to eliminate "In God We Trust" from our coins "for artistic reasons." Roosevelt agreed. He wondered whether it "cheapened" religion for God to be mentioned on earthly currency." To read the full story, see: http://www.nj.com/living/expresstimes/index.ssf?/base/living-0/1122023287312060.xml&coll=2 U.S. COIN SALE CATALOG PRODUCTION 1856-1858 Adri?n Gonz?lez Salinas writes: "Best wishes from Monterrey, Nuevo Le?n, M?xico. I'd like to congratulate you for the excellent contents in every The E-Sylum issue. In fact, this electronic publication is an immediate collectible. I enjoyed reading the Karl Moulton's article "American Nineteenth-Century Catalogue Census" (The Asylum Vol. XXIII No. 1 - Winter 2005). Analyzing his information, in the period 1856-1858 only Bangs & Co. published just one numismatic catalogue (26 Oct 1858). Neither Augustus B. Sage nor M. Thomas published catalogues in this period. Does any reader know why just one catalogue was published in 1856-1858?" [Attinelli's "Numisgraphics" lists three entries for 1856, but only one is an auction sale. There are four entries for 1857, but again, only one is an auction (as with 1856, the others are catalogues of public collections including the New York State Library and the National Institute and Patent Office. In 1858 Attinelli lists four entries, but none are auctions (two are fixed price lists, and the remaining two are catalogs from other public institutions. -Editor] OBAMA RELENTS ON FORE NOMINATION The Chicago Tribune reported July 20th that "Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) told Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday that he would withdraw his objection to her choice for undersecretary of state for management, Henrietta Fore. After expressing misgivings about comments Fore made during a 1987 speech at Wellesley College, Obama met with Fore, now director of the U.S. Mint, and received assurances that she would make diversity in the State Department workforce a top priority." "Obama said he decided to allow the nomination to proceed after holding a series of conversations with Fore, talking to people who had worked with her and reviewing her record at the U.S. Mint and at the U.S. Agency for International Development." To read the full story, see: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0507200208jul20,1,6181031.story ZIMBABWE INFLATION According to a July 20 report in The Times of London, inflation in Zimbabwe has gotten to the point where "a million dollars won't fill up your car ... and a box of matches cost a thousand." "Inflation hit 164 per cent last month. Economists predict that it will double in five months, and again three months after that. This time last year, ?1 fetched Zim$8,500 on the black market, increasingly the only real exchange. Yesterday it fetched Zim$54,000." "The $Zim20,000 bill is the currency?s highest denomination and also its most common unit. It is not a banknote, however. It is a bearer cheque, and most carry a 2004 expiry date. People carry a fat wad of 50 bills called a ?bar? after the days a bar of gold was worth Zim$1 million ? just in case they find a petrol station with fuel and a short queue. Nearly always, however, the lines outside service stations are ?hope queues? where drivers leave their cars to gather dust." "On those rare occasions when I can fill up my car, it costs me Zim$1.5 million. On Saturday riot police arrived at my local supermarket to beat back a queue of about 700 people waiting to buy sugar, which had just been delivered. Last week I had struggled through a crowd for a loaf of bread, only to have someone steal it out of my basket." To read the full story, see: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1700578,00.html ANATOMICALLY INCORRECT BUFFALO STOPPED IN TRACKS The following excerpts are from a July 19th article in the Lawrence Journal-World of Kansas: "The Kansas commemorative quarter was struck Monday at the U.S. Mint in Denver, and, yes, the buffalo?s horns point in the right direction." "They should be widely available by the Sept. 9 official state ?launching? of the coin during a ceremony at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius will attend. All children attending will receive a quarter. The coin features the image of a buffalo and a sunflower. It also bears the date 1861, which was the year Kansas became the 34th state admitted to the United States. Kansas high school students voted on the designs last year and selected the one featured on the coin. But the design also caused a stir when it was unveiled because the buffalo?s horns were pointed too far forward and thus were anatomically incorrect. ?I believe they got that fixed right off the bat,? said Nicole Corcoran, spokeswoman for Sebelius? office. ?There was no problem once they got past the initial illustration.? To read the full story, see: http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2005/jul/19/kansas_quarter_struck_mint/ EXTENDING THE STATE QUARTER SERIES Kavan Ratnatunga writes: "Did you know there was a bill in the House of Representatives to provide for a circulating quarter dollar coin program to honor the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands?" [This one has been around for a while. There has been no action on it in over a year. Has it died in committee? Has anyone heard word of it being revived? Surely, the coin supply lobby would be solidly behind anything that would make the millions of U.S. State Quarter books and holders suddenly obsolete. -Editor] To read the full text and history of the bill, see: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d108:h.r.02993: SLABBED STACK'S CATALOG LOCATED Dan Hamelberg writes: "In response to Michael Schmidt's question on the John Ford slabbed Stack's catalog, I have it in my library. I purchased it years ago ( I don't remember the exact year) at an NBS meeting. John Ford donated it for an NBS auction, and I was the lucky buyer. It measures 10 inches tall by 8 inches wide in the "holder". The slab insert reads: Bibliographic Universal Grading Service (BUGS) Item: Stacks 3/17/93 Halperin Catalogue; 2nd Printing, unlaminated cover Registered To: John J. Ford, Jr. Grade: MS-70 Centering: Perfect Aging: None There is a 3/4 inch margin of duct tape around the perimeter which seals the catalogue inside the plastic slabs. I do not recommend this method of storage for numismatic literature - it makes it difficult to read." F. PARKES WEBER: DEATH AND NUMISMATICS? Last week I asked about the following 1956 book by F. Parkes Weber: "Interesting Cases and Pathological Considerations and a Numismatic Suggestion". Gar Travis writes: "The author also wrote "Aspects of death and their effects on the living : as illustrated by minor works of art, especially medals, engraved gems, jewels, &c., published by The Open Court Publishing Company, Chicago, 1910, 160 pp. 8vo." [This is certainly interesting - two books 46 years apart? I was not aware of any catalog of medals with designs relating to death. Has anyone seen this book before, either? -Editor] STILL MORE ON COINGATE Another Toledo Blade article details more information about the state's rare coin investments: "A seemingly endless stream of cash flowed into Tom Noe?s personal business, Vintage Coins and Collectibles, from Ohio?s $50 million rare-coin ventures that the former Toledo-area coin dealer managed, documents show." "On Thursday, Mr. Petro charged that Mr. Noe stole nearly $4 million from Ohio beginning on the same day the Toledo-area coin dealer received his first installment of $25 million from the state in 1998." To read the full article, see: http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050723/NEWS24/50723002/-1/NEWS EURO BILL TRACKER SITE Dennis Hengeveld of The Netherlands writes: "In the last issue, I see that you are referring to two sites, whereswillie.com and wheresgeorge.com. A similar site exists for euro bills. It's very active, and based on the wheresgeorge.com site. It's a long URL due to the english language option." http://tinyurl.com/cy9gm [I've used the tinyurl.com site to shorted the URL to a manageable length. From the site's home page: "EuroBillTracker is an international non-profit volunteer team dedicated to tracking Euro notes around the world. Each user enters the serial numbers and location information for each note they obtain into EuroBillTracker." "Euro banknotes and coins were put into circulation on January 1 2002 and we have been tracking notes since then. The site was initially created by Philippe Girolami (giro). Anssi Johansson (avij) has been assisting with running the site since mid-2003." -Editor] EBAY AND CAVEAT EMPTOR IN NUMISMATICS Howard Spindel writes: "Following up on my report last week about problem numismatic auctions at eBay, I'd like to alert E-Sylum readers that in addition to using the eBay reporting system I am also working with the American Numismatic Association to try to effect changes. While the availability of numismatic material on eBay has certainly been a stimulus for the hobby, I believe in the long run that the hobby can only be hurt by deceptive auctions. A few well-placed emails from those of you who care about this could make a difference. Drop me a line at howard@sci1.com for more information." Roger deWardt Lane writes: "I've not sold any numismatic items myself on eBay, but let a numismatist friend sell my numismatic library for me on eBay. We are probably doing as good, as if sending them out-of-town to a used book auction, as only the better books receive average or above average bids. Many of the book go overseas. A few times I've sold my Numismatic CD, but I only get the listed price and sometime it does not sell. Anyway, the reason I am adding to your comments is the research value of eBay. I purchased a Indian Princely States Junagadh Kori AH 1274 (1857) for a few dollars at our local club meeting last week. Spending hours on Internet research (I'm retired and have the time). I found a copy for sale on INDIAN eBay (didn't know there was such as thing). The coin seem to be a different die engraving than my coin, but with the same inscriptions. It's for sale at 200 Rupees. At the time they were issued the population of the Princely State was about 500,000 with the Capital city probably less than 100,000. I don't think the mintage could have been very large. So, as you can see, without eBay we would not have this information and would have to rely on Krause Standard World Catalogue which does list the whole series. I still like eBay." Kerry Rodgers of New Zealand writes: "I couldn't agree with Ron Abler more. I have recently published a longish article on my first 12 months of eBay. It has appeared in a number of numismatic and non numismatic publications in various guises. These include Coin News (UK) and Serendib (Sri Lankan Airlines inflight mag.) To date, for me, the advantages of eBay far outweigh the disadvantages. I have been ripped off in only one unsatisfactory transaction over this period and then due to my inexperience of The System. This is no more or less than I have experienced with conventional mail order dealers. I have had some difficulties in completing a few transactions but these invariably involved vendors who implemented additional rules over and above those of eBay and/or declined PayPal. For me eBay has helped fill many gaps in my Fiji collection I could not otherwise have contemplated. It is a venue in which my expert knowledge allows me to score a number of A1 successes and one which is causing prices in my chosen collecting area to stabilize." Ron Abler writes: "I agree completely with Howard Spindel's castigation of clueless buyers, clueless sellers, and less than honest dealers. However, eBay's only contribution to that malodorous melange is to democratize a situation that has always existed. Many is the time that I have had to bite my tongue in a dealer's storefront when some unsuspecting customer walks in the front door bearing grandpa's cigar box of "old coins," and the shark behind the counter goes through his "buy low to sell high" song and dance. Clueless buyers and sellers (who don't know any better) and disreputable dealers (who do) we have always had and always will. When I first started in eBay, I tilted at windmills, too. Like Howard, I learned quickly that peeing up a rope only got my hands wet. I found myself roundly cursed at, politely ignored, and/or barred from bidding with certain sellers. I decided that "caveat emptor" would be the price I pay for the privilege of picking my own way through the eBay jungle. The risks are no greater than were and are those of the storefront and bourse jungles." Dick Johnson writes: "I had several readers respond to my item "eBay After Ten Years" here in E-Sylum two weeks ago. I see in this week?s "MoneyMail" from ANA that the American Numismatics Association and eBay are working together. "On July 27, they will join again to sponsor a welcome reception for ANA-member dealers at 7 p.m. at the ANA's World Fair of Money in San Francisco." Surprisingly, at least to me, everyone who responded to my diatribe reported that they had made purchases off eBay in which they had made money. While the amount of modern merchandise is outdistancing collectible items there still appear to be good buys, just fewer of them. My respondents mentioned they are searching eBay less, on average once or twice a week instead of every day. One even mentioned eBay should have a separate venue just for collectibles. This doesn?t seem practical, however. Another complained of minors selling on eBay. I can relate to that. I bid on a medal and won it at one-fifth of its most recent auction sale. When I received it I observed it was firedamaged (not apparent in their eBay photos). I emailed my complaint, they hadn?t the slightest idea what I was talking about. I wrote them and received a letter ? from the seller?s mother! So I have changed my attitude toward eBay. Bid on the good items as you wish. If the dummies selling what they don?t know anything about ? or misdescribe it ? buy it anyway. It is their stupidity. If it is not what it is supposed to be, complain. First to the seller. Demand your money back and postage both ways. Then complain to eBay. Then the department of consumer protection in the state where the seller lives. A last resort would be to the police department in the city where the seller lives. Do this in less than two weeks. Use the word "fraud" in each of your complaints. What should eBay do? Instead of spending money being nice-nice holding receptions at conventions they should hire a person knowledgeable in numismatics who would have the AUTHORITY to DO something ? question suspicious offers, immediately take down obvious fraudulent offers, prohibit repeat offenders from eBay and prosecute the bad guys." Ron Abler writes: "Also, I agree with Dick Johnson about the Freedom Tower "Silver Dollars." The only good thing about the suit against the issuing company is that the publicity will add interest and value to an issue that should have been simply ignored. My ingrained cynicism whispers to me that the refunded medals will not be destroyed, but will reappear in the marketplace at some future date, claiming something to the effect that, since "most of the medals were refunded," the few that remain must be worth a premium price. The same goes for the Micro "O" Morgan that PCGS has recalled under its guarantee. If I had one of those, I'd hold on to it until the unusual story and undeniable provenance of a slabbed counterfeit makes its rounds and turns the counterfeit into a collectible variety in its own right." COINS MAGAZINE ISSUE SOUGHT Nancy W. Green, Librarian of the American Numismatic Association writes: "During the summer seminar we discovered that our Coins Magazine Volume 37: July to December 1990 was bound with an August 1989 rather than an August 1990. Is there an E-Sylum reader who could/would donate a copy?" Thanks, Nancy." DIMITRI LOULAKAKIS, COIN DEALER The Financial Times of London published a story July 22 on longtime coin dealer Dimitri Loulakakis: "A genial cigar-smoking Arsenal fan, has spent most of his business career dealing in coins. Born in Athens, he was influenced by uncles who were in Greek politics and was originally destined for the diplomatic corps." "Ten years later, at the age of 30, he was European sales manager for one of the largest privately-owned Greek shipping and cruise lines. The entry into coin dealing came when he got interested in the first Churchill Crown, a commemorative coin struck on the death of Britain?s wartime prime minister. A colleague suggested he talk to a friend at Spink ? who turned out to be the legendary coin expert Howard Linecar ? and, ?within a week I was a confirmed numismatist. It quickly went beyond a hobby to become a lifelong passion.? "A couple of years ago Chelsea Coins, his fledgling business, was absorbed into Noble Investments (UK), currently the only listed coin dealer in the UK stock market. Loulakakis, now in his early 70s, remains an executive director. He is also an adviser to and coin buyer for the Hellenic Numismatic Museum, for which he seeks out specific items when the Ministry of Culture budget permits. In a lengthy career as a coin dealer there have inevitably been high and low points. Loulakakis says that his lowest ebb came when his car and entire stock of coins were stolen while he was attending a coin show in 1968... The high point was in 1971, when he was the first British dealer to attend the Long Beach Coin Show, a long-time fixture for American coin collectors and dealers. Having put together every coin he could muster, he sold out within four hours, then toured the show buying more stock, and sold out again, repeating the trick several times before the show closed. ?It made my name in the business,? he says." "One reason for folding his coin dealing business into the potentially much larger operation of Noble Investments is that he sees great potential for developing an investment market in coins in the UK. As he notes, ?the American market is a hundred times more powerful than our own, and it has got to that stage almost entirely as a result of investor money?. ?There is no reason why a late 19th century US one cent coin should sell for $100,000 whereas a 1798 Dorrien Magens shilling, of which there are probably fewer than ten in existence, will only set you back ?15,000. But that is a fact." To read the complete article, see: http://news.ft.com/cms/s/2c3a427a-f872-11d9-8fc8-00000e2511c8.html COST OF NICKEL RISING Dick Johnson writes: "It happened slowly. The cost of copper is rising. So much in fact the cost of the copper in a nickel is pushing the metal value over the face value. Perhaps we have been so concerned with the metal cost of gold and silver that we have been overlooking the price of copper. Since a nickel is 75 percent copper we may have deja vu from the days when the 1942-45 wartime silver nickels' value rose. What are they now ? 51 cents metal value? This is a guaranteed investment scheme that has been noticed by Dr. Steve Sjuggerud who publishes a newsletter for would-be investors. He is in favor of having some metal assets. (But does he want that big a pile of nickels?) Sjuggerud writes: "Here?s a guaranteed investment scheme... You and I buy up all the nickels we can get our hands on. Since the underlying metal in a nickel today is worth about 6 cents, we lock ourselves in at a guaranteed 20% profit by selling short the coin?s metal in the financial markets today. Then, to guarantee this investment scheme, all we need to do is melt down the nickels... Okay, so it?s not so easy. And there?s probably some sort of law against this. But the reality is, at current metals prices, it costs the U.S. government about six cents to produce a nickel... Leave it to the U.S. government to LOSE money by PRINTING money... In fiscal year 2003 (ending in September), it cost the U.S. government 3.78 cents to produce a nickel. In fiscal year 2004, it cost the government 4.56 cents to produce a nickel. And so far this fiscal year (from October 1, 2004 to present), the price of copper (which is the most prevalent metal in a nickel) is well above its fiscal year 2004 levels, meaning that it?ll likely cost the government about 6 cents to produce a nickel." To read the full article, see: http://www.investmentu.com/IUEL/2005/20050714.html INDIAN COIN WEB SITE Roger deWardt Lane, Hollywood, Florida writes: "Last Thursday evening I attended the local coin club meeting - Ft.Lauderdale Coin Club. A few members set up and display a few coins for sale to members before the meeting and auction starts. I was able to purchase a Modern Dime Size Silver Coin of the World - new for my collection which I had never seen before - Junagadh Indian Princely State AD1274 (1857). Kori about 17 mm. As a result of trying to find as much background on this state, I have spent a number of hours surfing the Internet. One of my searches took me to a very fine web site. Check it out for Indian coins and paper money: http://www.museum.rbi.org.in/c-colo.html " BUT OFFICER, IT'S WEST VIRGINIA'S FAULT Here's a novel way to weasel out of a parking ticket: claim that you put out-of-state Fifty States quarters in the meter, but they didn't register. From a news story out of Boston: "I was meeting a colleague in Boston, and I parked on Tremont Street," David Flynn said. Flynn said that he was shortchanged by a parking meter recently. Eight quarters should have bought him 2 hours, but the meter only registered 1 hour and 15 minutes. He complained to a nearby parking meter attendant. "She said, 'Sometimes when you put in quarters from other states, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, New York, they don't register right and you don't get correct credit," Flynn said. Flynn got a ticket that day so he appealed using the parking official's explanation and the ticket was dismissed. "I was thrilled I didn't have a ticket, but I think if it is a problem then a lot of people are being ripped off," Flynn said. "From what I understand, state quarters do in fact work," Boston parking commissioner Tom Tinlin said. Tinlin said that they tested hundreds of meters after hearing complaints like Flynn's and found states' quarters work." "States' quarters not working in parking meters isn't unique to Boston. A spokeswoman at the United States Mint said they've heard it from around the country, but can't find any proof." To read the full story at The Boston Channel, see: http://www.thebostonchannel.com/buyerbeware/4737275/detail.html KOREAN GRANDMA'S MOLDY STASH REDEEMED "Not a few of the 3,450 people who applied to exchange damaged banknotes this year are beneficiaries of windfalls, the Bank of Korea said Tuesday. It said one person in Youngcheon, North Gyeongsang Province exchanged damaged bills worth W18 million (about US$18,000) their father had buried in the backyard after selling land. Another man in Incheon exchanged W7 million his mother had hidden under the floorboards, while yet another swapped W9 million his late father had tucked away in a closet. The central bank said Tuesday W485 million of burnt or tainted banknotes were exchanged for crisp new bills in the first half of the year. Well-preserved ashes were the most frequent cases, with some 1,301 people exchanging burnt bills worth W224 million. The bank said a man identified by his surname Kang mistook W4 million he made from selling a cow for trash and incinerated the bills before realizing his error - luckily before the banknotes became unidentifiable. In other cases, 754 people damaged bills by keeping them under the floor or in a microwave oven. If less than 25 percent of a banknote is damaged, the BOK repays the full value. If less than 60 percent is damaged, it pays half. " To read the full story, see: http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200507/200507190046.html GEORGE KOLBE, CHAMPION OF THE 1ST AMENDMENT George Kolbe writes: "With regard to the frequent misspelling of "numismatic," all of us have also heard the word mispronounced innumerable times, even from those within the fold. It's a lousy word in other respects too. When I first rented offices in 1978 at the Santora Building in Santa Ana, California, I recall a conversation with the leasing agent after I had explained that I bought and sold numismatic books. With a worried though man-of-the-world, wink wink, air, he inquired in a low conspiratorial voice, "you' don't mean, uh, 'dirty' books, do you?" FEATURED WEB SITE This week's featured web site is an online version of the book "Yesterday's Elongateds" by Dottie Dow. And no, there's nothing dirty about 'elongated'.... http://www.tecnews.org/ye/ Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum From esylum at binhost.com Sun Jul 31 21:54:46 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Jul 31 21:57:11 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#33, July 31, 2005 Message-ID: <42ED80E6.1070303@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 33, July 31, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2005, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. EDITOR'S CORNER Among our recent subscribers is Charles Heck. Welcome aboard! We now have 774 subscribers. Ben Weiss writes: "I agree with you that this publication should be about numismatic literature and research. Therefore, I believe it is inappropriate to personalize the Editor's Corner in a general publication such as this. Nothing personal, you understand." Howard A. Daniel III writes: "I am not sure Wayne's World was suggested to replace The E-Sylum, but if so, I do not like it. But if it is to have a name for your editorial, I like it, or even Wayne's Web, if you do not want your editorial space named after a ridiculous movie." [No, we're not considering renaming The E-Sylum, just the Editor's Corner. -Editor] Ken Bressett writes: "Wayne's World sounds great to me. I love it." Roger deWardt Lane writes: "I think we should keep looking for a better title for you - How about the King's Corner?" Whew. With a mix of opinion on all sides of the map, I'll just stick with Editor's Corner for now. We have no reports yet from the American Numismatic Association convention in San Francisco this week. Hopefully all went well for our subscribers who attended. OCEAN IN VIEW NICKEL UNVEILING SLATED The new 2005 Ocean in View nickel reverse designed by Joe Fitzgerald will be unveiled on August 5 in a ceremony at a site overlooking the Pacific ocean in Ilwaco, Washington. "The United States Mint will present the new 2005 Ocean in View nickel to the American people for the first time on a dramatically beautiful overlook of the Pacific Ocean at Cape Disappointment State Park in Washington State on August 5 at 10 a.m. Visitors will have the opportunity to exchange their bills for Ocean in View immediately after the ceremony. "Ocean in view! O! the Joy!", explorer William Clark's jubilant exclamation recorded in his field notes in 1805, appears on the coin." "Children under 18 will receive a free Ocean in View nickel. Lewis and Clark-era entertainment will be provided by re-enactors and musicians. Chinook Nation exhibits and Lewis and Clark programs will be held at the park and the Lewis and Clark Interpretative Center throughout the day." For more information, contact: Chip Jenkins Superintendent Lewis and Clark National Historical Park 92343 Fort Clatsop Road Astoria, OR 97103 (503) 861-4401 chip_jenkins@nps.gov " To read the full article, see: http://www.medfordnews.com/articles/index.cfm?artOID=307123&cp=10996 [I've been in touch with Joe Fitzgerald, and he and his wife plan to attend the event. It sounds like a perfectly lovely and fitting location for the event. I hope some of our numismatic brethren from the great northwest will be able to attend. -Editor] MORE ON THE JULY 7 LONDON BOMBINGS The August 8 issue of Coin World has an article (beginning on page 3) that expands greatly on Douglas Saville's account from our July 11 special issue. The article includes a map of the "London numismatic district" marking the bomb locations and the sites of Spink, Coincraft and the joint library of the Royal Numismatic Society and the British Numismatic Society. The article also discusses the experiences of numismatic firms farther from the blast as their employees dealt with transportation headaches in the aftermath (Knightsbridge Coins, and Dix Noonan Webb. THE RED BOOK BUSTS A GUT Gary Dunaier writes: "I just got the new 2006 Red Book (the spiral version, if anyone's keeping count) and I've got one quick question: Why do the descriptive paragraphs in the commemorative section end with the 1994 World Cup coins? After that, it's just a photograph and the listing itself." I put the question to Redbook Editor Ken Bressett, who writes: "The answer to this question is that the proliferation of modern commemorative coins simply got out of hand and it was taking up far too much space each year to give them full coverage. Most book users simply want to know the value, so it was decided to forego all the extra information. Adding all of the new issues to the book each year often means adding an additional 16-page signature which, of course, adds to the cost of the book and is a negative sales incentive." That's what I suspected; I told Ken I wondered when the modern issues would cause the book to bust a gut. He replied: "Bust a gut, indeed! The Mint's greed has become so out of control that they may soon kill the numismatic goose that is laying all those golden eggs for them. The thought of a new series of 22 additional "satin" coins each year, half dollars for each president and their wives or friends, and more commemorative coins than you can imagine, is frightening. On top of this are the new .9999 fine bullion coins, and even more of the not-for- circulation half dollars and dollars. I have dreams about putting all of these items in a special section at the back of the book and calling them NCLT (non-circulating legal tender), like the junk foreign coins that are made simply for profit and not as part of any national coinage. No, I really won't do that, but the thought is tempting. When I began collecting, I bought every new issue of U.S. coinage each year (Proof and Unc.) for about $5.00. Now it would cost in excess of $4,000 to buy one of each different coin, bullion or commemorative offering, in their various packaging options. And the list is growing each year." EXTENDING THE STATE QUARTER SERIES Regarding last week's question about a House of Representatives bill to provide for a circulating quarter dollar coin program to honor the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, David Ganz writes: "This was introduced in the 108th Congress. The bill was not introduced (at least not yet) in the 109th Congress." FORT KNOX RESEARCH HELP SOUGHT Asylum Editor-in-Chief David Fanning forwarded the following note from Quinn Kanaly, an Associate Producer for Indigo Films in California: "My colleague, Lisa Mao contacted you in regards to a program we did for the Travel Channel about Fort Knox. The program was so successful that now the History Channel wants us to do a two-hour program about the history of Fort Knox. I wanted to get in touch with you to ask if you might know of some good authors who have written about Fort Knox over the past century." If any of our E-Sylum subscribers are interested in working on the project, contact David at fanning32@earthlink.net and he'll forward your note to Quinn. ORIGIN OF IN GOD WE TRUST REFERENCE SOUGHT An individual researching the origins of "In God We Trust" on our coins and currency has contacted me, looking for the source of a quotation that was referenced elsewhere: "The devices are beautiful and appropriate, and the motto on each, such as all who fear God and love their country, will approve." Can anyone help in finding a valid citation for this quotation? [He found the reference on one of my own web pages. I put it together years ago, mainly as an example of how numismatic information could be presented on web pages. It was not meant to be a scholarly piece and my citations leave something to be desired. I'm not exactly sure where I found that quote. Can anyone help us relocate it? Here's the address of the web page: http://www.coinlibrary.com/info/ingodwetrust.html -Editor] IRAQ COIN PROMOTION Roger deWardt Lane forwarded a link to a May 9th story in The Charlotte Observer - entrepreneurs there made a bulk purchase of obsolete Iraqi coinage, with the intention of marketing it to the general public. "They are piled 3 feet high in a 1,225-square-foot portion of a Charlotte warehouse, roughly 7 million bagged coins that sparkle even in the dim light. The coins were once part of Saddam Hussein's currency, all of them fils of varying smaller denominations. They have no value in Iraq -- except for their melted-down copper nickel and stainless steel. But two Charlotte men, Michael Crowder and Lane Ostrow, are betting they are worth millions on the international collectible coin market. They are selling them for $19.95 as limited-edition sets of four coins not only to turn a profit for investors and for themselves -- but to turn Saddam's coins into a satisfying irony. From their sales they want to donate at least $5 million to organizations that help families of fallen or wounded U.S. troops." "Two 18-wheelers were needed to get the coins to Charlotte. The stash is not a spoil of war, but a product of difficult and legitimate multi-national negotiations between coin dealers and British, U.S., Iraqi and Kuwaiti officials. Because Iraq has no mint, the coins were stamped in Canada between 1971 and 1991. They were never circulated in Iraq, but shipped in mint bags to the southern Iraq city of Basra, the country's second- largest city, where they sat in a bank." To read the full story, see: http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/charlotte/news/11599633.htm Roger writes: "The problem with this promotion is that it hurts the coin collecting image and when they advertise on TV (as they say the will) they sucker in the public that they are getting something rare. The coins were 'stamped' (minted) in Canada, shipped to Iraq, stored in a bank for years and never issued to the Iraq people, so that makes them more like NCLT. They have no intrinsic value and with only about a few thousand collectors of foreign coins in the U.S.A. (and few if any collect modern non-silver coins), some half million American families are going to get ripped off. It is too bad that a knowledgeable coin dealer is putting over this fraud on the patriotic American families and a worthwhile charity. Sorry that this story gets me so heated up." [I think I'm more in the caveat emptor camp on this one. At $19.95 no buyer will go broke on these, and a lot of that price covers the packaging and marketing. I won't go down the path of discussing the politics, but as a mass-market collectible this doesn't sound like such a bad deal for the public. Anyone who really thinks something they buy from a TV ad for $19.95 will make them rich is beyond help, and it might introduce some other people to the hobby of collecting coins. That's an awful lot of coins to try to sell, though. [As a totally non-numismatic aside, actually, I can think of one TV promotion that did make a lot of money for some people. Back in the early days of cellular telephones, the U.S. government set up a lottery to distribute rights to portions of the required radio spectrum. Some entrepreneurs seeking to increase their chances recruited investors through infomercials. For a fee of a few hundred dollars they would guide people through the application process. A lot of people actually managed to win the rights, making "truck drivers, hairdressers and pig farmers" (as one author put it) owners of very valuable assets. The catch was that they were then left with a legal obligation to set up cellular phone operations within a certain time period. Having no clue how to actually do this, they usually sold their rights for tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars, often to the people who helped guide them through the initial process. People like Craig McCaw then crisscrossed the country buying up these licenses and stitching together a national network. As Yakov Smirnoff would say, "What a country!" The government gave away stuff for free, ordinary people made thousands, middlemen made millions, McCaw became a billionaire, and decades later we still can't get our cell phones to work everywhere. Go figure. Now back to numismatics. I asked Dick Johnson his opinion about the proposed Iraqi coin promotion, and got an earful. -Editor] Dick Johnson writes: "In my opinion they should have filled a van with selected specimens of the many millions they obtained and sent the two semi trucks to the nearest smelter. There is NO WAY the market can absorb such a large quantity of coins, either now or in the foreseeable future. Unless the two entrepreneurs can come up with some remarkable marketing plan -- far more than a pitch or two on TV home shopping shows -- will it be possible to sell even a few tenths of one percent of such a vast hoard. I have witnessed similar attempts in the past to the abject failure and loss for the promoters. (The first such situation that comes to mind is the discarded copper sheeting off of the original Statue of Liberty.) If the two businessmen want some useful advice hire me as a consultant (my fee is $1000 a day). Here is one free suggestion: After melting the coins, recast this metal into something beautiful and significant. The coins are symbolic of a dictator and will, in their original state, have some gruesome appeal -- like Hitler memorabilia of the past. But beauty and patriotism sells. Make something beautiful and patriotic from that metal. What they have is a few tons of RELIC metal. This could be used to strike medals -- why not offer the copper-nickel metal to the makers of the U.S. decoration for the Iran Campaign Medal. (Contact the Institute of Heraldry.) But don't expect to use it all up even for as many medal issues as they could dream up. (Oops, I gave away a second free suggestion!) As for these coins' numismatic status: They exist, therefore they are collectible. Are these NCLT, noncirculating legal tender? No. They are -- or were -- legal coins. Consider the original intent. They were intended and authorized to circulate in a legal way at the time in a designated geographical area (that is, a country). The fact they never reached circulation means only one thing: They are not worn. Now they are de facto demonetized coins." THE WORLD MONIES MUSEUM FUND Speaking of failed schemes, while leafing through some old copies of World Coins magazine, I came across a full-page ad (May, 1965, p405) which read, in part: "Wanted - Your interest now, in the new World Monies Museum Fund. Sponsorship for the World Monies Museum is by the Numismatic Division of the Clinton National Bank of Clinton, Conn." I've never heard of a World Monies Museum in the U.S., so I assume the project never came to fruition. Can any of our readers provide more background? Typically these efforts grow out of the desire of an individual collector to see their collection stay intact and on display for years to come. Who was the driving force behind this effort? If there was a core collection, what became of it? MONEY AND RFID TAGS Roger deWardt Lane writes: "After reading last week's issue, I started to catch up on my other reading. Each week I receive two computer related magazines. I put some CD classical music my computer and settle in to see what is new. In addition to being a numismatist I guess I am still a computer geek.. The first magazine I picked up was a month old, but had a feature story which has a small connection to numismatics - gaming chips. Titled "Where?s RFID going next?," the article was in the June 20, 2005 issue of InformationWeek ?Take gambling. Some casinos are trying RFID (Radio-frequency identification) in gaming chips to stop the use of counterfeits. Gaming Partners International Corp. has sold more than 3 million RFID gaming chips and hundreds of readers to casinos worldwide, including the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas, which opened in April. The Hard Rock Casino in Las Vegas began experimenting with RFID chips at some blackjack tables earlier this year.? Read the whole story: http://www.rfidinsights.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=164900910 But I did do a little searching and found several related items, including the story on the new $20 bill which I think I heard before. Another story on how RFID casino chips are used: http://www.rfidbuzz.com/news/2005/rfid_casino_chips.html Next I did a search on ?RFID money? ? see that I found: http://www.prisonplanet.com/022904rfidtagsexplode.html [We have covered the exploding currency-in-the-microwave story before. -Editor] Five years ago the EU was working on putting a RFID chip in the new EU notes: http://www.eetimes.com/story/OEG20011219S0016 I think the real story will be when we no longer use any money at all, just a cell phone and RFID chips in everything else." PHOTO OF FORD AND HIS SLABBED CATALOGUE Fred Lake writes: ""A number of people have asked to see the picture of a beaming John J. Ford, Jr. displaying the "slabbed" catalog of Stack's sale of Herman Halpern's Paper Money (Mar.17,1993). The catalog was encased in Plexiglas and "sealed" with yards of duct tape by Martin Gengerke who founded BUGS (Bibliographic Universal Grading Service). He did this after Ford complained that he could not obtain a pristine copy of the catalog. The Numismatic Bibliomania Society held a meeting at the A.N.A. convention in Baltimore in 1993 and Ford took advantage of the occasion to unveil his prize. I finally unearthed a copy of the photograph that I took and you may view John J. in all his glory at: http://www.lakebooks.com Just click on the link at the left side of the home page titled "John J. Ford" and you will see the picture. Ford signed my framed copy with the inscription "With best wishes to Fred Lake: A man who recognizes a Pioneer Effort when he sees one." Beth Deisher (Editor of Coin World) wrote a subsequent piece entitled "Don't forget: Have fun with the hobby!" [The direct URL for the photo is http://www.lakebooks.com/JOHN%20J%20FORD.jpg John is grinning ear to ear. -Editor] ON THE WESTERN ASSAY BARS Rick Witschonke writes: "Here are my two cents on the Ford controversy: First, I have no stake in the controversy. I did not know Ford or Kleeberg, and know Buttrey only slightly. I agree that some of the language used by Kleeberg and Buttrey is rather inflammatory, and not conducive to a reasoned dialogue. However, having read all of the papers on their website, I find lots of readily verifiable statements of fact which strongly support their conclusions. Since they have laid out their data and arguments so extensively, I think we all should read what they have written and consider it seriously." Another reader writes: "An article appeared in Coin World a year or so ago that addressed the issue of the Western assay bars. Three experts in Western numismatics, mining, and metallurgy were the authors of this piece. Of the three, the only one familiar to me was Fred Holabird, who I believe is widely known for his knowledge of Western numismatics. The three experts compared the Western assay bars discovered at the wreck site of the S.S. Central America with bars from the same assayers in the Lilly collection at the Smithsonian. They compared bars with an excellent provenance to bars whose history had been questioned. As I recall, they concluded that there were some bogus bars in the Lilly collection. "The genesis of any pieces deemed false" might be harder to pursue." [One of the other authors was Bob Evans, not of restaurant fame, but of the team that discovered and recovered artifacts from the wreck of the S.S. Central America. I don't have a handy copy of the Coin World article, but found the following paper on Holabird's web site: "Western Precious Metal Ingots: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" http://www.holabird.org/americana2002/IngotPaper.pdf The written record on this controversy is becoming quite lengthy on both sides. Has anyone been compiling a bibliography? -Editor] F. PARKES WEBER ON DEATH AND NUMISMATICS Recently I asked about books by F. Parkes Weber. Ken Bressett writes: "Regarding "Aspects of Death In Art" by Weber, I have a copy of the book, and it does seem to be rather scarce. It is reprinted, with additions, from an article that first appeared in Numismatic Chronicle in 1909-1910, Nos 36-38. Good reading, and unique in its numismatic coverage." Hadrien Rambach writes: "Here are descriptions of my different copies of Weber: WEBER, F. P. Aspects of death and their effects on the living, as illustrated by minor works of art, especially medals, engraved gems, jewels &c. Chicago (The Open Court Publishing Company) s.d. [1910]. American issue of the first edition. Octavo, viii, 160 pp., 58 illustrations in the text, gilt publisher?s cloth with embossed macabre medal by Boldu on the board. Perfect condition. Very rare. After several articles published in the Numismatic Chronicle in 1909-1910 (numbers 36-38), Friedrich Parkes Weber (1863-1962, a member of the Royal Numismatic Society since 1885) wrote the book Aspects of death and their effects on the living, as illustrated by minor works of art, especially medals, engraved gems, jewels &c. the first edition of which was published in 1910. It was enlarged and republished in London at T. Fisher Unwin and Bernard Quaritch in 1914 (xxviii, 461 pages, 123 illustrations). A third edition appeared in 1918 with a modified title: Aspects of death and correlated aspects of life in art, epigram, and poetry. Contributions towards an anthology and an iconography of the subject (xl + 784 pages). The 4th and largest edition was printed again by T. Fisher Unwin, in 1922, and republished in Maryland in 1971. In 1914, the author had also published Art and epigram regarding science and medicine in relation to death, together with an Addition on Epigram and art in relation to the excessive fear of death. It was translated by Eugen Holl?nder and published in 1923 under the title Des Todes Bild (247 pp. illustrated). All of these four editions had a brilliant and unique study of the ?aspects of death? in coins and medals. He also published in 1956 in London (H.K. Lewis & Co.) a book entitled Interesting cases and pathological considerations and a numismatic suggestion (octavo, iv, 78 pages, with text-illustrations)." [To conserve space I've edited out Hadrien's descriptions of the third and fourth editions of the work. Is the 1971 reprint readily available? -Editor] Larry Mitchell writes: "There are two other well-known books relating to death and numismatics: Hough, Franklin Benjamin. Washingtoniana: or, Memorials of the death of George Washington, giving an account of the funeral honors paid to his memory, with a list of tracts and volumes printed upon the occasion, and a catalogue of medals commemorating the event. Roxbury, MA: Printed for W.E. Woodward, 1865. Boyd, Andrew. A memorial Lincoln bibliography: being an account of books, eulogies, sermons, portraits, engravings, medals, etc., published upon Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth president of the United States, assassinated Good Friday, April 14, 1865; comprising a collection in the possession of the compiler, Andrew Boyd ... Albany, NY: A. Boyd, 1870. While these titles are specific to the subject, more general titles--Brown's 3-volume series on "British Historical Medals," for example--include numerous specimens of such "funerary art" in miniature." KAGIN ON JUDAISM AND NUMISMATICS Dealer Don Kagin, son of the late Art Kagin, was interviewed in the July 29th issue Jewish News Weekly of Northern California: "(Jews) have always been merchants, and how much more merchant can you get than handling money, especially not only as a business but as a collectible,? he said. ?There is no greater artifact about a civilization, a culture and a people than their coinage.? Coins, he noted, can reveal secrets about economics, history, political science, language, metallurgy, society and fashion in a single artifact. And for those with an interest in Jewish history, he added, there are coins and paper money with Jewish themes or Hebrew letters, coins from early Jewish civilizations such as the Bar-Kochba era, coins of pre-Israel Palestine and the original currency from the early state of Israel." "Jews have been at the forefront of coin collecting even before it emerged as a business in the 1850s, he said. Jews (including the Rothschilds) have handled and collected the oldest and greatest collections, added Kagin, a member of Congregation Kol Shofar. Kagin thinks Jews? prominence in the industry can be explained by the connection between Judaism and numismatics. ?Jewish people seem to always be interested in their history and culture and heritage, and [are] always questioning and curious about who they are. And numismatics is a great way to find answers to that, and to keep in touch with your heritage.? His interest in numismatics comes from his family. His father, who recently died at age 85, had been a professional since 1933. A man who helped promote the Lubavitch movement in Iowa, his passions for Judaism and numismatics converged. He lectured about Jewish influence on American money and the American monetary system. Kagin remarked that his father enjoyed telling the stories of Benjamin Levy and Benjamin Jacobs, who signed the colonial Continental currency of 1776-1777. One of the financiers of the American Revolution ? Chaim Solomon ? was also Jewish, Kagin pointed out. In 1777, he added, Francis Salvador, a printer of money in South Carolina, used Hebrew letters as a counter-counterfeiting device." To read the full story, see: http://tinyurl.com/8krpz GEOGRAPHY LESSON Philip Mernick writes: "Although not numismatic, subscribers may be interested in the amazing Google Earth web site. There is a free version that enable you to zoom in on a country (ANY COUNTRY!), even tilt the map to see the topography. Resolution is variable, but in many cases you can zoom in close enough to see the road system and then overlay the street names or look at major buildings. Once you get to understand how it works you will be amazed what you can do with it. Apart from wanting to look at your own home town/state etc, collectors of coins from exotic places will also find it an excellent world atlas." http://www.earth.google.com [I think some of you will have fun with this. I've been amazed at the related functionality of maps.google.com. -Editor] THE WAYBACK MACHINE Bill Malkmus writes: "The Wednesday, July 27, 2005 Wall Street Journal had a fascinating front-page article on a website that should be of interest to other folks like me who have a library of obsolete (non-functional) bookmarks: http://www.waybackmachine.org/ The Wayback Machine has archived web pages over the last nine years; while Google has currently 8 billion pages archived, the Wayback Machine has a total of 40 billion! I tried this out on my old lists of bookmarks; whenever I got a response that the web page could not be found, I put the URL into the Wayback Machine. Sure enough, the pages were not only archived and retrievable, but a listing was given of the dates on which they were archived (perhaps 30 or more), and in addition, notation was made of whenever the web pages had been changed! This works great when you know the defunct URL; I don't know if it's possible to do "from-scratch" searches, Google-style, to find what was ever said on the Internet about your favorite subject. Maybe someone else can contribute here." [This service is also very useful for relocating information that has been moved or dropped from web sites. For example, the Virtual Museum pages from the old American Numismatic Association site are still partly available via the Wayback machine. The last archive of November 30, 2004 can found at this URL: http://web.archive.org/web/20041126025358/www.money.org/index.shtml Clicking on "Virtual museum" takes you to http://web.archive.org/web/20041122023955/www.money.org/moneymus.html That's where you can still access pages on a number of numismatic topics. including: # Controversial 1818 George Cruikshank Bank Restriction Note # 18th Century Republic of Vermont Copper Coins # Selections from the Bebee Collection of Paper Money # French 1,000-Franc Revenue Note # A Rare Troop Payment Note from La Louisiane (circa 1763) Not all pages are archived, however, so some parts of the old web site may not be accessible until they're fully restored on the new ANA web site. I especially miss the Cruikshank note exhibit, which was taken from a book in the ANA library. -Editor] SRI LANKAN PARALLELS TO THE 1974 ALUMINUM CENT Kavan Ratnatunga writes: "ICG?Independent Coin Grading of Englewood, Colorado?announced 2005 July 1st that it had recently certified a 1974 aluminum Lincoln cent. It is the first and only aluminum cent ever certified by a professional third-party grading service. The coin was submitted to ICG by a well-known national dealer on behalf of the Toven family. ICG has graded the coin AU-58 and pedigreed it the ?Toven Specimen.? I wonder if this will lead to a deal like the 1933 double eagle ... http://www.icgcoin.com/p050701.htm http://lakdiva.org/coins/pattern/1974_US_01c_al_oms.html On my web site I have posted the 1975 Sri Lankan equivalents, which are also very rare. http://lakdiva.org/coins/pattern/1975_srilanka_05c_oms.html http://lakdiva.org/coins/pattern/1975_srilanka_10c_oms.html " A NEW KING OF COUNTERFEITING? David Gracey writes: "It has been many years since I bought a copy of "Rolling Stone" magazine but the cover of the July 28, 2005 issue caught my eye with "King of Counterfeit; the criminal genius who cracked the new $100 bill". Counterfeiting was mostly a family business passed from one generation to the next and Art Williams learned the art of counterfeiting from his stepfather. The changes in US currency in 1996 almost put him out of business but he found non-acidic paper that did not react to the counterfeit detector "pen", found a way to imitate authentic currency paper, developed a way to mimic the security thread and watermark found in the latest currency, and applied color shifting ink using auto paint and a rubber stamp from Kinkos. By keeping his operation small and passing counterfeit money in small towns while traveling across the country he eluded the authorities. Once he was arrested with $60,000 in counterfeit $100 bills but the case was dismissed on the grounds of illegal search and seizure. Of course he was finally caught (otherwise this story would not have been told); received only a 3 year sentence because there was no physical evidence in his possession at the time of his arrest, only statements from his fellow conspirators, but he had to admit passing bills in Texas and Oklahoma. The latest 2004 series may be impossible for him to counterfeit. To get the full story visit your library." [The article is not available online (as the comedians say, "What's up with that?"), but I managed to photocopy the article at the local library and here's an excerpt. "Art Williams" is not the man's real name. -Editor] "At thirty-two years old, Art Williams, Jr. is a dying breed. In an era when ninety percent of American counterfeiters are amateurs who use inkjet printers to run off play money that can't even fool a McDonald's cashier, he is one of the few remaining craftsmen, schooled in a centuries-old practice. He is also an innovator who combined old-world techniques with digital technology to create notes that were so good an FBI agent is said to have once counted $3,300 of his fakes on the hood of a police cruiser, then handed them back. By some estimates, Williams printed about $10 million in nine years, making him one of the most successful American counterfeiters of the past quarter-century." SPELL CHECKERS Bill Murray writes: "With all the folderol about the word numismatics in recent E-Sylums, I thought of this nonsense piece I did a few years ago. "My gnu come pewter is reel grate bee caws it helps me knot two make sew many miss steaks. Do too of sum pro grams it has, eye am knot a loud to make sir ten miss stakes. Thee come pewter seize wen a word is miss pelt. Baste on thee spell Czech pogrom it has (a Dick shun airy), it makes core wreck shuns inn awl thee are tickles I write. Knew miss matt tic Ed it ores R X static. It is sew good ewe cant make miss takes like yew mite halve dun bee four. I am loosing all thee pain witch pour spelling all ways awe furred me inn thee passed. It dozen all weighs no awl thee words, sew sum thyme you half too tell it thee knew once you want it two no. This tie knee are tickle has bin threw my come pewter spell Czech, sew I no it is awl core wrecked. Butt ream ember, sum thyme yore come pewter kneads to be taut. Ewe cant letter get a way with miss stakes. It is e z too due, butt due knot four get two duet." FEATURED WEB SITE This week's featured web site is maintained by Friends of the Segovia Mint. Don't miss the photo tour! We rarely repeat our Featured Web Sites, but it's been a while for this one (v2n12, March 22, 1999). Back then we had a whopping 148 subscribers, so it's time all for all of us to take a fresh look at this one - it's a keeper. "The Segovia Mint has a fascinating history. It was built in 1583 by Juan de Herrera, Spain's most famous architect of all time, and equipped with the most modern German waterwheel-driven minting technology. Today, the site is considered to be the oldest industrial building still standing in Spain and one of the oldest remaining in the world." http://www.segoviamint.org/index_engl.html Wayne Homren Numismatic Bibliomania Society The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/. There is a membership application available on the web site at this address: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Membership is only $15 to addresses in North America, $20 elsewhere. For those without web access, write to: David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society, P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561 For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact David at this email address: dsundman@LittletonCoin.com To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this address: whomren@coinlibrary.com Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum