From esylum at binhost.com Sun Mar 6 22:47:17 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Mar 6 22:49:13 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#10, March 6, 2005 Message-ID: <422BCEC5.3060103@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 10, March 6, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2004, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. SUBSCRIBER UPDATE Among our recent subscribers are Marilyn Reback, Senior Editor of the ANA's Numismatist, and Patrick McMahon of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Bill Panitch and William Whitener. Welcome aboard! We now have 731 subscribers. Reminder: to manage your E-Sylum subscription, don't email me - go to the following web page: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum MOULTON FEBRUARY 2005 FIXED PRICE LIST READY The February 2005 Fixed Price List from Karl Moulton has recently been published. "United States Numismatic Literature 1859 to Date" features 19th and 20th century U.S. auction catalogues from a wide range of cataloguers. For more information, see his website at http://www.coincats.com/ or write to Karl at numiscats@aol.com DELUXE RED BOOK SOLD OUT According to a report in the March 8, 2005 issue of Numismatic News, the 2005 deluxe leatherbound edition of "A Guide Book of United States Coins" (also known as "The Red Book") "is no longer available." I'm not sure if that means the issue was truly sold out, or if they've simply stopped selling them. The article notes that 3,000 copies were produced. The 2006 edition is scheduled for release in June of this year. COLONIAL NEWSLETTER PUBLISHED CNL Editor Gary Trudgen, writes: "The April 2005 issue of The Colonial Newsletter (CNL) has been published. This issue begins by reprinting a review that was published in The British Numismatic Journal concerning Dr. Brian Danforth's recent paper in CNL on the St. Patrick coinage. The reviewer, Harrington Manville, agrees with Brian's historical analysis of when and by whom the St. Patrick coppers were struck but disagrees with his claim that they were struck with a collar that marked the edges during striking. The reviewer also takes exception to references that the gold and silver pieces were intended for circulation. Brian responded to the review with a paper titled "St. Patrick Coinage Revisited." This paper follows the review and presents in-depth counter arguments to Manville's assertions. It all makes for very fascinating reading as we begin to understand this enigmatic coinage which was imported into early New Jersey and played a role in our colonial monetary system. Next is a paper updating the known varieties of Virginia halfpence. It is authored by three enthusiasts of the series: Dr. Roger A. Moore, Alan Anthony, and Eric P. Newman. Approximately five decades ago, Eric researched and authored the standard reference on Virginia halfpence. His work was so complete that little has been written since on the series. A few new Virginia halfpenny dies have been discovered, however, since Eric's work. This paper reports on these new discoveries and provides a new die interlock chart of all the known varieties today. In CNL-108, the August 1998 issue, Dr. Philip Mossman provided the most comprehensive study of the Stepney Hoard to date. His study wasn't the final word, however, on this subject and the debate continues. Our last paper in this issue discusses this subject again. Authored by associate editor Dr. John Kleeberg, his paper publishes several interesting posts from the Internet with added commentary. Following the posts, John provides a comparanda of other copper coin hoards and then presents an interesting method of determining the number of varieties in a coinage based upon those found in a hoard. John ends the paper by studying the weight of the coins found in the Stepney Hoard in an effort to determine if it was a savings or emergency hoard. 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." NEW ANS LIBRARY CATALOGER HIRED >From the American Numismatic Society E-news for March: "Enrique "Rick" Eugene Gildemeister, started at ANS on February 14 as Library Cataloger. He has 25 years of cataloging experience in a wide variety of libraries, including the Port Authority of NY & NJ Library. He reads or speaks 9 languages with various degrees of proficiency." ANS LIBRARY WANTS Also from the American Numismatic Society E-news for March is a want list of items needed to fill holes in the ANS library: "The Essay-Proof Journal." vol. 2, nos. 1,2 ; vol. 3, nos. 1,2; vol. 7, no. 3 ; vol. 10, n. 2 ; v. 42, n. 3. (The last issue received by the ANS Library was vol. 49, n.2 (1992). Whole No. 194) NASCA (New York) Sales No. 63,64,67,71,77,80 (1986 - 1989). If you have any of these items, contact librarian Frank Campbell at Campbell@numismatics.org. WHAT TO CALL E-SYLUM READERS? Recently I suggested the term "E-Sylumites" for readers of this electronic newsletter. Dick Johnson suggested "E-Syluminaries" (pronounced e-si-loom?i-nar-ies). Larry Gaye writes: "Regarding what we call ourselves, or what it's worth, I prefer "inmate." It adds real cache and not everyone can or wants to be known as aspiring to the vaunted title of biblio-inmate." HOWARD DANIEL REPORTS FROM HANOI Howard A. Daniel III writes that he was in Hanoi from March 2nd to the 5th: "I spent most of my time with the best numismatic dealer in the city, Mai Quang Thieu. Thieu is the only dealer in Hanoi who will tell me that something is a copy/fake in his inventory. All of the other dealers will first try to sell it to me as authentic. I bought several excellent pieces from Thieu to expand the information and illustration in the book I am now writing; Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. I also found some older pieces to fill in some research holes in my Vietnamese collection. I also bought some fortune telling/amulet type pieces from the Northern Highland Tribes of Viet Nam for Craig Greenbaum, who is constantly updating his book; Amulets of Viet Nam. And Craig is in Viet Nam too, but down in the Mekong Delta most of the time with his wife and her family. But he will be in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) Sunday AM for the "stamp club" meeting at the old French coffee museum and I will meet him there. Stamp, coin, paper money, token, etc., collectors and dealers show up around 9AM and stay around to about noon every Sunday. It is a great place to sit down in the shade and drink a soft drink while you talk at length with the collectors and dealers. I highly recommend attending this "get-together" when you are in Ho Chi Minh City. Thieu took me on a walking tour of the downtown shops in Hanoi. The fakes of silver US and world coins are EVERYWHERE and some of them are in proof-like condition! The greedy tourists and novice collectors are being taken for a bundle. We did not find any fake US gold and did find one 1924-D $20 in EF+ condition. The owner wanted US$1500 for it but I only collect Southeast Asia. There are many fake Chinese sycee (bullion) pieces but one authentic Pack Saddle was found. The owner wanted US$300 for it because I was there but Thieu said he will come back in a week and buy it for US$60-75. I also had an appointment with someone in the Western financial community in Hanoi who will try to obtain the address of the mint that is under construction, and its director. Krause Pubs. has asked me to find two more persons for the COTY panel and I want to nominate the Vietnamese and Thai mint directors. The information is now a state secret so I am having difficulty finding the man, but he I find him. I am now back in Ho Chi Minh and planning a visit to Vientiane, Lao. If you want to contact me, my email is HADaniel3@msn.com." REUSING EPOXY GALVANOS Last week, Dick Johnson wrote: "In addition to being sturdy, galvanos are long lasting. Medallic Art Company once made new dies from 65-year-old galvanos Calverley Lincoln Medal of 1909 reissued in 1975 -- with perfect definition of detail, no loss of original integrity. The jury is still out if this could be done with an epoxy pattern." Michael Schmidt writes: "I doubt that it would be possible. Back in 2000, the History Channel broadcast a program on the US Mint in which they showed the reduction process being used to create a 2000-W (yes W) Sacajawea master hub from an epoxy pattern. In the close ups it was possible to see that the pattern was being seriously damaged/scored by the tracing point. (The 2000-W die was used to strike the gold Sacajawea dollars that were sent up on the space shuttle. Also in the same program they showed production runs of 2000-S BUSINESS STRIKE Sac dollars! It took awhile to find out what that was about. It seems that since the mint was using an alloy they hadn't used before and striking a new coin design they needed to do full scale press run tests to know what setting they needed, or what problems they could expect. Rather than use the regular dies they created the 2000-S dies so that the products could be instantly identified as being for the test runs and not production coins. I can't help but wonder if some day some of these will turn up in the marketplace.)" JUDD HANDWRITING SAMPLE SOUGHT Mitch Ernst of Omaha, NE writes: "I was given your address by a member of Collector's Universe forums. Last Friday I purchased a 3rd Edition copy of J. Hewitt Judd's "United States Pattern, Experimental and Trial Pieces" at the Omaha Public Library book sale. In the book were 2 sheets of paper. One, about 81/2 x 11, had a heading that said "Childrens Memorial Hospital History Sheet" and had hand writing listing numerous coins and prices. On the other sheet (about the size of a note pad) "Laboratory Notes" and in hand writing listed various denominations and Judd #'s, what appears to be quantities and prices. Both pieces of paper appear to be pretty old. Omaha's Children's Hospital hasn't been called by the name on the sheet for a number of years and the "Laboratory Notes" references to 196_ for the year to be filled in. I know Judd was a M.D. here in Omaha so the discovery of those sheets in the book and the hand written notes, made me curious as to who the author of the notes may be? I was told that if I contacted you that there was a possibility that if anyone had a copy of Judd's handwriting they might send a copy of it to me so I could compare it to the writing on the 2 pieces of paper I found in my book. If that is not the case that's fine. I know it's a long, long, long shot that I might have found Judd's own book with some of his notes in it. It's just that the coincidence of him being a M.D., the notes being written on older medical note paper and finding in the city he lived, my curiosity is piqued about what I might have found. Thank you for your time." [Mitch's email address is mkernst@webtv.net. -Editor] LEPAGE ERROR CAUGHT BY WEB VISITOR Elizabeth Rosenberry writes: "I came across your website while looking for information regarding Bois Durci. While I know next to nothing about numismatics, I found your site to be interesting and informative. However, I did notice one error on the site. In Vol 7, No. 4 of October 3, 2004 you gave information regarding "Catalog Data for Thomas Medal in Bois Durci." In this article you mention that Charles LePage, the inventor of the Bois Durci manufacturing process is the person for whom LePage glues are named. This is incorrect. The LePage glues come from William N. LePage of Prince Edward Island, Canada who first made his glues in 1857. Here's a link to the glues website: http://www.lepageproducts.com/about/ It's a common misconception. My plastics professor told me the same thing, but through my own research, I am pretty certain that there is no connection between the French and the Canadian LePages. Anyway, I just thought you might like to know, and congrats again on the well done site." [The original posting was from Dick Johnson in response to Philip Mernick's inquiry about the George Thomas Medal http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_esylum_v07n40.html -Editor] ANOTHER HOARD FOUND Arthur Shippee sends the following link from the Explorator newsletter to an article in Finnish about a major medieval coin hoard found Finland. http://www.helsinginsanomat.fi/tuoreet/artikkeli/1101978676562 DICKIN MEDAL HELP SOUGHT I'm writing an article on the Dickin medal for the American Numismatic Association's Numismatist magazine. The Dickin medal is awarded to animals for bravery and was written up in The E-Sylum late last year. See http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_esylum_v07n48.html >From some web searches, and kind assistance from Mark Quayle of Spink, I have the following references to sales of Dickin medals:. Christie's, 13-Apr-83, Mercury, a pigeon; Spink, 23-Sep-93, Simon the Cat Spink, 30-Nov-04, Commando, a red chequer cock pigeon If anyone can help me locate the sale and lot number for any other Dickin medal, I'd appreciate it. I also still need to get a copy of the lot description from the Spink, 23-Sep-93 sale; the ANA and ANS libraries were unable to supply them. Thank you. -Editor I unfortunately sent ANS Librarian Frank Campbell on a wild goose chase looking for Mercury in a Spink sale, when if fact it was in a Christie's sale. Sorry!! Frank writes: "Your inquiry struck a responsive chord when I noted that you were in search of a medal awarded to Mercury, the pigeon. Had Mercury been a Canada Goose, a goldfish, or a squirrel monkey I would have probably said to myself, "Is he kidding?" But no, Mercury was a pigeon and I hold pigeons in high regard. So, I set off in search of Mercury, whose name was buried somewhere in a 1983 Spink auction. I started with London, moved to America and ended in Australia. While I can't say I read each lot with extreme care - and there were lots of lots - Mercury was not to be found. There were a few Mercury dimes along the way, but no Mercury, the pigeon. I'm not going to tell you how long I pursued Mercury but, let's just say, I could have flown to Australia in less time. In my youth, I bred and flew homing pigeons, which I would occasionally bring to the Society, where Geoffrey North (then Librarian) would take them from me on a Friday afternoon and set them aloft on one of his weekend trips to Vermont. They always returned to a small bathroom window located on West 162nd Street, where I lived at the time." LITTLE NUMISMATIC BOOKS Neil Shafer writes: "I always enjoy the E-sylum. Some time ago there was a discussion of tiny books, as I recall it. Purely by serendipity I came across several items I had forgotten were here: first, a booklet measuring 2 5/8 x 2 1/8 inches titled Chase National Bank Exhibit of Moneys 50,000 Specimens, etc. There are 20 pages, each with an illustration of some great coin in the museum (last page is a 3 pence note of 1764 printed by Franklin). No publication date is given, but location is given as 46 Cedar St. The next two are really not books but they come close. One is a "Red Book" with date 1947 and in the darkish wine-red color, full design of the original cover, but it's actually a 2-page coin folder with places for two cents, a 1946 at left and 1996 at right. Text inside is about the 50th anniversary of the Guide Book; size of the folder is 3 3/8 x 2 1/4 inches. Last is a blue Lincoln Cent coin folder for 50th Anniversary of the Coin Folder 1940-1990. Left page holds a 3-pc. set of 1940 cents for Our First Year, center page has a 1965 hole for Our 25th Anniversary, and third page the 2-pc. 1990 set for Our 50th Anniversary. The little flap page of information covers the third page as with the regular folders. Dimensions: 3 3/4 x 3 inches. Are most of us familiar with these already? I have no idea how widely they were distributed, or even how I obtained these." [The mini-"Red Book" was given out by the publisher at the 1996 American Numismatic Association convention in Denver, according to recollections of myself and John Burns. We were both at the show and I recall picking one up, but don't know were it ended up. John picked up some of the remainders at the end of the show and may have some in his inventory somewhere. -Editor] LIBERTY SEATED COLLECTOR'S CLUB E-NEWSLETTER ARTICLE SEEKS LOCATION OF AHWASH BOOK COPY #001 Len Augsberger reports that "the Liberty Seated Collector's Club now has an email newsletter, which can be subscribed to via this address: wb8cpy@earthlink.net." Len writes: "I thought the item below about McCloskey's copy of the early Ahwash book might be worth mentioning in the E-sylum." [The item is by John McCloskey, President of the LSCC and Editor of its Quarterly Journal. - Editor] "My search for information quickly led me to Kam Ahwash who was one of the few dealers of his time who actually studied his coins and noted their special qualities. We exchanged information on Seated dime varieties for several years and I worked with him in identifying new varieties. I remember one time in 1974 when he came to my home and we studied the dimes in my collection and compared their characteristics to the notes that he had gathered over the years. I then had Gordon Harnack take close up pictures of the dates for coins representing new varieties that Kam had not yet identified. Most of these pictures appeared in the Ahwash encyclopedia when it was published a few years later. In recognition of my contributions to his research, Kam gave me a copy of the Premiere Edition of his encyclopedia when it was published in 1977. This book has a padded blue cover that is stamped with the title Encyclopedia of United States/ Liberty Seated Dimes/ 1837 - 1891 in bold silver lettering. The author's name "Kamal M. Ahwash/ 1977" is printed below the title. In the lower right corner of the cover, my name "John W. McCloskey/ LSCC 89" is stamped in the same silver lettering. The books in this edition are numbered in the lower right corner of the first page in the text. My book is designated as "No 002." I presume that book "No 001" was Kam's personal copy of the encyclopedia. Does anybody know who owns that book today? Does anybody know how many numbered copies were printed in the Premiere Edition of the encyclopedia? Did you buy a copy of the Premiere Edition when it was published in 1977? If so, what is its number? Did you buy a copy of the Premiere Edition second hand from another collector or dealer? If so, who was the copy initially registered to and what is its number? Kam Ahwash passed away more than twenty years ago but he is still remembered for his important work on die varieties in the Seated dime series. His books are undoubtedly still in the numismatic library of many currently active club members. I would like to recommend that we document the location of these classic reference books on Seated coinage. Any information that you can provide on the Premiere Edition of the Ahwash encyclopedia will be greatly appreciated by the collecting community." CHRISTIAN GOBRECHT FILES FOUND From the Volume 1, Number 2 issue of The E-Gobrecht newsletter, the electronic publication of the Liberty Seated Collector's Club (March 2005): "Thanks to some great detective work by Len Augsburger, approximately 100 items from 1795 to1844 relating to Christian Gobrecht have been located in Philadelphia, PA. Supposedly, miscellaneous correspondence of Christian Gobrecht, relating to his inventions and improvements in the art of engraving, other activities in the field of his profession, and a few items of personal and domestic character are included. Len and Bill Bugert are planning a visit to inventory the papers on March 9th. More on this excursion to follow later." [Congratulations, Len! The numismatic world needs more detectives. We'll await the report of your findings. -Editor] LIBRARIES AND BASEMENTS Coin World News Editor William T. Gibbs writes: "Until this past January, my library contained a copy of "Carnival Panorama: New Orleans Mardi Gras Medals and Krewes" by Jay Guren and Richard Ugan. This interesting hardcover book bears a die cut cover in which rests a Mardi Gras doubloon. The medal is the 1966 New Orleans Carnival Schedule Medal, struck in "golden" aluminum. This version of the medal only appears with this book. Jay personally inscribed a copy to me about more than a quarter century ago, when he was features editor and I was a new staff writer on the staff of Coin World. Jay had cataloged the medals for the book, which was published in 1966 by Anderson Publications, New Orleans, and printed by Sidney Printing & Publishing Co. Inc., publishers of Coin World, World Coins and Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine. Jay's work on the book helped catch the attention of Coin World's owners, who hired him for the editorial staff. Unfortunately, this book was among the library materials in my basement in January when a power failure of five days duration shut down my sump pumps and allowed 41 inches of ground water to creep into the basement. I lost a number of common "Red Books," numerous Stack's and Bowers and Merena catalogs and a few other books and magazines from my numismatic collection (plus various other books and items from other collections, like my James Bond soundtrack LP collection). Fortunately, most of my library was upstairs and unharmed. The Guren-Ugan book was beyond salvage, having spent the better part of five days submerged. I have learned my lesson: I will never store my library in the basement if I can help it." TRANSLATION WEB SITE John and Nancy Wilson, of Ocala, FL write: "While looking for something on Google we ran across this great google link: http://www.google.com/language_tools This is probably one of the best language translation sites on the web. " DREAM LIBRARY MUST HAVE A TABLE Dick Johnson writes: "What hasn?t been mentioned yet, but is sooo important ? the library table. I have just finished setting up a library room with book shelves on all four walls next to my home office. In the center of the room is a very large work table. I was fortunate to get a divider panel from a retail store which was closing and discarding this. I had this cut down in the shape of a work table ? it is heavy, sturdy and has a hard smooth surface. I placed two 2-drawer file cabinets under each end to support it leaving space where I can sit at a chair under the center to work. I can pull one or more books off any shelf and lay it on this work table. Plus retrieve files out of any cabinet. Works well!" NEWSPAPERS AS NUMISMATIC LITERATURE Dan Gosling forwarded a set of inquiries on several topics. We published the first four previously. Here's item #5: "Should newspapers form an important role in a reference library? How should they be stored or housed and what precautions should be taken to preserve the contents? Is binding the best method to preserve them or is it acceptable to simply stack them up. Is it better to place them in standard size or specially made cardboard boxes? I would appreciate any ideas on how best to acquire missing issues." NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY OPENS IMAGE GALLERY The March 3, 2005 New York Times had an article about the new gallery of images on the New York Public Library web site: "So far, about 275,000 items are online, and you can browse by subject, by collection, by name or by keyword. The images first appear in thumbnail pictures, a dozen to a page. Some include verso views. You can collect 'em, enlarge 'em, download 'em, print 'em and hang 'em on your wall at home. All are free, unless, of course, you plan to make money on them yourself. (Permission is required.) Despite the Web site's great richness, sleek looks and fast response to a mouse click, it does feel a bit musty. The digital gallery is modeled on an old-fashioned card catalog, with all the attendant creaks. Doing a search is like going into a library and opening file drawers." "The digital gallery has a big collection from the Civil War, including pictures of the dead taken by Alexander Gardner and pictures of the wounded kept by the United States Sanitary Commission. It has thousands of rare photographs of Russia and the Soviet Union, including funny shots of a day nursery at a Moscow factory, and thousands of color pictures of every block in Lower Manhattan taken in a single year, 1999, by one man, Dylan Stone." "This grand, eccentric collection has uncountable strengths, but the late 20th century is not among them. That's the way it has to be for a library that is completely accessible to everyone on earth. Only items that date before 1923 are in the public domain, free for the plucking. That's why there is no image from 2003. And for the year 2004, you will find only one entry, made in error. It's a clothing ad from a page of a 1904 Scribner's Magazine." "For the weary wanderer, the library has included a special heading on the opening page of its Web site, "Explore," divided into seven neat subject areas. If you don't know what you're looking for, it's good to start here. But if you feel like burrowing, you might try searching inside the individual collections and libraries within the New York Public Library. Rummage through the rare books division (pausing a moment to reflect how incredible it is to be rummaging in a rare books library) and you will find George Catlin's "North American Indian Portfolio," J.-J. Grandville's "Les Fleurs Anim?es," William Blake's illuminated book "Milton" and Alvin Langdon Coburn's book of portrait photographs, "Men of Mark." To read the full article, see: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/03/books/03libr.html To visit the NYPL image gallery: http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/index.cfm [Using the simple search terms "coin," "coinage," "numismatist" and "mint" one can locate a few items of interest to numismatists, such as a lyric sheet for the 1896 chart-topper, "Let us have free coinage, boys at sixteen to one," with words and music by Albert P. Schack. The song was an anthem during the Presidential debates of that year, which also saw the creation of "Bryan Money" medals and tokens (ID: 1165958). Another image is of a poster from the Bryan era: "Have you gone to the bottom of the Silver Question?" (ID 1259271). Another image is a page from a scrapbook of "America's First Illustrator," Alexander Anderson (1775-1870). The page shows drawings of early U.S. and colonial coins (ID: T000148). Or how about an image of a book page illustrating a gold medal awarded to Nathaniel Greene (1742-1786) (ID: 420802)? Or an image of an April 28th, 1826 letter from Richard Riker, John Agnew, Thomas Bolton and William A. Davis informing recipient of the awarding of medals from the Corporation of the City of New York at the celebration of the completion of the New York canals ID: 54675 )? What numismatic goodies can YOU find? -Editor] LUCKIEST DOLLAR BILL IN THE WORLD? The Press & Dakotan of South Dakota published an article this week about a local man planning to sell a bill with a special serial number: "Is it the luckiest dollar bill in the world? A Yankton man who owns a 1977-issued $1 bill with all sevens in the serial number is willing to make that argument, and he hopes that someone is willing to buy it. Randy Johnson, president of First National Bank South Dakota, says he isn't a superstitious person, but he can't deny that he's been rewarded with a "lovely wife, two lovely children, good health, good communities to live in and good jobs" during the years he's had the bill in his possession. Now, he plans to sell the "Lucky 7" bill on eBay, an Internet auction Web site. Johnson said he got the idea after reading an article about all the "strange and unusual" objects being sold there. "People were even selling potatoes that looked like somebody," "Johnson came across the bill in 1980, while doing some routine bill-sorting at a bank in LeMars, Iowa. "When I got to the bundle (of bills), I just happened to look down and saw all the sevens and the 1977 series," Johnson said. "It was just a strange anomaly to me. I looked at it and said, That's worth keeping.' I purchased it from the bank and have had it ever since." Originally, Johnson had the other nine one-dollar bills in the series with all sevens except for the last digit as well, but over the years he's given them away to friends, he said." To read the full article: http://www.yankton.net/stories/030305/community_20050303025.shtml FILTHY LUCRE David Menchell writes: "Taken from a personal help newsletter I receive called Bottom Line Personal is this mention of an item Included in a book entitled "100 Most Dangerous Things in Everyday Life and What You Can Do About Them" by researcher Laura Lee of Rochester, Michigan. "Researchers from the Medical Center at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio found that 87% of dollar bills in circulation carry bacteria, including strains that cause sore throats, urinary tract infections and food poisoning. There's no way to tell how many people get sick from handling money-people rarely know where they picked up a germ when they get ill-but this evidence suggests that money is an often overlooked culprit. Self-defense: Wash your hands frequently when you handle cash. To be ultrasafe, adopt a strategy used by a Chinese bank during the SARS epidemic. When you receive money, put it in a safe place, wash your hands, and don't touch it again for at least 24 hours. This should be long enough for most germs to die." Any other reports of health risks associated with handling money? I believe that coins are safer due to the electrochemical properties of metals inhibiting bacterial growth, but maybe other readers may have more information." FEATURED WEB PAGE This week's featured web page is an index of small size solid serial number U.S. notes, compiled by dealer Mike Abramson. http://www.usarare.com/ssindex.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 Sun Mar 13 22:13:16 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Mar 13 22:17:42 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#11, March 13, 2005 Message-ID: <4235014C.6060307@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 11, March 13, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2004, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. SUBSCRIBER UPDATE Among our recent subscribers is Dennis Hengeveld of The Netherlands. Welcome aboard! We now have 731 subscribers. A few subscribers did not receive their issue last week because of their ISP's spam filters. If you miss any issue, back issues are archived on our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org JEROME H. REMICK 1928-2005 George H. Cockburn of Qu?bec, Canada writes (Wednesday, March 9): "Searching Google, I just came across your request for information (E-Sylum : Vol 7 no 42) on Jerry Remick. Unfortunately, Jerry passed away last week in Quebec City, where he lived. The funeral was yesterday. I knew him well since he worked for me for a few years as a geologist. Everyone knew he was an expert in numismatics. Though he was English-speaking and born in the US, he worked in French for the Quebec Department of Natural Resources during his long career as a geologist spanning well over 35 years. Amongst our geologists, he was was certainly one of the most prolific. In Quebec, Jerry was known as J?r?me and was very appreciated by his colleagues as well as the the mineral exploration industry. He retired about 10 years ago. Enclosed is the death notice which appeared in Le Soleil, the Quebec City newspaper on March 5th 2005. He apparently died alone in his apartment and was discovered several days later. He was related somehow to actress Lee Remick." [The death notice, in French, was very brief. Would any of our readers be able to share memories of Mr. Remick with us? -Editor] SHOW ME THE MONEY! "The Standard Catalog of Motion Picture, Television, Stage and Advertising Prop Money" by Fred Reed has been published by McFarland Inc., N.C. Some of you veteran readers of The E-Sylum may recall that this book was conceived on line in an exchange of E-Sylum messages initiated by Numismatics International Librarian Granvyl Hulse, who challenged E-Sylum readers to do such a book and offered assistance. Fred Reed, author of the award winning "CIVIL WAR ENCASED STAMPS: The Issuers and Their Times", thought that was a worthy task and stepped up to do the job. That was four years ago. Fred writes: "Now, in case any of you have been holding your breath, you can breathe once again. My book, "SHOW ME THE MONEY! The Standard Catalog of Motion Picture, Television, Stage and Advertising Prop Money" is out now." Word at Reed residences in Oklahoma, Texas, California and Florida is that it is the family's most beautiful "baby" ever. Father and "son" are both reportedly doing well. Specifics of this newest addition to Reed's numismatic family are impressive: 788 pages, 2071 pictures (according to the publisher's count. "I'll take their word for it," Fred notes), includes bibliography and an extremely comprehensive index. Fred adds: "the book could have been a lot bigger but the publisher printed the Index in teeny, tiny type---my apologies to those who like the large print versions of Reader's Digest and Playboy.". SHOW ME THE MONEY catalogs more than 300 different series of prop notes, comprising more than 1,800 types, and over 2,000 varieties covering more than a century of movie making. Virtually all are illustrated with large, excellent quality photographs. "Prop money is graphically exciting," Reed says. "Film characters vie for it, lie for it, steal it, kill for it, fondle it, and even examine it and philosophize about it just like people in normal life," he notes., Many of these notes are truly historic, and a good number of them have been confiscated by the Secret Service at various times ("full details disclosed in the book," Fred says). Several hundred pages of historical and movie information make it a good read ("Get it? - Good REED!"), as well as hundreds of illustrations from Reed's large collection of movie stills and movie posters depicting money, which make it a visual delight, according to those who have seen it. The book also includes a catalog numbering system, prices every note, gives rarities, provides eras of film use for most varieties, and specific instances of use for many of these notes. In addition to lots of spade work, Reed interviewed Hollywood insiders such as prop masters, set decorators, and art directors, and production crew members. He also viewed more than one thousand movies ("yes, that's right, 1000-plus") to write its authoritative text. Fred writes: "Eventually (hopefully positive) reviews will appear in all the RIGHT places, but E-Sylum readers can be the first on their respective blocks to see it themselves since it is already for sale on both amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com." "The ISBN is 0-7864-2037-5 (Orders filled in 2-3 days according to those sellers)," Reed reports. It is also available from the Publisher, McFarland Publications, 1-800-253-2187 or Box 611, Jefferson, NC 28640 and has appeared in that firm's fall, winter and spring catalogs, as well as publisher's trade ads in BIG REEL and elsewhere. As a special offer to E-Sylum readers, they can order the book straight from its author for $82.50 postpaid at this address: Fred Reed P.O. Box 118162 Carrollton, TX 75011-8162 The book won't be autographed (note: it will be shipped from North Carolina) but E-Sylum orders from the author will receive an autographed, GENUINE prop note from author Reed's personal collection that they can tip into the book or use as a bookmark. "Since it will be a genuine $100 prop note, the book will be practically free," he affirms, "just don't try to spend it or he'll have to do an update chapter about his readers and the Secret Service." Many E-Sylum readers have assisted in the preparation of this work and all are acknowledged. Fred writes: "If you feel so moved to purchase a copy, I would appreciate your feedback because I'm already deep (30-years' worth) into my next book on Abraham Lincoln --and I don't want to make the same dumb mistakes all over again." [I'm looking forward to getting my copy, and I hope a number of our readers will order copies as well. This is an obscure but very interesting and important topic. Here's our chance to be know-it-alls and trump our movie buff friends with our knowledge, all thanks to Fred's monumental effort. Congratulations, Fred! -Editor] VOORHIES PAPER MONEY BOOKS DONATED TO ANA With permission we are reprinting the following article by Nancy W. Green, Librarian of the American Numismatic Association. It appeared in the latest issue of the ANA's Numismatist magazine. "The ANA?s Dwight N. Manley Numismatic Library has received many magnificent donations through the years, and this past January another was added to its resources. The Dr. Jack M. Vorhies Syngraphic Research Library now is here in Colorado Springs, thanks to the generosity of Dr. Vorhies and the enthusiastic assistance of ANA Governor John Wilson. Containing more than 200 volumes, all in pristine condition, this wonderful assemblage of numismatic research material is too extensive to list in its entirety, but here are some highlights: A needed addition to the ANA Library?s shelves are seven copies of Heath?s Infallible Counterfeit Detectors?two of the original 1864 edition; two 1866 editions, one of which is the banking edition; and an 1870, 1873 and 1879. Previously, the Association had only six copies of the publication?two 1866 editions (one pocket-size) and an 1867, 1870, 1873 and pocket-size 1877. Other wonderful volumes include a copy of Jacob Perkins by Bathe, Dor and Grenville; a volume of vignette proofs from American Bank Note Company; a book of specimen vignettes from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing; and a copy of Ormsby?s Description of Bank-note Engraving. My personal favorite is a collection of 1907-08 issues of an American Bank Note Company publication called The Imprint. Leather-bound with gilt edges, the two volumes contain beautiful color illustrations portraying a bygone time of elegance and graciousness that people today can only imagine. Thank you, Dr. Vorhies, for sharing your outstanding library with the ANA membership. It will prove a valuable resource for years to come." BUFFALOED? Jeff Starck of Sidney, OH writes: "I couldn't help but send this, an "Appreciations" item in the March 6 New York Times, by Verlyn Klinkenborg." [I've always enjoyed reading contemporary criticisms of new coin designs. This one is headlined "The (Old) Buffalo Nickel" -Editor] "Last week, the United States Mint released a new nickel, the third in its Westward Journey series. On the obverse is a portrait of Thomas Jefferson, who seems to loom into the porthole of the coin. The word "Liberty" appears in a facsimile of Jefferson's handwriting and is dwarfed by "In God We Trust." On the reverse, a bison stands on a small patch of prairie, fenced in by the words "United States of America," which nearly surround him. It is perhaps a meaningless artifact of design that this bison is facing to the right. The new buffalo nickel is, of course, meant to recall the old buffalo nickel, which was minted in Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco between 1913 and 1938. That nickel was one of the most attractive coins ever issued in this country." "The mint distributed more than 1.2 billion of those nickels, and they have nearly all been retired. But even in the early 1960's, you could still find a buffalo nickel in your change from time to time. It was always an occasion to stop and look closely. This was a coin that worked in a purely iconographic fashion. It had a visual economy that is still moving. In the face of that Indian and the somber mass of that bison, you can visualize the tragic undertone of American history. To come upon a buffalo nickel - one of the old ones - in your pocket was to come upon a work of art." To read the original article, see: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/06/opinion/06sun4.html?th [Everyone's a critic when a new coin hits the scene. I wonder what people had to say when Fraser's "Buffalo" nickel debuted in 1913. Does anyone have a contemporary critique of that coin? -Editor] LITTLE ANT HILLS [Some people start complaining about a new design before it's even finished. The following is from an article published March 9th. -Editor] "The U.S. Mint will release Colorado's state quarter in 2006, but it's still not certain what it will look like. The five designs that are being considered were unveiled Wednesday in a special ceremony at the state Capitol." Barb McTurk, a former superintendent at Denver's Mint, unsuccessfully fought for a Western artist to be appointed to the project, fearing Easterners wouldn't understand their request for "majestic mountains." Frances Owens admitted the first designs shipped back were a little disappointing. "We really did have little ant hills," she said. The designs went back and forth several times before the commission was satisfied." "Each of the five designs incorporates the Rocky Mountains, and includes the banner, "Colorado 1876." One design features Mesa Verde?s famous Cliff Palace, another has a visual of Pikes Peak with a miner's pick and shovel, while a third includes an alpine soldier with the words "Birthplace of the 10th Mountain Division." The other two designs have rugged mountain backdrops -- one with the inscription "Colorful Colorado," and the other with columbine flower over the words "The Centennial State." To read the full article, see: http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/4269481/detail.html COINAGE YEARBOOK BOOK REVIEWS The 2005 Coin Collector's Yearbook, published by COINage magazine, contains a nice article by Col. Bill Murray reviewing recent coin books. Books reviewed include multiple new titles published by Whitman Publishing, and "The Mint on Carson Street by Rusty Goe "The Copper Coinage of the State of New Jersey, Annotated Manuscript of Damon G. Douglas," published by the American Numismatic Society "A History of Nineteenth Century Ohio Obsolete Bank Notes and Scrip" by Wendell Wolka. NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY PICTURE COLLECTION Dick Johnson writes: "A tribute should be given to the New York Public Library Picture Collection and I am glad to learn a part of it has been placed on the Internet as mentioned in last week?s E-Sylum and the New York Times March 3, 2005. This was, and is, a national treasure. Our field is indebted to the NYPL Picture Collection for design research for literally thousands of American coin and medal designs. Medallic sculptors ? as well as American artists among 40,000 viewers a year ? have used this collection to "look up" what people looked like (portraiture), for authentic period costumes, for historical scenes and events, for seals, symbols, logos, for a myriad of design details. These could be found so easily in that third floor room at the NYPL at 42nd and Fifth Avenue. With a library card you could check out the illustrations you found, take them to your studio or office, photocopy them, adapt them for your design project at hand -- or simply use them for artistic inspiration -- and return them in the required time. Case in point: At the height of his medallic activity, medalist Ralph J. Menconi was creating at least one new pair of medallic models a week. Sketch the design. Get the design edited and approved. Then create the models in clay. Cast the clay in plaster. Not only was he creating five medallic series at once, he worked on several medals in varying stages at once. All this, in addition to his normal medallic ? and art ? commissions! This frenzied activity required help. His solution was close at hand, his wife Marge. Ralph?s New York City studio was on 56th Street, 14 blocks south was the NY Public Library. Marge Menconi would go there to pour over the well organized table-high bins of illustrations filed in large gray folders. She would find as many illustrations for Ralph?s designs as practical. The illustrations were prints and photographs, items cut from discarded books, magazines, catalogs and from and hundreds of other sources. This was the only way Ralph could get the meticulous accurate detail in his medallic designs, in as quick time as he did, for all five medal series! Other medallic artists knew of this amazing resource and used its facilities in similar fashion. It was a boon to New York City artists. It became their gigantic "clip file." Art directors sent their staff artists and art researchers there. The picture collection was open to the public. Anyone could search here. (Medallic Art?s plant and office was six blocks away when it was in NYC ? I occasionally did just that, search on a spare lunch hour. I even donated some MAco sales literature with many medals illustrated which I thought would be useful.) But this picture collection also served Medallic Art?s numismatic interest in another way. And there is a story behind that. As a Medallic Art employee I was charged to catalog their medallic archives. President Bill Louth wanted it in a form he could see the image, in addition to required data, along with clients? name and location. That was a tough challenge. Remember, this was before PCs, some computer cards at the time did exist with a film negative inserted, but both Bill and I rejected it as not "human readable." I realized I was cataloging medal images, so I made an appointment with the lady in charge of the NYPL Picture Collection. This was 1967 and I learned the lady was Ramona Javitz, who had created the collection in 1929. despite her advanced years, she had some useful suggestions for Medallic Art?s medal image catalog. She encourage topic categories (much like how collectors now collect medals). She retired officially the following year, having placed five million prints in the collection (but lived 12 more years, she died 1980). We called on Eastman Kodak for their aid. A salesman understood our problem, took me to Time-Life to examine the catalog of their massive photo collection (of, I believe 8 million photos). Their solution was to reproduced in postage stamp size on a 3 x 5 inch photo print with their required details (negative number, photographer, subjects, event and such). >From these two concepts I devised a format of taking 35mm photographs of archive medals, both sides. From contact sheets we cut out the medal image and pasted these down on cards we typed with the name of the medal, size & composition(s), artist(s), client name, location, and some topics (like how a numismatist would collect). We had special card stock made so we could photocopy four of these at a time on a special photocopy machine. When cut apart we filed these cards in a 3x5 library card file cabinet. It worked. A separate set of cards was kept in the storeroom. When I purchased the storeroom surplus medals in 1977 I received this card file as well. It has 7 trays containing over 5,000 cards. I still find this useful in medal research. The wooden card file cabinet with perhaps 30,000 cards filed by categories went to Medallic Art Co, now in Nevada, but in the meantime everything on those cards has been entered into the firm?s computer database. All thanks, in part, to the founder, Ramona Javitz, of the NYPL Picture Collection. Her story in a press release for a 1997 exhibition can be read at: http://www.nypl.org/press/javitz.cfm" GALVANOS AND EPOXY PATTERNS ARE LUBRICATED Dick Johnson writes: "Michael Schmidt responded to my item on galvanos by mentioning the U.S. Mint film showing the Sacajawea dollar pattern on the die-engraving pantograph. I saw that same film and recall that scene. What looked like the destruction of the epoxy pattern was actually lubrication fluid flowing across the face of the pattern. This is required of all patterns ? copper galvano or epoxy ? to aid the trajectory of the tracing point. Please note the headline in last week?s item was incorrect: REUSING EPOXY GALVANOS. You cannot have an "epoxy galvano." It should have read Epoxy Patterns. Incidentally a similar lubricating fluid is played across the die being cut. But here it has an additional job of carrying away the minute chips of metal removed by the cutting point. The oil keeps the die and cutting point cool, facilitates the cutting action and collects the chips. The contaminated oil is piped away to a collection pan. In time this pan looks like mud but is the gray color of the steel diestock." [I'll take responsibility for the inaccurate title. Sorry! Thanks for setting the record straight. -Editor] JUDD'S HANDWRITING LOCATED Matt Hansen writes: "Just thought I'd update everyone on what is transpiring out of a snippet from the most recent issue of The E-Sylum. In that issue, there was a request for information about Dr. Judd that had been posted by Mitch Kerns. I passed along Mitch's request to my friend and fellow numismatist Jim McKee here in Lincoln. Jim also happens to be the owner/operator of a local book store, an enthusiastic collector of U.S. patterns, as well as someone who knew Dr. Judd. Apparently Jim has at least one sample of Dr. Judd's handwriting and can supply Mitch with a copy of the same." [Chris Fuccione also chimed in with a an offer of assistance. Thanks, everyone! -Editor] NEW IRISH NOTES DEBUT In earlier issues we discussed the plans to recall and replace Irish paper money in the wake of a massive theft of currency. See E-Sylum Volume 7, Number 52, (December 26, 2004) and Volume 8, Number 2, ( January 9, 2005). The following article was published March 9th: "The new Northern Bank notes, unveiled today, will become common currency from Monday when they will be available in ATMs and bank branches. While the overall design of the new notes is unchanged, they will feature a new logo, are a different colour, will have new serial number prefixes and will feature the date January 19, 2005. The new logo features the word 'Northern' in small letters rather than capitals and is in italics." To read the full article, see: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/story.jsp?story=618317 WHAT TO CALL E-SYLUM READERS? Recently I suggested the term "E-Sylumites" for readers of this electronic newsletter. Dick Johnson suggested "E-Syluminaries" (pronounced e-si-loom?i-nar-ies).. Next Larry Gaye chimed, "I prefer "inmate." Carl Honore suggested: "E-nmates" This week Tom DeLorey adds: "Use the KISS Principle: -Nuts." [KISS means "Keep It Simple, Stupid!" Since we're book lovers I would have thought "B-Nuts" more appropriate, but needing an "E" to denote electronic, we would then have "E-B-Nuts" or "BE-Nuts." Outsiders would be correct in thinking that We Be Nuts in a big way. -Editor] WHAT TO DO WITH VIRGIN BOOKS Henry Bergos writes: "Regarding the discussion about opening up an unsplit book:. I attended the CW Post campus of Long Island University in 1974/5. I was doing some research on English law and requested a book that turned out to be an original from 1763. It was unsplit!!! I asked what to do about it and the library assistant told me to do as I liked, so I split some of the pages. It kinda hurt to do it. What good is a book that has never been read? We as book lovers like to have pristine copies, but unread??? I have two copies of a book one of my Professors wrote: one in the shrink wrap and one that I read." THE MINI 50TH ANNIVERSARY RED BOOKS Matt Hansen writes: "Regarding Neil Shafer's comments in he March 6, 2005, issue of The E-Sylum about the small 50th Anniversary Red Book/coin folder, I have the following comment/correction: I attended that same show in Denver in 1996 and remember well those mini books they gave out at the Krause booth. However, as I recall, they held dimes rather than cents. In fact, I believe that there was a 1996 dime already in each book, leaving the collector to add the 1946 dime." THE ROMISCHE HERRSHERBILD SERIES Joe Geranio writes: "To all you Roman coin collectors: There is a great series that was done by Dietrich Boschung called "The Romische Herrsherbild series, which currently number 10 volumes. I am currently doing research on the portraiture of Caligula. The fun thing is the pages of high grade sestersius, aureus, denarius that are pictured. The coinage is an important part in identifying Roman portraiture. These kinds of studies make collecting Ancients a lot more fun. The series is expensive, but well worth it. Thanks to The E-Sylum for helping find a Journal on Ancient numismatics." MELTED MEDALLIONS? We recently discussed some interesting ancient gold medallions (see The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 7, February 13, 2005). Henry Bergos writes: "I remember reading about some French workers finding Roman Medallions. They were told that they were counterfeiting them and would land in prison if they didn't stop. The workers MELTED them!!! They were gold and from the first 1/3 of the fourth century. As I remember it this happened in 1924 as they were building a subway in Paris." [Have any of our readers ever heard such a tale? -Editor] WHAT HAPPENS TO LIBRARY TABLES Last week, Dick Johnson noted that any dream library must have a table. Joe Boling writes: "Ah, but it does not work. A table is an empty horizontal surface, and soon gets covered, and eventually buried. I have two in my office - the available space now is dictated by what I can do on top of the items that are occupying the table tops." BOOKS ON UNIQUE COINS Several issues back, we asked about books (not just articles) that tell the story of a unique coin. Rich Hartzog writes: "Hmmm, wasn't there a booklet on the 1836 half dollar?" PUTIN GIVES KIM A MEDAL The Asia Pacific News reports that the reclusive Kim Jong-Il of Korea gave a rare public appearance in order to receive a medal commemorating WWII from Russian President Vladimir Putin: "Kim received the medal in person "commemorating the 60th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War" from Russia's envoy on behalf of Putin, the agency said. It is rare for the secretive leader to attend award ceremonies. "A ceremony of conveying the medal took place in grand style Tuesday. Kim Jong-Il was present there," the agency said without specifying the venue. The reclusive leader, who was accompanied by ranking North Korean government, military and communist party officials at the ceremony, expressed gratitude to Putin, it said." "He expressed thanks for the kind invitation and had an amicable and friendly talk with the ambassador before posing for a photograph with the staff members of the embassy," it said." To read the full article, see: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/136376/1/.html WHERE TO ARCHIVE? Michael Marotta writes: In April 2004, the Michigan State Numismatic Society appointed me to be the editor of MichMatist, their quarterly journal. As a patron of the State of Michigan Library, I know that The MichMatist is on the shelf and that issues are missing. This is significant, because the mandate of this library is only secondarily to serve the people of the state. Its primary mission is to serve the legislature. I also know that Coin World received the magazine, and I know that their archives were incomplete. In all, I have written to the following librarians, offering to gather back issues from our members and forward them, in order to bring their holdings up to date: Library of Michigan; Coin World; Krause Corporation; American Numismatic Association; American Numismatic Society. Are there other libraries or archives that should receive the MichMatist? For anyone reading this list with suggestions, my email address is mike49mercury@AOL.com." AHWASH BOOK PREMIER EDITION Roger Burdette writes: "In response to John McCloskey's inquiry about the "premier edition" of Kamal Ahwash's seated dime book, I did many of the photos for Kam's book and pictures he occasionally sent to customers. When his book was printed in 1977 he gave me a copy of both the regular edition and the padded cover edition (#088). At that time I recall him saying there were 100 copies of the premier edition. He never mentioned the total press run, however. Back then, I occasionally obtained space at an unoccupied table (thanks to Hank Greenberg or Gordon Berg) at the Suburban Washington Coin show, and set up my cameras, bellows and flash to take photos of coins for collectors. Rarely did more than break even, but got to meet many interesting people and photograph coins that I could never afford to own. Kam would sometimes stop by my table with a box of 2x2s and leave them for photography, while he wandered off to make a deal." THROWING YOUR MONEY AWAY Dan Gosling writes: "Thanks to Dick Johnson for suggesting that a recreational vehicle could be used to reduce the cost of accommodation while doing numismatic research. An RV with air conditioning would be much better accommodation than when I stayed at the dormitory of the University of Ottawa in 2002 while researching my chapter on numismatic literature for the soon to be released Canadian Numismatic Association/Numismatic Educational Services Association Correspondence Course Part II. The mistake I made was arriving on the day the temperature reached 100 degrees Fahrenheit only to find that my room did not have air conditioning, a fan or a window bigger than a handkerchief. If those three factors were not enough to completely roast me, my room was on the top floor immediately below the hot roof and located on the south wall! Dick mentioned that one of the disadvantages of RV?s is the poor mileage. While I was thinking about the risk of throwing my money away on the cost of gasoline I came across the following on page 133 in the April 1936 issue of Spink & Sons Numismatic Circular: Coin Thrown 270 Feet. George Washington Feat Emulated Virginian Town Wins a Bet. From Our Correspondent Fredericksburg. Virginia, Sunday. Thousands of excited citizens crowded the muddy banks of the Rappahannock River here yesterday afternoon to see whether Mr. Walter Johnson, the famous baseball player and the hero of every American schoolboy, could emulate the feat accredited to George Washington of throwing a silver dollar 300 feet across the river. American school books relate the story of Washington's pitching feat side by side with the famous cherry tree anecdote. Washington's 204th birthday was nationally celebrated yesterday. Mr. Solomon Bloom, who represents New York in Congress, conceived the idea, presumably for publicity reasons, of betting 20 to 1 that the throw could not be repeated. Dozens of State Officials and scores of reporters and cameramen stood knee-deep in thick ooze on the river banks while Mr. Johnson, removing his coat, warmed himself by a few preliminary throws. Then, taking a specially minted dollar, he tossed it with ease across the 270 feet of turbulent water. An excited crowd of souvenir hunters fought desperately to obtain possession of the trophy. The scene was broadcast throughout the country to millions of interested listeners." "G. W. E. Russell has a story of how at least one doubter was silenced before the experiment was made. An Englishman wondered whether Washington had ever thrown the dollar. "Of course he did", reported an American diplomat. "To throw a dollar across the Rappahannock would be nothing to a man who had pitched a Sovereign across the Atlantic!" "While searching the web for more information on George Washington's baseball throw I came across the following joke: While showing tourists Washington, D.C., a guide pointed out where George Washington supposedly threw a dollar across the Potomac River. "That's impossible," said a man. "No one could throw a coin that far." "You have to remember," answered the guide. "A dollar went a lot farther in those days." At the following site: http://www.thebaseballpage.com/past/pp/cooperwilbur/ "In 1936, at the age of 44, Cooper was coaxed out of retirement to attempt to set a new world record of sorts. The idea was for the lefty-hander to throw a silver dollar clear across the Monongahela River in downtown Pittsburgh. Previously, Walter Johnson had hurled a coin 300-feet across the Rappahannock River in Virginia, something Gen. George Washington is also credited with accomplishing. But Cooper could not reach the other bank of the Monongahela, which was some 900 feet away. When the silver dollar disappeared into the water, Cooper said, "I never was much good at throwing money away anyway." At the following site: http://www.baseballindc.com/news/feature_articles_detail.asp?article_id=29 [Now here's A different account of the recreation story. -Editor] "On February 22, Walter arrived in Fredericksburg to be greeted by a crowd of 8,000, a large group of reporters, and a CBS Radio news crew who would be broadcasting the event live. He made two preliminary throws across the Rappahannock, the first with a washer that fell just short and the second with a coin that just did make it. Now before the newsreel cameras, Johnson made the official toss with a silver dollar minted in 1779. The coin smoothly sailed over the freezing waters to land on the other side having cleared an estimated 317 feet." At the following site: http://www.chatterfromthedugout.com/george_and_walter.htm Dan adds: "I live in an igloo the frozen north in Canada I am not very knowledgeable about the coins of the United States of America. Is it easy to obtain one of the silver dollars minted in 1779 and are they very expensive?)" [The first U.S dollar coin is dated 1794. If 1779 is indeed the correct year, perhaps it was a Spanish coin.. But the first article said it was a NEW silver dollar. So which was it? -Editor] FILTHY LUCRE Chick Ambrass writes: "Concerning the comments about "dirty" money, I have a few comments in response. It's been a number of years since I've attended Pharmacy School, but I do continue with my required Continuing Education, and new antibiotics come to the market every year, and I do try to keep up as much as possible. The practice of putting the money in "quarantine" for a day to help with the SARS epidemic was just so they could say they were doing something...many bacteria, spores, and viruses can remain dormant for very long periods, just waiting for the right amount of heat, moisture, and susceptible host to become active. The comment about metals and their electroactivity being anti-microbial, as far as I know....that pertains to silver almost exclusively. The Phoencians would put silver coins in their water containers to keep the water fresh over long sea journeys. Right here in the United States, the explorers heading west during the 1800's also practiced the same. The comment "born with a silver spoon in his mouth" was not a statement about wealth...but of "health". You see, children fed with a silver spoon, as opposed to a wooden spoon (which was more likely to harbor bacteria) generally were healthier babies...but it was due to the silver... not any other substance, either wood, nor copper. As far as the metal coins having less bacteria because they are metal....generally accepted as the "dirtiest" item in your home, is not the floor, not the toilet...but the door knob most often has more bacteria stuck on its surface than anything else in your home. So wash your hands after every time you touch the door knob, and don't worry about the money, you'll be much better off." DELIGHTED TO LEARN OF ERROR Dick Johnson writes: "A tip of my hat and a "thank you" to Elizabeth Rosenberry who corrected a statement I had repeated in E-Sylum. I had stated that the founder of Bois Durci, Charles LePage, had also developed LePage Glue. Madame Rosenberry attributes the glue to a Canadian LePage, the French LePage had, indeed, developed Bois Durci. I forget where I obtained my incorrect fact ? it was several years ago. [At my age, I can attribute it to long term versus short term memory. Elsewhere in this issue is the name Ramona Javitz which popped into my mind, despite that fact it has been over 35 years since I spoke her name. Now don?t ask me what I had for lunch today. Wait! It was potato soup and Oreo Desert.] I do remember looking in my 2-volume Larousse Universal Encyclopedia for Bois Durci. Now I remember. I found the incorrect fact on the Internet. Darn! I should have known better. My slightly bruised ego takes a back seat to knowing I now posses a corrected fact in my mental databank. Thanks again, Ma'am" NORFOLK COIN HOARD DECLARED TREASURE Arthur Shippee forwarded the following item from the Explorator newsletter. He writes: "A hoard of Roman coins found in Norfolk were declared treasure this week." From the March 10th article: "A hoard of Roman bronze coins and a 4th-century gold ring found on farmland in West Norfolk were declared treasure today. Stephen Brown found 25 coins, believed to date back to 150AD using a metal detector between December 2003 and January 2004." "The artefacts have been sent to the British Museum for analysis, but it is hoped they will be acquired by Norwich Castle." To read the full article, see: http://tinyurl.com/3vswt COUNTERFEIT TEST FAILS On Wednesday, March 9, 2005, the Illinois Journal-Star published an article noting the shortcomings of a popular test for determining counterfeit currency. "When Scott Stanard ordered his usual sausage, egg and cheese biscuit combo Monday morning, he got two policemen on the side. Stanard said the staff at McDonald's, 3600 N. University St., called police after he handed over a $10 bill that they said was a fake. "I kept wondering why they weren't giving me any change," said Stanard, who sat in the drive-thru lane in his work van for several minutes before deciding to pull up and park." Two officers arrived, talked to him and went in the restaurant to get the alleged funny money. "(The police) said it was old - a 1950s series $10 bill - and the markers they use don't work on old money," Stanard said." Businesses often use a special marker on the bill to test whether the cash they receive is legitimate. If the mark turns brown or black, it usually indicates counterfeit money, otherwise it's the real thing." "Pingolt recalled a Baltimore man being cuffed and arrested recently for passing counterfeit $2 bills that later turned out to be genuine." To read the full story: http://www.pjstar.com/stories/030905/TRI_B5PUOG1B.054.shtml DOLLAR BILLS ON THE WALLS A review in my local paper earlier this week mentioned a restaurant with an interesting decor: "Imagine the familiar crowd, favorite foods and friendly buzz of our own Tessaro's in Bloomfield. Now add a deck, a wharf and picnic tables on the beach. That's Mar Vista in old historic Longboat Village. In a poll a few years back, USA Today listed it as one of the 10 likeliest places to meet a millionaire. Dollar bills "paper" the walls, because it was customary for fishermen to pin a dollar bill to the wall or ceiling to make sure there would be beer money in case the day's catch was poor. The tradition stuck." To read the original article: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05069/468707.stm To visit the restaurant's web site: http://www.marvista-restaurant.com/marvista/index.html [Has anyone been to this restaurant to see the dollar bills? Are there any other establishments that have this feature? -Editor] FEATURED WEB SITE This week's featured web site is for a research project on New Hampshire currency. From the press release: "Q. David Bowers of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire and David M. Sundman of Littleton, New Hampshire announce a website detailing their long-term New Hampshire Currency Study Project is now available at www.nhcurrency.com. To present the scope of the proposed book, New Hampshire Provincial, State and National Currency, the authors have published a sample chapter on this website. The chapter selected features the currency and financial history of Lancaster, New Hampshire, a town located in northern New Hampshire and famous to numismatists and note collectors for the ?Santa Claus Note? shown on the home page, issued by the White Mountain Bank of Lancaster. It concludes with the history and notes of the Lancaster National Bank. Additional chapters will be added from time to time. This project is being done in coordination with the Society of Paper Money Collectors (SPMC), with help from many museums and other entities, including the Smithsonian Institution, the New Hampshire Historical Society, and more. This expansive project is a work in progress, and help and contributions of information and suggestions are requested. Although the work is quite advanced, Bowers and Sundman are still seeking information regarding rare New Hampshire currency 1700-1935. All information that is used will be acknowledged in the published book. If you possess new information or resources that would assist in this important work, please contact: Q. David Bowers P.O. Box 539 Wolfeboro Falls, NH 03896 David Sundman 1309 Mt. Eustis Road Littleton, NH 03561-3735 email: info@nhcurrency.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 Mar 20 22:28:06 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Mar 20 22:28:56 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#12, March 20, 2005 Message-ID: <423E3F46.1040608@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 12, March 20, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2004, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. SUBSCRIBER UPDATE Among our recent subscribers are George Fitzgerald and Matt Gordon. Welcome aboard! We now have 735 subscribers. BOWERS SEEKS ASSISTANCE FOR PUBLICATIONS Dave Bowers writes: "For Whitman Publishing Co., LLC, I am involved in multiple projects. One of them is a dictionary/almanac type of book listing numismatic terms, people, events, places, and the like. While I will not be able to list the many thousands of collectors and dealers who have come in and out of the hobby, I would like to catch the more important ones, including modern-day figures. If you have been an author of numismatic items, or have been important in the trade, or have held a significant office in a numismatic organization, or have done research, etc., I would be grateful to receive a brief biographical sketch suitable for publication. Such could include your date of birth, when you entered numismatics, your specialties, accomplishments, trade styles (if you are in the numismatic business), and more. Probably from about 15 words to 40 words would be ideal. I can edit. Separately, I am doing an ?all about coins? book for Whitman, and desire any sharp photograph, suitable for publication, that have to do with numismatic libraries, research, and related matters. It seems to me that NBS members have much to offer in this regard! Any individuals in the pictures should be identified. Thank you so much for any interest you may take. Private e-mail you can use: qdbarchive@metrocast.net " CONFEDERATE CURRENCY GROUP FORMING? Fred Reed writes: "After publishing our 2nd very successful Confederate/Civil War special topical issue in PAPER MONEY, the Society of Paper Money Collectors award-winning magazine, and fielding numerous inquiries and comments resulting from my Confederate States of America column ?Shades of the Blue and the Grey? in BANK NOTE REPORTER, it?s become apparent that interest in CSA material is on the upsurge. Conversations recently have turned to the possibilities of a study group or loose organization developing among our CSA fraternity along the lines of a special interest group (SIG), quasi-club, e-mail or internet chatter group, e-newsletter, or similar body along the lines of the Fractional Currency Collector?s Board, Large Cent, or Colonial specialist groups. Several outstanding specialized CSA books have appeared in the last couple years, suggesting how diverse our ?commonality of interest? is. With (at least) two more new CSA books on the horizon, now seems be the right time to start up such a group. These new books are by J. Wayne Hilton, whose book ?Collecting Confederate Currency: A Hobby or An Investment?? incorporates the results of thousands of auctions from 1865 ? 2005? was revealed in the April issue of BNR. The other by Pierre Fricke, entitled ?Collecting Confederate Paper Money,? promises a thorough reworking of the Bradbeer-Criswell Type- Variety system and was described by its author in the recent special issue of SPMC?s PAPER MONEY. The Fricke book will be published by R.M. Smythe. Each will further energize this genre. The proposed CSA Currency SIG need not be formal to be effective. And such a group needn?t necessarily plunder already existing paper money groups either. What do readers of The E-Sylum think? Your ideas and input are of value. Information about this proposed group or SPMC is available from me via e-mail at freed3@airmail.net or by snail mail at P.O. Box 118162, Carrollton, TX 75011-8162. If you desire a reply please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope." [I, for one, am all for the idea. In fact, I'm surprised that such a group hasn't been formed already. When I read Fred's suggestion in PAPER MONEY I encouraged him to submit the idea to E-Sylum readers. -Editor] AIPN BOOK OF THE YEAR NOMINATIONS SOUGHT Allan Davisson writes: "Each year the IAPN (International Association of Professional Numismatists) presents its "book of the year" award to the work that receives the most votes from members attending the annual congress. This year the congress will be in San Diego in late May. I am responsible for organizing the presentation for this award this year. Both as an IAPN member and as the person responsible for organizing the program, I would be happy to consider nominating numismatic books that E-Sylum readers might want to recommend. The publishing date can be 2004 or later. In addition to the recognition and a medal, there is also a cash award that goes with the prize. Last year Dekesel's BIBLIOGRAPHY OF 17TH CENTURY NUMISMATIC BOOKS (3 volumes) won the prize. Submitters can send review copies of their books to me. The books in the contest are all donated, after the meetings, to a local numismatic society. I can be emailed at coins@cloudnet.com for more information. Our regular US mail address is simply Davissons/ Cold Spring, MN 56320. (This is not always enough for UPS or FEDEX though most of the drivers find us. If you want to use one of those services, contact me and I will provide a physical address.)" THOUGHTS ON JERRY REMICK Fred Reed writes: "I am very sorry to hear of Jerry's death. I only "knew' Jerry in the 1970s when I was at Coin World and I knew him best (I'll bet many of us did) by his letterhead which listed dozens and dozens of numismatic affiliations. At first this struck me as somewhat off-putting, especially when his stationery would be amended by hand as organizations would transpire or he'd join others. As time went on, however, and Jerry's many writings (especially book reviews and notices) would reach my desk I came to realize that he was a genuine decent individual with a great many interests and by golly some of them were my interests too. So this individualistic approach was an excellent way of reach out across the miles and make "friends." Jerry's great diversity of interests made him kind of a one-man wire service in the days before the Internet, and surely a Renaissance spirit in our hobby. He will be missed by his many correspondent "friends." GEORGE FISHER, CHINESE COIN EXPERT Bill Rosenblum writes (Saturday, March 19): George Fisher passed away Friday afternoon. George was one of the leading western authorities on early Chinese cash coins and other non machine made Chinese coins. He had been an instructor at the ANA Summer Seminar for many years and had spent an even longer time as a weekly volunteer at the ANA museum. He was also the author and publisher of Fisher's Deng a compilation of Ding Fubao's book on the same subject. He numbered, priced and arranged the book so that westerners could have a basic understanding of the system. More information will follow next week but I'm still in shock. I had seen George on Thursday and while not well and weak there was no indication that the end was so close. He had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer the previous week but had been given 1 to 3 months to live. He lived 8 to 9 days after that diagnosis." BACK ONLINE: PETER MOSIONDZ, JR. Peter Mosiondz, Jr.of Laurel Springs, NJ has been an on-again, off-again E-Sylum subscriber for a number of years. He's back with us, and shares his story with us: "I had been very ill off and on during the past several years. I did not know what the problem was. I had been diagnosed as having acid reflux disease and then a severe digestive disorder. Anyway, significant weight loss began to set in early last year and I decided to have a colonoscopy. On November 4th I was diagnosed with colon cancer. Five days later they removed a 4-1/4 pound cancerous tumor from my colon. The surgeon said that I was carrying cancer in my body for at least three, and possibly as long as five, years. The operation was successful. I am now (thank almighty God) cancer-free. I have recuperated and regained my strength. I have also put back on about 10 of the 40 pounds I lost. I apologize for causing you so much work in adding, then removing me, etc. But, I was very ill and felt very weak during the past few years. In any event, would you be kind enough to add me back on the E-Sylum mailing list. You may print this if you want. I would like all of my friends to know what had become of me. My Sincerest Thanks, Pete." [Welcome back, and here's to your health! -Editor] WORK IN PROGRESS: GOOD MONEY: The web address listed below holds links to sample chapters of a new book in progress about the private copper coinage of 18th-century England. The author is E-Sylun subscriber George Selgin, Professor of Economics at The Terry College of Business at University of Georgia. On the web site he writes: "Two recent works, Angela Redish's Bimetallism (Cambridge University Press 2000) and Thomas Sargent and Fran?ois Velde's The Big Problem of Small Change (Princeton University Press 2002) discuss Britain's 18th-century small- change problem and how it delayed the emergence of the gold standard. Both mention the private copper coinage, but wrongly assume that its success was due to the invention, by Matthew Boulton, of the steam-driven coining press rather than to the competitive nature of the private coinage regime. My Economic History Review paper, "Steam, Hot Air, and Small Change: Matthew Boulton and the Reform of Britain's Coinage." refutes this view and explains the real reasons behind the superiority of the private copper coinage." The book is to be titled "GOOD MONEY: Birmingham Button Makers, the Royal Mint, and the Beginnings of Modern Coinage 1775-1821." http://www.terry.uga.edu/~selgin/#private_coinage E-SYLUM ARCHIVE SEARCH A web site visitor recently asked if we had a search feature for the E-Sylum archive. We do - go to this page: http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_esylum.html You can also do this via Google. Go to http://www.google.com and put "site:coinbooks.org" in the search box before your query. For example: "site:coinbooks.org panamint ball" will locate three E-Sylum issues containing that obscure combination of words. JOHN ADAMS PEACE MEDAL FOLLOW-UP Anne E. Bentley, Curator of Art of the Massachusetts Historical Society writes: "Thanks to all who replied to my "John Adams Peace Medal by Alan Leonard" question. John Kraljevich sent me to our neighbors down the street, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, where Patrick McMahon confirmed that he has another JA by Leonard. He's also located a third in the Smithsonian, as well as the various publications in which this medal is cited and/or illustrated. We discovered a significant weight difference between our medals, so the MFA has been analyzing them for us. When we've completed our research, we'll get an article together for the fun of it. Thanks to all for being so generous with information -- I learn something new each Monday!" HODGES' AMERICAN BANK NOTE SAFE GUARD On another topic, Anne E. Bentley writes: "I have a question concerning the rarity (or not) of our copy of E.M. Hodges' American Bank Note Safe Guard, revised edition [n.p., n.d.] with J.L. French autograph, 1865, and an additional note on the inside cover as follows: "Returned with thanks to J.L. French after constant use in the Campaign of 1892 as a practical illustration of the disadvantages & inconveniences of State Banks-- [signed] Henry Cabot Lodge Nov. 19th 1892" Sen. Lodge's inscription and the accompanying newspaper articles relating to his use of the book up the ante for us as far as its historical value, but I'm wondering if the volume itself is considered a rarity in numismatic literature?" [1865 is the last edition of this title, according to George Kolbe's description of lot 590 in his June 1, 2004 sale of the John J. Ford numismatic library, Part I. Lots 589-594 in the sale are various editions of the Hodges work, under various titles, dated 1859, 1859, 1861, 1862, 1863, 1863. Kolbe states "All of the various editions appear to be rare, some extremely so. The 1865 edition was not in the Ford sale, nor was it in the landmark Armand Champa library (Bowers and Merena sales 1994-1995, cataloged by Charles Davis). -Editor] LABAN HEATH'S MAGNIFYING LENSES Heath's Counterfeit Detectors became much more popular than the Hodges book, and are much more plentiful today. Collectors of Heath Counterfeit Detectors will find an article in the Winter 2005 issue of the Fractional Currency Collectors Board (FCCB) of interest. Jerry Fochtman writes: "In our last Newsletter Benny Bolin challenged us to find an example of the Heath folding microscope that is advertised in the back of several editions of Heath's Counterfeit Detector. As it turns out, there are three club members that have examples of this magnifying glass! Two of the members were able to provide graphic pictures showing the folding magnifying lens and its box." The article pictures ads for "Heath's Improved Adjustable Compound Microscope," two boxes (for two difference size versions of the microscope, and two of the microscopes themselves. We first mentioned these in the June 8, 2003 (v6n3) issue of The E-Sylum, in a discussion of Item 105 in George Frederick Kolbe's 2003 Numismatic Bookseller fixed price list. -Editor] THE 1922 ARRAS HOARD Last week, Henry Bergos wrote: "I remember reading about some French workers finding Roman Medallions. They were told that they were counterfeiting them and would land in prison if they didn't stop. The workers MELTED them!!! They were gold and from the first 1/3 of the fourth century. As I remember it this happened in 1924 as they were building a subway in Paris." Bob Lyall writes: "I heard that story 30 or more years ago, possibly from one of the most respected and knowledgeable UK coin dealers. If more data is desired, then I could ask him (he is retired) or someone with a command of French could try asking the Bibliotech Nationale in Paris." Bob Leonard writes: "This is the Arras hoard, one of the most famous hoards of Roman coins. "Found in Arras in the suburb of Beaurains in France on the 21st of September in 1922, the hoard was not the largest in quantity to be found, only about 200 to 300 coins, but what made it famous were the 40 Roman gold medallions it had." The story of many huge medallions being melted is, unfortunately, true. There are many papers about the Arras hoard in the ANS library catalog." One of the references Bob mentioned is the ANS' Numismatic Notes and Monographs No. 28 by Agnes Baldwin Brett: "Four Medallions from the Arras hoard", 1926. A web search turned up other references to the hoard: "Struck in AD 310 at Trier, the nine solidi Arras Medallion depicts, on the reverse, the personification of London kneeling before the city gate, which is approached by a Roman warship. Constantius is portrayed mounted on horseback in the guise of a triumphant emperor, holding a spear in one hand and a globe in the other, with the inscription "restorer of eternal light." Part of a treasure hoard found in Arras, France in 1922, the medallion sold at auction for $341,000 in 1996. Carausius is depicted on the left, Allectus on the right. Both wear the laurel crown of an emperor." http://itsa.ucsf.edu/~snlrc/britannia/ruins/arras.html " the 4 aurei struck in AD 305, part of the Arras Hoard found in 1922 in France and still the only known specimen; it was listed in the auction catalog at 375,000 Swiss Francs and was bought by Gunnar Thesen of Oslo Mynthandel, on behalf of a European client, for 510,000 Swiss Francs, the highest price ever for an antique Roman coin put on the block in Switzerland." http://www.oslomynthandel.no/forum/artikler/record.html HASELTINE PHOTO SOUGHT Stephen Vogelsang writes: "I was referred to you by Mr. Bill Malkmus, whose name appeared in The E-Sylum website in connection with some images of Captain John Haseltine, the numismatist who did the Lovett restrikes circa 1874. I am currently working on an article about the Lovett/Haseltine Cent for an Australian magazine. He suggested the magazine article the photo was first published in, but thought I should also contact you regarding possible mention in The E-Sylum. I am working in collaboration with Mr. Harold Levi, who is writing a book on the Lovett Haseltine Cent, and indirectly Mr. Rulau of Krause publishing who has apparently also involvement with some research on the Confederate States of America and CSA pattern coinage. Obtaining a photo of the elusive and enigmatic Haseltine has proved challenging. I am a member of the Unrecognised States Numismatic Society, www.usns.info which specializes in the study of unofficial, unauthorized or regional numismatic production. Thank You. My email address is knossos134@earthlink.net." UNRECOGNISED STATES NUMISMATIC SOCIETY Until receiving the previous note from Stephen Vogelsang I was unaware of the existence of the Unrecognised States Numismatic Society. From the group's web site: "Specialising in the study of coins, medallic pieces, banknotes and related numismatic, pseudonumismatic and exonumismatic material issued by unrecognised states, alternative governments, rebel and secessionist groups, political associations, alternative currency promoters, chivalric orders, new country projects, micronations and related entities, commercial organisations, artists, writers, film makers, royal pretenders and exiles, fantasists and utopian visionaries." The annual membership fee is US $15. The web site is limited, but does list some articles of interest as well as listing "unrecognised entities that are known or reputed to have minted coins or printed banknotes," including the Republic of San Seriffe, the Nation of Celestial Space (Celestia), the Conch Republic, the Principalities of Freedonia and Hutt River Province. One that I would add to the list is Nicholas Veeder's Eutopia Dollar. Mark Van Winkle, writing about the 1952 ANA Sale for the Heritage Insider magazine, stated: "my favorite coin from the auction (although it only realized $29) is the 1886 Co-Metallic Dollar of Eutopia. With its twelve signs of the zodiac, this part silver, part gold pattern was designed and struck by Nicholas Veeder of Pittsburgh. Called "a version of the Goloid dream" by a contemporary, only four pieces were believed known of this unofficial pattern." Another coin to add (under the "Rebel governments" category) is the 1990 gold token issued by the Tamil Rebels in Sri Lanka (formal name: Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). See the following pages on Kavan Ratnatunga's web site: http://lakdiva.org/coins/ltte/ http://lakdiva.org/coins/ltte/jaffna.html If any E-Sylum readers would like to provide more information on the Eutopia dollars or any other such fantasy coins, I'll pass it on to the USNS. See their web site at: http:/www.usns.info. THE MINI 50TH ANNIVERSARY RED BOOKS In response to our earlier discussions, David Lange writes: "These little folders came both with and without dimes dated 1946 and 1996. You had to get to the booth early to get the ones with dimes, as these ran out after the first couple of days. Being already known as a collector of coin folders, I was able to score several examples with dimes and a few without. I have still have them, and they are listed in the catalog I maintain. Not mentioned in the E-Sylum were the 1990 mini-folders distributed at the Seattle ANA convention that year to mark the 50th anniversary of the familiar Whitman blue coin folder. These were slightly larger than the mini-folders of 1996 and displayed a reduced-size version of the then-current Whitman Lincoln Cent folder #9004. Each contained a 1940 and 1990 cent. As in 1996, the ones with cents ran out early, so they may be found without coins, too." 1851 LONDON EXHIBITOR'S MEDAL INFO SOUGHT Jim Barry writes: "I recently purchased an Exhibitor's Medal from the 1851 Great Exhibition in London. (Bust of Prince Albert facing left on the obverse, a globe decorated with a scroll inscribed EXHIBITOR within a wreath on the reverse). While I have done research on same, I would like to know more about this particular medal. The medal is edge lettered "United States of America #14". Is there any information on the person who was Exhibitor #14 and what his/her exhibit was? I realize that there were several types of exhibits with foreigners being listed separately but hope someone would have more information on this exhibitor. Thank you for your consideration." THE PERILS OF SHRINK-WRAP Nancy W. Green, Librarian of the American Numismatic Association writes: "Someone mentioned books in shrink-wrap this week. This is not the best way to store books. Most shrink-wrap has a few small holes in it now but if it doesn't and there is any moisture trapped inside the packaging you may get green and growing books. If you live in a humid climate, I would remove the shrink-wrap just in case, even if it does have holes. Fire and water are the two biggest dangers to books and it doesn't take much water." CHECK 21 TO HURT COLLECTORS We've discussed the new "Check 21" act and its affect on the U.S. check collecting and autograph hobbies before. This month I received my first "substitute check" with my bank statement. Here's an excerpt from a recent article about the act's effects: "It has been touted as the biggest change in banking law in years and is likely to have a significant impact on the way you conduct business. The Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, commonly referred to as "Check 21", became effective on Oct. 28. Check 21 is designed to enhance the efficiency of the payment system by reducing some of the legal barriers to check truncation. The bottom line of what this means for most consumers is that in time you will no longer be seeing any of your checks again after you send them off as payment. Rather, your bank will now truncate each of your checks to create a new electronic negotiable instrument called a substitute check, after which, your old checks will most likely be destroyed." To read the full article, see: http://www2.townonline.com/canton/opinion/view.bg?articleid=197119 Check collecting is a wonderful numismatic sidelight. It's bad enough that debit and credit cards have eaten into the number of checks being written each year, but now many of those checks will be destroyed long before they have a chance to become a collectible? 1802 HALF DIME HAMMER PRICE SOUGHT David F. Fanning writes: "Could anyone tell me what the 1802 half dime included in J.W. Scott's March 4-6, 1878 auction catalogue brought? It's lot 542a. My e-mail address is . Thanks!" THE BISON ON THE NICKEL AS A 'SAD FAILURE' Bob Van Ryzin writes: "Regarding what people had to say when Fraser's "Buffalo" nickel debuted in 1913, Edgar H. Adams wrote in the March 1913 issue of The Numismatist: "Through the courtesy of the Hon. George E. Roberts, Director of United States Mint, we are enabled to show in this number a reproduction of the new five-cent piece, which is now being coined at the mint. It was intended to issue this coin early in February, but it was not until Feb. 17 that regular coinage started, when one press produced them at the rate of 120 per minute. "The design is radically different from that of any five-cent piece that has ever been issued at the Mint, and is slightly concave on both sides, somewhat like the present ten and twenty-dollar pieces. Directly under the figure '3' of the date 1913 on the obverse is the letter 'F' for the designer of the piece, James Earl Fraser of New York City. It is said that Mr. Fraser took as a model an Indian of the Cheyenne tribe who recently visited New York City. The bison was modeled after a specimen in the New York Zoological Garden. "Mr Fraser, the designer, is reported as saying that the capital 'F' below the date has met with the approval of the Secretar of the Treasury, the Director of the Mint, and also the National Art Commission. "Already, it is said, the presence of this tiny letter has aroused a certain amount of criticism, similar to that which greeted the appearance of the letters 'V.D.B.' on the Lincoln cent, which resulted in their removal, doing injustice to Mr. Brenner, its designer, and violating all precedents. "It is to be regretted that the new coin does not show much more finished die work, which could easily have been accomplished. We are inclined to think that the rough finish of the design will encourage counterfeiters, whose handicraft need not now fear comparison which it has met in the past with the ordinarily delicate and finished mint issues. "The new piece certainly has radically changed the old-time tradition that Columbia is our best representation of 'liberty.' In view of the rather restricted character of both the Indian and the buffalo to-day, it is an open question whether either is a good symbol of 'liberty.' St. Gaudens, in an interview, once stated that his conception of a symbol of liberty was that of 'a leaping boy.' "We still prefer Miss Columbia as the proper representation of freedom, and regret that she does not appear on the new five-cent piece. We have no doubt that the original enlarged model of this design was of a handsome character, but that it would not allow for the great reduction to the size of a five-cent piece is quite apparent. From an artistic point of view no doubt the design is all that it should be, but there is another element to be considered in the making of a coin design, and that is the one of practicability. For instance, the date and the motto are in such obscure figures and letters that the slightest wear will obliterate them beyond understanding. "Altogether the new design emphasizes the absolute necessity of the appointment of a proper committee to pass upon new coin designs. Such a committee should be composed of sculptors, numismatists, and die engravers. One of this committee should be the Chief Engraver of the Mint. It will not be until the appointment of such a committee that we may expect to see a coin that will embody all the proper requisites." Also, William T. Hornaday, the first director of the New York Zoological Park, wrote in reply to a Jan. 7, 1918 letter from Martin S. Garretson, secretary of the Bison Society "...judging from the character of the buffalo on the nickel, I should say from its dejected appearance" that the animal was likely an inmate of a small menagerie, having lived all of its life in a small enclosure. "It's head droops as if it had lost all hope in the world, and even the sculptor was not able to raise. I regard the bison on the nickel as a sad failure." The New York Zoological Park was cited by Fraser as the place where he modeled Black Diamond. However, Hornaday, who was responsible for bringing a herd of bison to the park, where they grazed on a special 20-acre range, knew of no such animal in the zoo's holdings. The above quote from Hornaday appeared in William Bridges' Gathering of Animals: An Unconventional History of the New York Zoological Society, 1974. " COINS KNOWN BY THEIR REVERSE DESIGN Steve Woodland writes: "It was intriguing to read the article about the new Buffalo Nickel today, particularly since I had just finished Mort Reed's short book "Odd and Curious..." (Sanford J. Durst Numismatic Publications, New York, 1979). On page 23 of the book Reed states "The 'Buffalo' A Non-Existant Coin: The Indianhead Nickel is the only coin not identified by its legal name but rather by its reverse design." As a Canadian, I must point out that in 1987 the Canadian 'Loonie' Dollar joined the Buffalo Nickel as a coin named exclusively for its reverse design, Robert J. Carmichael's 'Common Loon.' (Since his book was written in 1979, Mr. Reed is not guilty of a factual error!) Are E-Sylum readers aware of any other coins out there known by the design on their reverse?" COLORADO QUARTER DESIGNS Steve Dippolito writes: "I saw the five finalist designs the day they came out. As a nearly life-long Coloradoan I can say that the critics need to jump into the nearest lake: None of them are as atrocious as the Pennsylvania, Michigan, or Texas designs--and I picked those three at semi-random; I could name many other states. An informal poll of my co-workers and some friends (only a couple of whom are seriously into numismatics) shows that the 10th mountain division skier is least popular (however, those who like it, _really_ like it), while the columbine/centennial state one (the backdrop for which is the very commonly photographed Maroon Bells mountains near Aspen, BTW) is most popular. Oddly enough, the Pikes Peak design, which ought to be the local favorite (I am in Colorado Springs) is not terribly popular. The artistic criticisms that seemed legitimate to me were that Mesa Verde might not show very well on a coin, and that the "Colorful Colorado" mountainscape would leave a gigantic blank area in the middle of the coin. That one happens to be my second least favorite if only because that mountainscape looks kind of "blah" to me. But none of the designs is, in my not so humble opinion, actually _bad_. I am not terribly surprised that there was difficulty getting an Eastern US artist to render the mountains properly. The Appalacian mountains are much, much older than the Rockies and consequently have been worn down to the point where (to us Westerners) they look like very large rounded hills. (That "very large" is the saving grace; I do consider the Great Smokies to be mountains even though the tallest of them barely comes up to the bottom of my well.) People I know from the eastern US who come here to see the Rockies end up with radically altered ideas of what a "mountain" is. (As I am sure I would, if I ever saw the Himalayas, Tien Shan, or Andes.)" Steve Woodland writes: "I chuckled when I read of the challenges facing the commission to select the final design for Colorado's 2006 Statehood Quarter. Perhaps they should adopt a new Canadian practice: asking the people to vote for their preferred design using the Internet. The Royal Canadian Mint recently invited the public to indicate their preference for the new commemmorative 25-cent pieces to be issued this summer, which celebrate the centennials of the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Via the RCM's website (www.mint.ca), people could 'vote' for one of four designs for each 25-cent piece. When voting ended on February 17th, over 45,000 total votes had been received for the two coins." NUMISMATIC LIBRARY FILING SYSTEM. Dick Johnson writes: "Joe Boling has piles on his two library tables. I?ll bet these are unshelved books, pamphlets, periodicals, auction catalogs, correspondence, clippings and manuscripts. Does that also describe you as well, kind E-Slylum reader (okay, I?ll say it, E-Syluminary -- does anyone else like my newly coined word!)? It sure was my situation until I moved and had to build a library room all to itself. I am trying something new. I hope it works. Ask me in a couple months. Years ago I bought the book "File ... Don?t Pile! A Proven Filing System for Personal and Professional Use" by Pat Dorff. Guess what I did with it? I put it on top of one of my piles! Yep. I was a piler. When the piles got too high, or, I had to clean off the work tables for a visitor, say, I put the piles in a storage box and marked it ?TBS? ? To Be Sorted. I must have moved a dozen TBSs. Author Pat is a is a professional librarian. She had some excellent suggestions. I read the first couple of chapters, looked at every one of the cartoons and skimmed the rest of the book before I put it back on one of my piles, intending to do something, sometime in the future. My real inspiration came from the new ANS Library in New York City. Librarian Frank Campbell ? wisely! ? took all the auction cats and pamphlets out of the vertical files (that?s "library speak" for filing cabinets) and put them on the shelves. I liked that! I was determined to do the same with my own stuff. Put as much as possible on shelves. But how to organize it? Books ? by subjects, then by size (U.S coins together, world coins together, mints, medals, tokens, technology, one or more shelf for each). Periodicals in chronological order, of course. But what about everything else? We drink a lot of orange juice at our house. The half gallon cartons come six to a box. I found these orange juice boxes are the ideal size, 8 ? x 12 inches. Most everything fits these open-top boxes -- file folders, 3-ring notebooks, loose papers, books, pamphlets, photographs, reports, post cards, even legal size pages (folded). I even have medals in some. We get these boxes from one of the discount grocery stores (ALDI). They let you take the boxes to pack your purchases. I grab a couple every trip. I put labels on the end of the boxes and these fit nicely on book shelves. I pick subjects for these labels which ideally would contain about six inches of closely related material (leaving room for expansion). When I empty a TBS box I deal the papers, clippings and photocopies into these labeled boxes. Later I can organize the stuff within each box with file folders. I work on several projects at once. I have a box for each project, and the most important project boxes are in a bookcase next to my desk. Fifteen boxes fill a bookcase. No filing cabinet in my office. I now have shelves and orange boxes. The library with books and more boxes on shelves are in the next room. I know my boxes are not archive caliber. Some of the stuff doesn?t deserve it. But I sure could transfer over really important valuable material into acid-free archive boxes in the future. As soon as read the last chapters of "Don?t Pile!" KORVER SEEKS STEWART MINT RELICS Mark Borckardt writes: "Bob Korver of the Heritage staff recently asked about the mementoes made for Frank Stewart from timbers of the first Mint building. Chairs, a bench, gavels, and paperweights were described by Stewart in his History of the First Mint. Bob wants to know if any of these items still exist today, and where they are located. He can be contacted at Korver@heritagegalleries.com." Bob wrote about his quest in a recent Heritage electonic newsletter: I must also confess that I am often distracted by one of eBay's great marketing come-ons, "Other Postings by This Seller." Following one such trail of breadcrumbs, I 'discovered' a posting for Our New Home and Old Times, a book of which I was previously unaware, but promised to include much early history of the electrical products distribution business as well as the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia. Only modestly intrigued, I put in a 'throw-away' bid without doing any research, and won; when the very thin package arrived, I opened it with about the same sense of dread if I had bid on a raw, fuzzy-photoed $30 coin. Long story short, the eBay description of the book was precisely correct. The book was published in 1913 by the Frank H. Stewart Electric Company, purveyors of industrial wiring products: insulators, wire, fuses, conduit, etc. Stewart's business was successful enough to construct a new "fire-proof building of the best type," of "steel, concrete and brick." Unfortunately for future generations of numismatists, the location they chose for this magnificent new cathedral of commerce was 37 North Seventh Street, and the building razed in 1911 to accommodate Stewart's six-story behemoth was the original U.S. Mint. More than a dozen full-page photographs of the company's "over one thousand" new shelving bins and storage rooms are proudly included, the latest in turn-of-the-century industrial chic. But enough of that. One other photograph definitely caught my eye: aware of the historic significance of the original Mint Building, the Stewart Company constructed a bench and two chairs in 1911 from the "oak timbers of the coinage building of the old mint." "The bench and chairs... were made of oak joists from the Coinage building. These timbers were so hard that the cabinetmaker claimed extra compensation for his work. One hundred and twenty years of seasoning gave the wood an obstinacy which even a novice would suspect if he were to feel the weight of the furniture. The bench has a suitably engraved brass plate screwed on the top piece. About two dozen gavels and the same quantity of paper weights made of the same wood as the bench and chairs were made for us by Mr. James Barton, of Camden, N.J. These rare mementos were nearly all distributed at the cornerstone laying to those participating and a few special guests." Anyone know if any of these still exist?" "The unlisted author of this book refers to a "forthcoming history of the First United States Mint" referring almost certainly to Frank H. Stewart's History of the First United States Mint, published in 1924 (and typically encountered in the Quarterman reprint. Mention is also made of the "ye Olde Mint" booklet, which seems to have been previously printed by the Stewart Electric Company. I was not particularly familiar with the Stewart book, being an 'Evans' fan myself, so I visited Mark Van Winkle, Heritage's chief cataloger, in his book lined office (some guys have all the luck). I showed him the photo of the bench and chairs, and we both wondered if they might still exist. Neither of us had heard of existing gavels or paperweights either. He then pulled down his copy of Stewart, and we discovered the same photos were published therein! I had reinvented a numismatic wheel, so to speak. Personally, I am blaming it on age; Mark can use whatever excuse he wants. All in all, a fair number of numismatic challenges out of a $30 purchase." The complete text of the article, with illustrations, is on this web page: http://www.heritagecoins.com/connections/default.php?date=03-11-2005 [Bob reports that since publishing his article he has located two of the gavels and one gavel 'target'. -Editor] WHERE'S GEORGE PROFILED IN FORBES The March 28, 2005 issue of Forbes magazine has an article profiling the WheresGeorge.com web site. "Born during the bubble, Wheresgeorge.com has grown into a cult for those who follow the money. Dwayne (Fishbone) Richardson is a "Georger," an avid devotee of Wheresgeorge.com, a quirky little Web site that tracks the travels of dirty, cold and otherwise anonymous cash. He stamps a dollar bill with a message urging recipients to visit the site to enter the bill's serial number and whereabouts, then spend it and tap into the Web site to learn where it pops up next. And next and next and next. "I live vicariously through my bills. It's like a message in a bottle," says Richardson, who admits to dabbling in this "weird hobby"since 2001. All told, 2.3 million people have logged 59 million distinct bills for a total nearing $335 million. (That includes 48 million singles--and 33,686 old-style $100s.) But 40,000 avid Georgers keep the Web site alive, spending hours chronicling their paper's progress and coloring in maps that detail every zip code "hit." They feed their addiction by traveling to prearranged gatherings (a good time was had by all at the New York fest over the President's Day weekend), where they trade 2-inch-thick stacks of dollar bills to get Wheresgeorge dollars circulating." "It still boggles my mind," says tech consultant Hank Eskin, 40, the dollar-obsession site's creator. He started Wheresgeorge as a hobby in late 1998 and dreamed of cashing in during the Internet bubble. Didn't happen, but today Eskin is seen as a "god" by his dollar followers. "It's sort of an ego trip," he admits." To read the full article, see: http://forbes.com/business/forbes/2005/0328/064.html WHAT TO DO WITH VIRGIN BOOKS Steve Woodland writes: "I too, have faced the dilemma of what to do about a book with unsplit pages. I had managed to acquire an original copy of P.N. Bretton's 1894 "Histoire Illustree des Monnaies et Jetons du Canada/Illustrated History of Coins and Tokens Relating to Canada," wherein the octavo pages were unsplit. I thought "Well, books are to be read, and I want to read this one!" So I carefully took a very sharp knife and slit the edges of all the pages. I suspect there is a bibliophile (or several) who is cringing at my barbaric actions, especially since there are re-prints of the book available. However, I can now read my copy, which is why I purchased it in the first place." WHAT TO CALL E-SYLUM READERS Oops! A slip of the mouse made me drop a letter from Tom DeLorey's suggestion for what to call E-Sylum readers. He wrote: "Use the KISS Principle: E-Nuts." Perhaps my follow-on comment make more sense now. Sorry! OF NUMISMATIC INTERST IN READER'S DIGEST Dick Johnson writes: "The April 2005 Reader's Digest has two articles of interest. The first (page 27) has a full page illustrated with elongated cents, a paragraph of text with quotes by Bob Fritsch, pres of Elongated Collectors. The second (pp 120-125) is a full-fledged article "The Great Coin Heist" on the theft of the Willis DuPont coin collection in 1967, subtitled "How a bunch of small-time thieves stumbled into the haul of their lives." Some of the major items, like the Brasher Doubloon, 1804 dollar and the 1866 No Motto dollar, have been recovered but none of the Mikailovich gold medals. Numismatist Alan Luedeking was quoted in a conversation with Mr. DuPont. I remember when this theft occurred and covered it in Coin World. My contact with the DuPonts was through a colorful Cincinnati coin dealer, Sol Kaplan. Sol was the one who sold the Mikhailovich material to the DuPonts and perhaps a lot of the other numismatic material as well. Sol had learned a lesson from Hans M.F. Schulman -- befriend wealthy collectors and you can sell them high-price material. Hans' biggest customer was King Farouk, Sol's was Willis DuPont. Read the article for the inside story on the coin theft and return of most -- but not all -- of the coins taken and how many years it took to recover them." [Readers may recall that in the v7n15 issue of The E-Sylum (April 11, 2004), Alan Luedeking shared with us the story of his chance meeting with Willis H. DuPont. Not having the Reader's Digest handy, I wrote to Alan to confirm the connection. His response follows. -Editor] Alan Luedeking writes: "As a result of my E-Sylum piece, months later the author of the Reader's Digest article contacted me out of the blue to interview me for this article on the basis of my piece for the E-Sylum; I was rather uncomfortable doing it, assuring him that there were far better numismatists better informed on the DuPont collection than I was, but he insisted on proceeding; I felt like I was walking a tight wire between confirming what I had written yet trying to protect Mr. DuPont's privacy. I suggested to him that he contact attorney Harold Gray and the ANA, and he confirmed that he had already spoken extensively with Mr. Gray. The editor at Reader's Digest later called me to confirm details, and I had to correct quite a few; they promised me an advance copy of the article for proofing, but never sent it. They also promised me a copy of the published magazine, but that also has not come (I'm not a subscriber.) They told me the article was originally slated for publication in December 2004 or January 2005, but I was later told it had been pushed back. Now that I've finally seen it, I can confirm that the gist of the article is accurate, but most definitely not my "quotes". The author has greatly embellished my conversation with Mr. and Mrs. DuPont, right down to my dry throat. After initiating my conversation with them by congratulating them on their recovery of the 1866 dollar, and importuning Mr. DuPont with a few more questions, it became apparent to me that this was the last theme he wished to dwell on. In essence, our memorable (only for me, of course) encounter is exactly as I recounted it in my earlier E-Sylum piece. Nevertheless, while the Reader's Digest article presents absolutely nothing new in the way of numismatic information, or concerning the heist, it is worthwhile if only to keep publicity for the DuPont coins alive, as this can only help in recovering those still missing." DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS On March 13, 2005, the St. Petersburg Times published an article about a local Vietnam veteran who is being given a medal he earned 34 years ago, but never received due to an Army snafu. The award was the Distinguished Service Cross. "The Distinguished Service Cross, also known as the DSC, is our Nation's second highest award for valor, second only to the Medal of Honor. The Distinguished Service Cross was created during the First World War and was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson on January 2, 1918." http://www.1stcavmedic.com/distinguished_service_cross.htm We've discussed the Medal of Honor before, but not the DSC. Here is an excerpt from the St. Petersburg Times article, followed by some additional web references about the medal. "Although he was a member of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association, Lawrence didn't go to their reunions or look up old brothers-in-arms. The recipient of other service medals from the Army and Coast Guard, Lawrence, now 55, admits he didn't even bother to display them. "When I came back, it was not a good time to be saying I was a Vietnam vet," said Lawrence, who now flies planes for FedEx. "And now, I don't really offer it up." But then Almquist, who had been looking up helicopter pilots who served in Vietnam, got in touch with him in late 2003. They corresponded for several months, and over that July dinner, Almquist told Lawrence he was going to do everything in his power to get him that medal. Lawrence was touched by the effort, but didn't expect anything to come of it. Getting someone a medal years after the fact requires mountains of paperwork, but the men would not be put off. It didn't take years. And the paperwork they were prepared to fill out was never filed. Almquist's inquiries uncovered the fact that Lawrence had been awarded a different rare medal in 1972: the Distinguished Service Cross. The cross is the country's second-highest military award, just below the Medal of Honor. But the Army had lost it. Only a researcher at the National Archives discovered the oversight. Lawrence learned only two weeks ago that he received the medal. He shares the distinction with just more than 13,000 other veterans who have received the Distinguished Service Cross since it was established in 1917. To read the full article, see: http://www.sptimes.com/2005/03/13/Northpinellas/Another_chance_for_a_.shtml For more information on the medal, see: http://www.1stcavmedic.com/distinguished_service_cross.htm https://www.perscom.army.mil/tagd/tioh/Awards/DSC1.html Quick Quiz: What American celebrity received the DSC?" RARE CRUSADER COIN FOUND IN ISRAEL According to a news article, "A rare Crusader coin dating from the mid-13th century has been excavated by archaeologists digging up a flea market in the suburbs of Tel Aviv, the Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA) revealed. The silver half drachma has been dated to between 1251 and 1257 and is imprinted with a cross, fleur-de-lis and an Arabic inscription of the Christian Trinity -- the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, IAA said Wednesday. "It is an extremely rare find and it is the first to be discovered in excavation," Israel Museum numismatics expert Robert Kool told AFP. "Until now, we only had two of these coins out of the 150,000 in the museum," he added. In 1250, a visiting papal legate was furious to discover that Franks in the Latin East minted coins inscribed with the Prophet Mohammed and requested the pope to intervene personally. Pope Innocent IV banned the practice and threatened to excommunicate all offenders. To circumvent the papal prohibition, minters merely added Christian legends and symbols." To read the original article, see: http://middle-east.news.designerz.com/rare-crusader-coin-found-in-israel-flea-market-dig.html?d20050316 DOLLAR BILLS ON THE WALLS: CONFIRMED Recently, I wrote about the Mar Vista restaurant in Longboat Village, Florida, where I read that dollar bills are attached the the walls as part of the decor. I asked if any of our readers could confirm this. Robert Zavos writes: "This restaurant is less than 10 miles from my home in Sarasota, although Sarasota Bay is in between so it about a 35 minute drive. I had driven past but never eaten there and had no idea of the numismatic theme on the walls. It is just as reported. There are two walls in the inside dining area with dollar bills. The restaurant is quite busy and has marvelous vistas. This is located right on the western side of Sarasota Bay on a barrier Island called Long Boat Key. Due to incredible increases in waterfront property prices over the last 5 years or so there are very few single family homes in the area that sell for under $1 million and most are a lot higher than that so it would be a good place to meet a millionaire." Robert attached two photos in his email, clearly showing scads of one dollar notes covering two walls of the restaurant. Thanks! JULIUS CAESAR SURVIVES IDES OF MARCH Julius Caesar walks among us, according to a March 16th Reuters article: "Sharing a name with the most famous leader of ancient Rome is not always easy when you're a modern politician -- especially on the Ides of March, when the first Julius Caesar was assassinated. Allowing for the alternative spelling of his forename, his name exactly matches that of his Roman predecessor Gaius Julius Caesar, who was stabbed to death by senators in Rome in 44 BC, on March 15 -- the Ides of March. Caesar, 54, said on Tuesday that while his name has made it easy for him to stand out in politics, it does have its drawbacks -- especially when people refuse to believe it's genuine. One member of his party could only respond with sarcasm when the politician first tried to introduce himself. "I introduced myself as Cajus Julius Caesar, and he replied 'and I'm Napoleon Bonaparte' because he didn't believe me," said Caesar, who hails from western Germany. http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?storyID=7920084 FEATURED WEB SITE This week's featured web site is the Orders and Medals Society. http://www.omsa.org 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 Mar 27 20:25:27 2005 From: esylum at binhost.com (esylum@binhost.com) Date: Sun Mar 27 20:26:14 2005 Subject: The E-Sylum v8#13, March 27, 2005 Message-ID: <42475D07.5070703@coinlibrary.com> Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 8, Number 13, March 27, 2005: an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. Copyright (c) 2004, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. SUBSCRIBER UPDATE Among our recent subscribers is Jorge A. Proctor, a researcher in the field of Spanish Colonial Numismatics, referred to us by Alan Luedeking, and Kevin Foley, courtesy of John and Nancy Wilson, and Tom Green. Welcome aboard! We now have 739 subscribers. ROBERT L. HENDERSHOTT, 1898-2005 Fred Lake writes: "Bob Hendershott passed away on Tuesday, March 22 peacefully in his sleep. Bob was 106 years old at the time and had lived a very full life in numismatics, including being one of the founders of the Florida United Numismatists, Inc. in 1955. Those of us who knew Bob felt fortunate in being able to spend time with him and learn from his many experiences in our hobby. He will be missed by those whose lives he touched." [A capsule history of the founding of FUN, along with a 1950s photo of Bob, is on the FUN web site at this address: http://www.funtopics.com/history_2.html. I attended Bob's 100th birthday celebration at the 1998 American Numismatic Association convention in Portland. Two years earlier at the ANA convention in Denver, I had the pleasure of spending an afternoon touring Colorado Springs with a busload of convention attendees, including the 98-year-old Bob Hendershott. He certainly didn't show his age as he walked and walked with us around the city and into shops and museums, not even slowing down much to climb a tall flight of stairs. He could walk circles around people half his age. Bob would have been 107 on August 7th. God bless, Bob - we'll miss you. -Editor] BOB HENDERSHOTT AND THE 1904 WORLD'S FAIR Bob Hendershott authored a book on one of his favorite collecting specialties: 1904 St. Louis World's Fair Mementos and Memorabilia. The following is from the web site of a dealer who sold the book: "Bob has an advantage over many other 1904 collectors... He was there! Born in St. Louis in 1898, Bob was 6 in 1904 and has fond memories of the wonders of the Fair. Bob has accumulated a great deal of experience and a vast collection in his many years of collecting. He has used his special insights to develop a unique numbering system (67 specific categories) which is accepted as the standard for the hobby. Beginning this project when he was 93, Bob took less than 3 years to photograph, describe and organize thousands of souvenirs. Bob's life's work, Mementos and Memorabilia, really has it all. It describes 105 beautiful pieces of china and bisque, 75 different plates and 59 fascinating postcards. Numismatists will enjoy several examples of badges, elongated coins, encased cents, medals and tokens. Even in 1904, advertisers knew the value of merchandising, and companies handed out souvenirs of every shape and design." For more information, and a more recent photo of Bob, see: http://www.crawforddirect.com/1904.html HERB SCHINGOETHE John and Nancy Wilson, of Ocala, FL write: "On March 18, 2005 Herb Schingoethe, a famous Illinois collector passed away at the age of 86. His wife Martha passed away in January, 2004. The Schingoethes were the most famous collectors of every states obsolete notes. Their collection consisted of over 30,000 obsolete bank notes. Besides obsolete notes, they were avid collectors of college currency, depression scrip from 1933 and panic notes that were issued in the 1890s and early 1900s. In 1993, "College Currency - Money for Business Training" was released. The majority of notes in this wonderful reference are in the Schingoethe collection. Edited by Neil Shafer, Herb and Martha Schingoethe also have their name on this numismatic reference. Herb and Martha were two wonderful collectors who we have had the pleasure of knowing for close to 20 years. Very few collectors past or present pursued obsolete notes, depression scrip or panic notes with the passion of Herb and Martha (H & M). We have many catalogs with the H & M initials besides lots that they added to their collections over the years. We attended many sales over the years that H & M were also in attendance at. When the time came for the lot to sell that we needed, we hoped H & M already had an example in their collection. They never went after duplicates even if the price was very cheap and they paid a lot more for their item. If they didn't have it, we always came out on the losing end. Their passion, love, enthusiasm and determination to add collections or single numismatic items (mentioned above) to their collections will be deeply missed in our great hobby. Sometime down the road a reference of Illinois obsolete notes will be published in their memory by the New York R. M. Smythe & Co. firm. Part Two of the R. M. Smythe sale of the Herb and Martha Schingoethe Obsolete Currency Collection sold on March 23, 2005. We were fortunate to get a few notes out of the Schingoethe collection from Part One held last Fall in Strasburg, PA. We will miss their smiling faces that lit up a room when they walked in. They were well loved by the many hundreds of dealers and collectors who knew them. Everyone considered Herb and Martha part of their family. We pass on our prayers and condolences to their family. These two icons in our hobby are now gone but their memory will be with us forever. Rest in peace Herb and Martha, and you are now together for eternity." [A web search found some tidbits of information about the Schingoethes and their other collecting interests: "After George "died of a heart attack ? too young," as Martha put it, she made the acquaintance, through her brother John, of a local farm manager, square dance caller and collector. Herb Schingoethe had also lost his first spouse. When Herb and Martha were married in 1975, they embarked together on a new phase of their lives, pooling their interests in travel and collecting to form an adventure that continued right up to the time of Martha's final illness in 2003-2004. In his years as a ranch manager in Colorado, Herb already had begun serious collecting of Native American art and artifacts, especially from the Southwest culture area. Martha caught the collecting bug in a very big way, developing a particular passion for silver and turquoise jewelry, fine Southwest pottery, Native American rugs, and contemporary Native American sculpture. All of these collecting interests are represented in the Schingoethe collection." To read the full article, see: http://www.aurora.edu/news/archives/2004/041011schingoethe.htm To read the R. M. Smythe press release on the sale of the Schingoethe obsolete paper money collection, see: http://www.smytheonline.com/news/press_releases/20040609%20-%20Obso%20Currency%20PR604.pdf CZESLAW SLANIA, MASTER ENGRAVER Arthur Shippee forwarded the following, from The New York Times: "Czeslaw Slania, a master engraver who applied his art most extensively to the tiniest works, postage stamps, died in Stockholm on March 17, the Swedish post office announced Monday. He was 83. Mr. Slania emigrated from Poland to Sweden more than four decades ago and became the country's royal court engraver. In a career that stretched from forging documents for the underground in German-occupied Poland in World War II to engraving portraits of monarchs and movie stars, Mr. Slania produced more than 1,000 stamps for 32 countries or postal jurisdictions, including the United States, Britain, France, Germany and China; his American commissions included two 1993 stamps that commemorated Grace Kelly and Dean Acheson. He also produced banknotes for 10 countries." "With modern printing methods, engraving is a fading art, and few countries still engrave stamps or currency. An engraver uses a tool called a graver or burin to cut a mirror image in a steel plate, with deep cuts for heavy inking and shallow cuts for shading. The plate, its cuts full of ink, is pressed onto the paper being printed, leaving a slightly raised image that can be felt with a fingertip. For stamps, the artist's work area is about one inch square. Czeslaw Slania (pronounced CHESS-wav SWAH-nya) was born in southern Poland on Oct. 22, 1921, to a poor mining family. He showed artistic skills as a teenager, drawing fake banknotes to sell at craft fairs. The invasion by Nazi Germany in 1939 forced him to quit his high school studies in Krakow, and he joined the underground, for which he helped forge documents." To read the complete article, see: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/24/arts/design/24slania.html [Did Slania sign his teenage forgeries? Are any of his counterfeits for the underground known today? -Editor] NEW CANADIAN MUNICIPAL TRADE TOKEN BOOK The following is reprinted from the C.N.A. E-Bulletin, an electronic publication of the Canadian Numismatic Association (Issue Number 7, March 20, 2005): "The collecting of Canadian municipal trade tokens is a large field. If you were to take a survey at your local coin club in Canada, we venture to guess that every collector has at least some in their collection, with at least half possessing a dozen or more. This is possible because hundreds of municipalities and regions have issued them over the years, most in sufficiently large quantity to make them readily available and very affordable. Thanks to the late Jerry Remick, who wrote hundreds of articles on the topic, to publications such as Canadian Coin News that published them, and to Serge Pelletier and Ray Desjardins that have published catalogues over the years, its popularity remains high. Eligi Consultants has just published the 2nd edition (2005) of "A Compendium of Canadian Municipal Trade Tokens" that includes denomination, year, description of obverse and reverse, metal, quantity struck and value of all known Canadian municipal trade dollars. The catalogue is a 124 page booklet size 5-1/2" x 8-1/2", spiral bound, with plastic cover. The catalogue is available for $12.95 plus $2.50 shipping and handling anywhere in Canada or U.S. If shipment is made to Ontario, add 15% PST & GST. Anywhere else in Canada just add 7% GST. Their Website is www.eligi.ca/bonavita. " THE FABLED 1792 HALF DISMES Joel Orosz and Carl Herkowitz' work on the origins of the 1792 Half Dismes has been published by the American Numismatic Society, in the American Journal of Numismatics Second Series 15 (2003), pp 111-156. "George Washington and America's "Small Beginning" in Coinage: The Fabled 1792 Half Dismes" was previewed by Joel as a Numismatic Theatre presentation at the American Numismatic Association convention on Pittsburgh last August. The article opens: "Historical truth is fragile; historical error is all but immortal." Researchers, bibliophiles, and just plain numismatists everywhere (i.e. E-Sylum readers) will enjoy this delightful account of numismatic detective work which includes an interesting description of the numismatic career of John A. McAllister, Jr. of Philadelphia, whose interest in numismatics began in 1826. COINS KNOWN BY THEIR REVERSE DESIGN Last week, Steve Woodland asked about coins known by their reverse design. Several readers chimed in with their thoughts. First was James Higby, who emailed his suggestions shortly after the issue was published Sunday night. He listed the following U.S. coin types: 1. Chain cent 2. Wreath cent 3. Lincoln Memorial cent 4. Two-cent piece 5. Three-cent piece (both types) 6. V nickel 7. Three dollar gold piece I'm not sure if I would agree that coins known by their denomination should count, even though the denomination is on the reverse. But others included these as well. Denis Loring added the $4 "Stella," but this unusual word appears on the reverse, so I'll agree there. David Gladfelter writes: "How about the Eagle?". I would agree with this one as well, but don't think the quarter-eagle, half-eagle or double-eagle denominations count, since they all picture exactly one eagle. The $50 "Half Union" patterns wouldn't count either, since the word "Union" does not appear on the coins. Denis and Tom DeLorey endorsed the 1793 Chain Cent and 1793 Wreath Cent, and Tom added the "Wheatback" Cent. Ken Berger adds: "Another coin known by its reverse is the Peace Dollar, since the word Peace appears on the reverse." Mark Borckardt adds: "how about every State Quarter issued to date?" Michael Schmidt cited several of these, and added the Trade dollar, noting that "the design isn't mentioned but the denomination is unique and found on the reverse." Paul Schultz adds: "This may be more common in ancient coins, where the more interesting design can be on the reverse, while the obverse often has some random god, goddess, or emperor. Athenian Owls (tetradrachms with Athena on the obverse) and Corinthian pegasi (staters with Athena on the obverse) come quickly to mind, but a large portion of the ancient coinage is more distinctive on the reverse than the obverse. Of course, this assumes that the obverse is the "heads" side of the coin, while the reverse would be the other design side. Those who would define obverse and reverse more technically as coming from the hammer and anvil dies could form a different conclusion. A final note--V nickels preceded Buffalo nickels, and may have set a precedent for calling nickels by their reverse design. [Until the Jefferson nickel came along -Editor] With liberty on such a large portion of U.S. coinage, it really makes more sense to refer to a distinctive reverse design feature, rather than some variation of liberty for the obverse." HODGES' AMERICAN BANK NOTE SAFE GUARD Regarding Anne E. Bentley question about Hodges' American Bank Note Safe Guard books, George Kolbe writes: "I believe that Roy Pennell's 1977 reprint is of the 1865 edition of Hodges (is the original now in the American Numismatic Association library?). The Massachusetts Historical Society copy appears to be undated, i.e., "n.p. n.d." usually translates as "no place or date of publication noted." The inscription does not necessarily indicate the date of publication. Dillistin, however, records copies of the 1865 edition at the Baker Library and MHS though it might be interesting for Ms. Bentley to compare the MHS copy with the easily obtainable reprint, as Dillistin also indicates that neither is a "revised edition." I do not recall having handled an 1865 edition over the years but would need to wear a bib if examining the truly remarkable MHS example." [A bib! Is that why they call use drooling numismatic book fiends BIB-liomaniacs? -Editor] Eric Newman writes: "The inquiry of Anne Bentley as to Hodge's Bank Note Reporter was answered by you to a great extent but so far as I know no detailed bibliographical list has ever been published of these volumes, and should be. This style of bank note description began with Dye's Delineator in 1855 and was apparently acquired by Hodge for his 1856 edition. There were editions thereafter which were quarterly for a time and then only annually. If your readers would list their editions, date and number of pages I will try to assemble the data. Our collection has 10 issues. The Civil War period issues gradually include Federal issues and fractional currency and eliminate bank note issues of the Confederacy. The numismatic book dealers or others could check prior auctions. It is a most interesting series because it has constant new issues, constant bank failures and defaults. constant new counterfeit and alteration problems, etc. [This is exactly the sort of project E-Sylum readers should be able to take on. If any of our readers can supply information on these books, I'll put them in touch with Eric. -Editor] MORE ON THE UFO TOKEN Philip Mernick writes: "Did anyone ever give a comment on the "UFO"/"Flying Saucer" token from a few weeks back? I don't recall seeing anything and have some information." [The "UFO" item was published in the January 30, 2005 issue (v8n5). The item in question is "a mysterious UFO-like design on a 17th century French copper coin" described by Ken Bressett. The Men in Black swooped in on their helicopters and dragged away the first two E-Sylum readers who tried to respond. But using our connections in the numismatic underworld, I've secured permission to publish Philip's information, which he encrypted and emailed from an undisclosed location, just in case. (It was NOT London. Really. It wasn't) -Editor] He writes: "The item itself was correctly described as a jetton and is listed as F12528 in Collection Feuardent, Jetons et Mereau Depuis Louis IX jusqu?a la fin du Consulat de Bonaparte by F. Feuardent, published by Rollin et Feuardent, Paris, 1913. It would appear to be a version of F12527 which is coupled with a portrait of Louis XIV and is dated 1656. Feuardent describes the ?UFO? as ?un bouclier celeste? a celestial shield. The depiction of a shield on the jeton is similar to one illustrated in Juan de Borja, Empresas morales, first published Prague 1581 (illustration from Brussels 1680 edition). It is there described as representing a timely occurrence. It could refer to an event in the war against Spain or possibly to the return of Mazarin in 1653. The other side symbolises the revival of France (illustrated by a lily plant being refreshed by rain from the sky). Information originally supplied by Robert Thompson." Ken Bressett writes: "Thanks for sending this information to me. It is numismatically correct and informative. I have been having lots of fun with this, and with prodding people to take a more careful look at the designs on their coins. The article was never intended to convince people that the object was a flying saucer, but simply to stimulate public curiosity about old coins. And secondarily to try and locate other examples of this scarce jetton. Comments from people around the world (really) have suggested that the "unidentified object" is variously: an umbrella, a sundial, shield, wheel of life, jellyfish, flower, a crown, sand dollar, or an umbrella. The most frequent responses opted for a sundial, or shield. As you might expect, the UFO guys really got a kick out of this unusual piece, and read all sorts of things into it." [Ken had been having trouble with his E-Sylum subscription. He writes: "I am beginning to think that those Men in Black have had something to do with blocking The E-Sylum from my computer!" -Editor] MAN FINDS & REPLACES COIN IN OLD BUILDING Dick Johnson writes: "A man working to conserve the ancient Pembridge Market Hall in Herefordshire England found an 1806 penny in the foot of one of the building?s oak posts this week. Not much news in that story. For centuries people have put coins in the cornerstones of buildings that are later discovered. But the contractor, Barry Goodman, put it back ? along with a current one-pound coin. Dog bites man, man bites dog ? that?s news. To read the full BBC story, with a photo of the workman and the coins, see: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/hereford/worcs/4382833.stm GOOGLE PROJECT PRODDING FRENCH TO ACTION Google's massive indexing project is spurring other countries to launch similar projects for books in their native language. >From a French publication: "The California based Internet search engine, Google, has announced its plans to begin scanning entire books into its database. Stanford University, Harvard University, Oxford University, the University of Michigan and the New York Public Library are partnering with Google in this incredible expedition, which will result in millions of books being s canned in the next few years. What does this mean for the French? It means that the French Revolution will be told by American writers in English books. Jean-Noel Jeanneney, the head of France's National library has expressed such concerns. As the EU has made an effort to give the world more than the voice of the U.S., they will fight to have their stories told in their own languages and from the point of views of their writers. France's search engines are likely to follow in Google's footsteps." http://www.bonjourparis.com/publications/articles.php?articleId=1877 Another article from The Financial Times: "Jean-No?l Jeanneney is horrified when he imagines how our children might come to see the world: Will future generations think no great books have been written in a language other than English? And even worse: Will they see history only through American eyes? The president of the French national library has made himself the frontman in what he sees a struggle to save cultural diversity. In the postmodern world, the battleground is the internet. Here, search engines determine what tomorrow's generations will click on, learn and think." http://news.ft.com/cms/s/2a7d5b42-929d-11d9-bca5-00000e2511c8.html GEORGE KNOWS HOW TO HANDLE A VIRGIN George Kolbe writes: "Regarding the "very sharp knife" Steve Woodland described, the commentary that I have read over the years invariably advises using a dull knife, a butter knife being often mentioned. If one is not careful, a sharp knife can easily cut INTO the outer margin (I know, alas, from experience)." Alan Luedeking writes: "I was intrigued by Steve Woodland's success story in opening his "virgin" book. I have often been faced with this dilemma with Latin American numismatic literature (a classic example being Burzio's "Diccionario", an essential read, often encountered unopened.) The first time, I did what Steve did: I took a "very sharp knife" and failed dismally. Careful as I was, nothing could change the fact that I'm basically a clumsy oaf, so of course I slipped and slit a page away from its natural fold. Belatedly recognizing my shortcomings, I stopped and did what I should have done from the start: ask George Kolbe for his advice! To my great surprise, George said to use a very dull knife (an ordinary table knife), and voil?!-- this has worked successfully every time. I congratulate Mr. Woodland for his successful opening-- no doubt he is a far more dexterous gentleman than I." FIFTY STATES PLUS SIX? On March 23, 2005, the Miami Herald published an opinion piece by Kenneth D. McClintock, president of the Puerto Rico Senate, about the stalled bill proposing to extend the Fifty States Commemorative Coin Program Act to include quarters for Washington, D.C. and the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico. "It is offensive and frankly inexplicable that Congress should treat these half-dozen loyal U.S. communities as if we were not part of the nation. Several times in recent years, the U.S. House or Representatives has passed the District of Columbia and United States Territories Circulation Quarter Dollar Program Act, which would rectify this omission and place the ''Separated Six'' on an equal numismatic footing with the rest of the United States. However, in the U.S. Senate (where none of the six has a voice, let alone a vote), the Banking Committee has repeatedly failed to act on the bill. Roughly 80 percent of the American citizens being snubbed by the Senate are residents of Puerto Rico." "Since 1898, the American flag has flown over Puerto Rico. The American dollar has been Puerto Rico's currency since 1899. Since 1917, Puerto Ricans have been U.S. citizens. After more than a century as patriotic members of the American family, having defended the nation in two world wars and every conflict thereafter (including Afghanistan and Iraq), Puerto Ricans have earned the right to civic parity. It is patently wrong that the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico are denied the right to vote for the commander-in-chief who dispatches Puerto Rican military personal into harm's way, but it is utterly preposterous that we have been legislatively ostracized from something so presumably noncontroversial as a commemorative coin program." To read the full article (registration required) http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/opinion/11205651.htm NUMISMATIC INDEXES PROJECT A web site visitor writes: "I was unable to access the Numismatic Indexes Project on your site. Do you have a new url for this source? [Yes - some time ago the Harry Bass Research Foundation reorganized its web site. The new URL is http://www.harrybassfoundation.org/search_numlit.asp This is a marvelous resource for numismatic researchers. >From the web site: The NIP indexes cover a wide range of numismatic scholarship over many decades from both this century and the last. From the American Numismatic Society they include: * American Journal of Numismatics (AJN1), First Series 1866-1924 * ANS Proceedings (ANSPROC) 1878-1914 * Museum Notes (MUSNOTES) 1945-1988 * American Journal of Numismatics (AJN2), Second Series 1989-Current * Coinage of the Americas Conference (COAC) 1984-Current * Numismatic Notes and Monographs (NUMNOTES) 1921-1968 * Numismatic Studies (NUMSTUDIES) 1938-1993 OTHER INDEXES In addition to those above, these periodicals are included in NIP: * The Numismatist (ANA), 1888-Current, from the American Numismatic Association * Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine (SCRAPBOOK), 1935-1975, from COIN WORLD * Numismatic Review (NUMREV), 1943-1947, produced by Stack's (Numismatists) * Coin Collector's Journal (CCJOUR#1), 1875-1888, by Scott Stamp and Coin Co. * Coin Collector's Journal (CCJOUR#2) - New Series, 1934-1954, Wayte Raymond * Colonial Newsletter (CNL) 1960-Current, Colonial Newsletter Foundation * The Celator (CELATOR) 1987-1988, The Celator -Editor] UNRECOGNISED STATES NUMISMATIC SOCIETY Regarding items of interest to the Unrecognised States Numismatic Society, George Fuld writes: "The most important list of such "unofficial" coins (mostly dollars) was an article in the Numismatist by Richard Kenney about 1952 (I do have a photocopy somewhere). The gold silver Veeder dollar (Utopia) is listed along with other Universale issues. When the balance of the Ford material is sold, a few surprises in this area will show up." WILLIAM VON BERGEN INFO SOUGHT Nancy Oliver & Rich Kelly write: "We recently acquired a four-page news letter of sorts that was distributed in 1913. The news letter contains much advertisement for William Von Bergen's book, "The Encyclopedia of Rare Coins, Stamps, Old Books and Paper Money". It states that Mr. Von Bergen established his business in 1885 and is currently located at 196 Chestnut Ave. in Boston, MA. The news letter also contains information on the "Phenomenal Advance in Values" of various coin issues, "The Discontinued Denominations", "Mint Marks", Canadian Coins and Tokens, and more. We hope that someone out there might be able to shed further light on the distribution of such news letters by William Von Bergen. Were these handed out at shows, to his customers, sent to collectors or other? Are these items common for this year as well as others? Is the business or building still extant? It is a nice little news letter and is in good condition. If you know anything, we would really appreciate anything you might pass on to us about the man and his literature. Please email us at noliver146@sbcglobal.net" INTERVIEW: JOE FITZGERALD, NICKEL DESIGNER >From The New York Times: "Though corporate America turns to Martha Stewart or Michael Graves for a little wow in what it sells, the United States Mint at the Treasury Department turned to Joe Fitzgerald. In the world of coins, Mr. Fitzgerald, 54, is an overnight sensation. Beating out the mint's in-house designers and a group of 23 others who constitute the mint's Artistic Infusion Program, inaugurated last year, Mr. Fitzgerald won two commissions for a new nickel. His portrait of Thomas Jefferson, which is uniquely and controversially off center, with a new larger nose that critics have compared heatedly to Bob Hope's, appeared on the obverse of a nickel introduced to the public by President Bush on March 1. And Mr. Fitzgerald's design for the flip side (replacing a bison by Jamie Franki) will have its debut in August, making the nickel pretty much Mr. Fitzgerald's personal turf and bragging right, designwise, whether you agree with his thinking or not. Talk about excitement. "This is 'American Idol' in metal," Mr. Fitzgerald said, sitting at home in suburban Maryland last week with his wife, Jean, and their pug, Fabio. Mrs. Fitzgerald calls her husband "5 Cent," rapper style." "Mr. Fitzgerald began collecting coins when he was 8 after a gift of some Civil War era flying-eagle pennies from his mother. They had belonged to his grandfather in Tennessee. "I liked history," he said. "I was kind of a dork. I think the thing that engaged me was that I was holding in my hand something from 1860, thinking about all the pockets it had been in, the people who had held it, what was happening in the country when the coin was made. That to me was tremendously exciting." "Mr. Fitzgerald took his cue from Roman coins. "They took great pride in doing very realistic coins," he explained. "If the emperor was fat, they put him on the coin fat." Mr. Fitzgerald's Jefferson is based on a bust executed in 1789 by Jean-Antoine Houdon, which friends of Jefferson said was an exceptional likeness. The mint asked Mr. Fitzgerald in subsequent drafts to bag and sag the president's face to approximate him in 1805, when one of his most famous executive initiatives, the Lewis and Clark expedition, was under way. Mr. Fitzgerald's second design, to be introduced on the nickel's reverse in August, commemorates Clark's sighting of the Pacific and reproduces his journal entry, "Ocian in view! O! The joy!" Playing safe, the mint changed Ocian to Ocean." In addition to a bigger, more accurate nose, Jefferson, in the most radical aspect of Mr. Fitzgerald's design, is positioned at extreme left on the coin, and in a tight close-up that cuts out wig and collar. "Don't bother with the hair," Mr. Fitzgerald recalled advising himself. "Hair tells you nothing about a person's personality. Work on the eyes and the mouth. My frustration with American coins is that the heads are so small, you can't tell much about an individual's character." Mr. Fitzgerald included the word "Liberty" in Jefferson's own hand rather than a typeface, and floated it before his mouth in the fashion of political cartoons of the period." "Mr. Fitzgerald's designs, the last two of four in the mint's "Westward Journey" nickel series, will be replaced by a new permanent nickel in 2006. His designs will be submitted, with others, to the secretary of the Treasury as candidates for the new coin." To read the complete article, see: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/24/garden/24nick.html GOBRECHT DOLLAR AUCTION INFO SOUGHT Dennis Hengeveld of Ruurlo, The Netherlands writes: "I'm looking for auction descriptions for Gobrecht dollars. That's including all varieties, patterns, originals and restrikes. I'm seeking this information because I'm planning to do a nice article about these short lived dollars. Unfortunately, as I live in the Netherlands I can't get a lot of auction catalogs here. That's why I'm only looking for the descriptions (I will try to find the pics on the Internet). Other information is also welcome, like things you've read in old books or auction catalogs. I'm especially interested in pre-1950 auction appearances. A scan of the article or auction in a format like .JPG will be fine, or when you want to type over the descriptions that's okay too. My email address is dph10@ilse.nl. Thanks." DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS QUIZ ANSWER Last week I asked, "What American celebrity received the DSC?" The answer is Audie Murphy, who became a celebrity AFTER his heroic war adventures. Murphy also earned the Medal of Honor for his actions. In September 1943, the Distinguished Service Cross was awarded to Audie L. Murphy, Second Lieutenant, (then Staff Sergeant), Infantry, Company "B", 15th Infantry Regiment, for extraordinary heroism in action. "Landing near Ramatuelle, France, with the first wave of the assault infantry, at 0800 hours, 15 August until halted by intense machine gun and small arms fire from a boulder- covered hill to his front. Leaving his men in a covered position, he dashed forty yards through withering fire to a draw. Using this defiladed route, he went back toward the beaches, found a light machine gun squad and, returning up the rocky hill, placed the machine gun in position seventy-five yards in advance of his platoon. In the duel which ensued, Lieutenant Murphy silenced the enemy weapon, killed two of the crew and wounded a third. As he proceeded further up the draw, two Germans advanced toward him. Quickly destroying both of them, he dashed up the draw alone toward the enemy strongpoint, disregarding bullets which glanced off the rocks around him and hand grenades which exploded fifteen yards away. Closing in, he wounded two Germans with carbine fire, killed two more in a fierce, brief fire-fight, and forced the remaining five to surrender. His extraordinary heroism resulted in the capture of a fiercely contested enemy-held hill and the annihilation or capture of the entire enemy garrison." http://www.audiemurphy.com/award2.htm "Audie Leon Murphy, son of poor Texas sharecroppers, rose to national fame as the most decorated U.S. combat soldier of World War II. Among his 33 awards and decorations was the Medal of Honor, the highest military award for bravery that can be given to any individual in the United States of America, for "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty." He also received every decoration for valor that his country had to offer, some of them more than once, including 5 decorations by France and Belgium." "Actor James Cagney invited Murphy to Hollywood in September 1945, when he saw Murphy's photo on the cover of Life Magazine. The next couple of years in California were hard times for Audie Murphy. Struggling and becoming disillusioned from lack of work while sleeping in a local gymnasium, he finally received token acting parts in his first two films. His first starring role came in a 1949 released film by Allied Artists called Bad Boy. In 1950 Murphy eventually got a contract with Universal-International (later called Universal) where he starred in 26 films, 23 of them westerns over the next 15 years." http://www.audiemurphy.com/biograph.htm 1802 HALF DIME HAMMER PRICE FOUND Last week David F. Fanning asked: "Could anyone tell me what the 1802 half dime included in J.W. Scott's March 4-6, 1878 auction catalogue brought? It's lot 542a." Mark Borckardt writes: "The 1802 half dime you asked about realized $172.50. Check the front of the recent Logan-McCloskey half dime book. Pages 12-35 list all auction appearances of 1802 half dimes, most with prices realized. Also included are catalog descriptions from these auction appearances." WHAT TO DO WITH OLD NUMISMATIC NEWSPAPERS? Len Augsberger writes: "I have a dozen odd years of Coin World and Numismatic News back issues looking for a good home. My numismatic literature dealer advisor suggested that the recycling bin might be the best option, but I could not bring myself to so dispose of much valuable information. On the other hand, lack of space is forcing the issue one way or another. Readers willing to take this "hoard" off my hands for postage (quite likely costing more than the original subscription) may contact me at this email address: leonard_augsburger@hotmail.com." ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH. VERY HIGH Regarding last week's discussion of the proposed Colorado state quarter designs, Tom DeLorey writes: "As a former Coloradan, I am less than impressed with the Colorado state quarter finalists. Pikes Peak is almost unrecognizable, from either of the two faces shown. As to Eastern vs. Western mountains, the unofficial Colorado definition makes it clear: Anything less than 14,000 feet is a hill." MORE BUCKS ON THE WALL Ron Abler writes: "I live in Southern Maryland, and there is a restaurant called The Roost in a nearby town named Lexington Park. The original owner of The Roost had served as a pilot in the Berlin Airlift before opening his establishment. Apparently, many of his war buddies visited the restaurant, and they honored a custom of many WW II veterans by leaving "buck snorts" as calling cards. Buck snorts are one-dollar bills autographed by the presenter. To this day, the wall behind the bar of the Roost is plastered with buck snorts, including several square feet of them that were blackened by smoke from a kitchen fire long ago. I don't know if this has anything to do with the dollar-plastered walls of the Mar Vista restaurant in Florida." [Perhaps there are other establishments out there that honor this tradition. But before rushing to The Roost, note the following item I located on the web - the place was involved in hepatitis litigation. -Editor http://www.stmarystoday.com/first_lawsuit_filed_in_hepatitis.htm http://www.stmarystoday.com/lack_of_hot_water.htm ] ONLINE CHATS WITH NUMISMATIC CELEBS? Michael Savinelli writes: "I was wondering if there are any "online chats" being conducted anywhere with either famous numismatists, famous dealers, or famous authors. At my job, we have monthly online chats with our CEO in real time. I don't know what the exact technology is, but it works basically like a chat room where you submit a question (your identity is hidden), and then the CEO (or other guests) type answers. You can see all of the questions and answers of all of the participants on your screen, and the questions and answers just scroll down your screen as more questions and answers come in. It is usually held for an hour and an incredible amount of information gets disseminated. Does anyone know of a similar forum in the numismatic context? I know there are various message boards on the Internet, but I am not aware of any scheduled chats with special guests. Wouldn't it be great to get to "chat" with some of the major numismatic authors on a monthly basis, maybe for an hour or so? For a regular collector like me, it would be a special treat to ask a question and get a response, along with seeing the questions and answers that others might have." [Well, it's not a chat, but The E-Sylum is the biggest gathering of numismatic luminaries I know of (E-Syluminaries, as Dick Johnson described them). In this issue alone, we have submissions from several top numismatic researchers authors, collectors and dealers from around the U.S. and the world. I'd rather be here than anywhere else on the web. I'm not familiar with many other numismatic sites or their chat schedules; perhaps one of our readers can fill us in. -Editor] THAT'S ONE BIG NICKEL ... or as Maxwell Smart would say, "That's the SECOND biggest nickel I've ever seen!" The following is reprinted from the C.N.A. E-Bulletin, an electronic publication of the Canadian Numismatic Association (Issue Number 7, March 20, 2005): About 3 hours north of Toronto on Highway 11 lies the town of Sudbury. There you will find a number of tourist attractions, including the Science North complex, a mine tour and the Canadian Centennial Numismatic Park. The numismatic highlight of a visit to Sudbury is, without doubt, the Big Nickel. The other numismatic highlight is the upcoming ONA Convention being hosted by the Sudbury Coin Club. A recent issue of the Ontario Numismatist, official publication of the Ontario Numismatic Association, included the following history of the Big Nickel Monument: The Big Nickel was the brainchild of a Sudbury fireman, Ted Szilva, and artist/sign maker, Bruno Cavallo. The idea was to develop the coin to celebrate Canada's 1967 centennial. The centennial committee rejected the submission. Undaunted, Szilva and Cavalloo formed the Nickel Monument Development Corporation Ltd. (MDCL) and Szilva coined the phrase Big Nickel. The NMDX chose the 1951 Canadian five-cent piece as the model. The 1951 coin was designed by Canadian artist Steven Trenka. The coin was issued to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the isolation of nickel as an element by Swedish chemist Baron Axel Frederick Cronstedst in 1751. The coin featured King George VI on one side and a nickel refinery on the other side. As Sudbury was the second largest producer of nickel in the world, it was the perfect choice for the Big Nickel. The construction project was undertaken in Cavallo's sign manufacturing workshop in Sudbury. Two vertical columns and several angle iron pieces make up the framework. The inside layer is a sheet of metal skin. Plywood is the middle layer and the outer layer is stainless steel sheet metal. In May, 1964 the nickel was erected and the Canadian Centennial Numismatic Park began operations. The nickel was unveiled at the official opening on July 22, 1964 in front of 2,500 Sudbury residents and dignitaries. In 1981, Ted Szilva sold the Big Nickel and the Canadian Centennial Numismatic Park to Science North (Northern Ontario's future science centre). Science North considered dismantling the nickel due to the high cost of maintenance. But, as the monument was considered a unique, unmistakable landmark for Sudbury, Science North refurbished the nickel in 1984 at a cost of $12,000. All other non-mining related items were removed from the site. During the week of January 22, 2001, the Big Nickel was removed from its original base at the Big Nickel Mine in Sudbury. Dismantled for refurbishing, this was the first time in almost 40 years that the nickel was absent from Sudbury's skyline. In April 2001, the Big Nickel was temporarily relocated to Science North. It was moved back to its traditional site on Big Nickel Mine Road at the newly constructed Dynamic Earth on May 10, 2003. For the full story and other statistics, go to http://www.dynamicearth.ca/experience/nickel.html If you want to own a big chunk of the Big Nickel (donation of $10,000), or just a letter ($2,500) or even a dot ($1,000), you just have to check out http://www.dynamicearth.ca/experience/nickel.html If you want to know what other tourist attractions are near the Big Nickel in Sudbury, Ontario, including tours of an underground nickel mine, go to dynamicearth.ca/experience/index.html#nickel. Information about the Sudbury area is indeed timely if you are planning on attending the ONA Convention. It is the premium numismatic event taking place in Ontario in 2005 that is hosted by non-profit clubs. As a matter of interest, Alan Herbert's Coin Clinic column in the February 8 issue of Numismatic News included the following: "What is the biggest coin reproduction known? I know of at least three candidates, including the big 1953 cent erected at Woodruff, Wis. Somewhat larger is the 30-foot-high 1951 Canadian nickel in the Canadian Centennial Numismatic Park at Sudbury, Ontario. Both are dwarfed by the Japanese reproduction of a coin that is described as being 100 meters (328 feet) in diameter, laid out on the grounds of a park." [Can anyone tell us more about the "Northern Centennial Numismatic Park"? How about some more information on the Woodruff cent or the Japanese big coin? -Editor] FEATURED WEB PAGE This week's featured web page is about a communion token first issued in 1800 by the First (Scots) Presbyterian Church of Charleston, South Carolina. "Now, let?s take another look at the token itself. Measuring 28mm, and made from silver, it was made in England in the year 1800. According to Autence A. Bason, author of Communion Tokens of the United States, 300 specimens were ordered by the church in that year. An additional order of 500 pewter tokens was made at some later point in time. Although resembling the silver tokens in having a communion table on one side and a ?burning bush? on the other, the pewter tokens were somewhat different in substance, being die struck, not hand-engraved. They were manufactured by Robert Lovett, prominent diesinker in New York City, and were meant to be used by the black members of the congregation. Mrs. Bason states in her book that ?during the Civil War the valuable silver communion service of the church was sent to Columbia, S.C. for safe keeping and the communion tokens were included. Later, a column of Union soldiers visited the city and the vessels and tokens were taken. The soldiers, thinking they were some sort of Confederate money, took the tokens.? Bason goes on to state that 14 specimens of the silver token were known, but that count has probably increased to 20 or so since the printing of her book. The pewter tokens are much scarcer, with only three or four presently known." http://www.angelfire.com/sc2/tokenofthemonth/token017/ 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