WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM APRIL 14, 2013

First, Happy Birthday to my sweet and talented daughter Hannah, who turned nine today. New subscribers this week include Ray Lockwood. Welcome aboard! We have 1,643 email subscribers, plus 224 followers on Facebook.

This week we open with a note from literature dealer John Burns on his upcoming coin show schedule, and three new books. Other topics this week include the Karl Goetz dies, Harry Rapp's book on U.S. commemoratives, the Treasury Department's Columbian Exposition exhibits, (and I never thought I'd write this) the Winklevoss twins.

To learn more about the Thomas Edison of Canada, a banknote payable in gold dust, the Schwaab fob, the New Bedford Horticultural Society medal and Odium Numismatica, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

JOHN BURNS COIN SHOW SCHEDULE APRIL-MAY 2013

John H. Burns will be on an EPIC book selling jaunt as follows:

April 18-21 Chicago International Coin Fair, Rosemont IL
April 24-27 Central States, Schaumberg IL
May 2-5 Early American Coppers, Newark OH
May 9-11 Pa. Association of Numismatists, Monroeville PA
May 16-18 Garden States, Somerset NJ

3000 Pounds of numismatic literature (as certified by the Philly union at last year's ANA)!!!! Visit, talk and hopefully buy some and I'll show up at the next shows. Nos morituri te salutant.

NEW BOOK: U.S. SHELL CARDS 1867-1880

I am putting the finishing touches on my manuscript for a new book, U.S. Shell Cards 1867-1880. These are advertising tokens, often with a coin motif on one side and a commercial message on the other, that fit neatly into the post-Civil War era. Although scattered features about them have appeared in the TAMS Journal and elsewhere, this is the first book-length study and the only study that delves into how they were made and distributed.

As of the last counting there are 1,658 pictures, including full color images of over 700 different varieties, plus 108,582 words. I am now working on rarity ratings and a schedule of estimated values. If a reader has one or more shell cards, Dave would be pleased to hear from you. Ditto for any information about purchase prices and valuations, except for the recent sales by Stack’s Bowers Galleries.

The late Steve Tanenbaum quipped, “A common shell card is one for which two are known!” Indeed, many are unique. The largest institutional collection is that of the American Numismatic Society, comprising slightly over 100 different. The Society has cooperated in the project and has provided many images.

NEW BOOK: GUIDE BOOK OF CIVIL WAR TOKENS

I have been interested in Civil War tokens for a long time. My fascination with them dates back to the 1950s when I first learned about them and set about buying examples. I soon met Dr. George Fuld, who at the time was with MIT in Massachusetts. From George I bought several thousand duplicates, a trading stock, most of which were soon offered for sale by Empire Coin Company, which I conducted in partnership with Jim Ruddy.

Fast forward to more recent times, today the Civil War Token Society (check the Internet) publishes the Civil War Token Journal with advertisements, historical articles, research findings and more. Believe it or not the annual membership fee is just $15, for which you get four copies of the journal.

Scheduled for release in mid summer is the Guide Book of Civil War Tokens, to be published by Whitman. I researched and wrote this, completing it last year. This will describe hundreds of different token issuers and illustrate different dies.

Today in 2013, Civil War tokens offer many interesting opportunities. Great rarities -- tokens for which fewer than a dozen are known -- can be purchased for a few hundred dollars each, sometimes even less! Compared to federal coinage, the field is relatively undiscovered. The number of active participants is probably in the low thousands.

Concerning Civil War tokens in general, these were mostly the size of contemporary one-cent pieces. Beginning in July 1862, when the outcome of the Civil War was uncertain, cents disappeared from circulation. Citizens preferred hard money to paper, and by that time gold and silver had long since been absent from commerce. Now, there was no federal money with which to buy a newspaper, get a haircut, or ride a horse-drawn streetcar. Stepping into the void were private individuals who commissioned cent-sized tokens to be struck, usually in copper, but sometimes in brass. Millions of these were soon in circulation and were widely used. Over 1,000 merchants issued them with their advertising and other inscriptions. In addition, large numbers of patriotic tokens were produced -- with flags, cannon, ships and other motifs.

To read the complete article, see: From The Desk Of Q. David Bowers: Civil War Tokens In The Spotlight (stacksbowers.com/Blogs/from-desk-of-q-david-bowers-civil-war.html)

NEW BOOK: COLLECTING WORLD COINS, 1901-PRESENT, 14TH EDITION

Author: George S. Cuhaj
SRN: U3686
Price: $44.99 ($46.99)
ISBN: 9781440236181

From Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, Collecting World Coins, 1901-Present, presents the most comprehensive country-by-country, fully illustrated listing of 20th and 21st century coins used in everyday commerce.

The vast majority of private collections and family accumulations consist of circulating coinage, making the 14th edition of this catalog the finest and easiest reference to use. Collecting World Coins is the perfect book for beginner to expert collectors and dealers who are simply interested in circulating coins found around the world. Features include:

• Up-to-date and complete Euro Coin images and values as well as 30,0000 images for easy coin identification.
• Perfect book for beginner to expert collectors and dealers who are simply interested in circulating coins found around the world.
• Detailed description of coins with dates and mintages, metal, weight and current value.

For more information visit: www.sellcoinbooks.com/world-coin-books/collecting-world-coins

THE MARCH 2013 MONETA ISSUE HAS BEEN PUBLISHED

Editor Serge Pelletier writes:

To read the issue online, see: www.ons-sno.ca/page39.html

For more information on the Ottawa Numismatic Society, see: www.ons-sno.ca/home-en.html

QUESTIONS ABOUT THE KARL GOETZ ORIGINAL DIES AND HUBS

Jorg Lueke writes:

Howard A. Daniel III writes:

Jorg Lueke writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: KARL GOETZ ORIGINAL DIES AND HUBS OFFERED BY HERITAGE (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a14.html)

COINWEEK ON E-SYLUM AND SWIATEK'S 1981 COMMEMORATIVE BOOK

*For those of you who don’t know, Wayne Homren is the editor of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society’s weekly e-publication, the E-Sylum, which is always chock-full of fascinating information and reader commentary. Visit http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum/index.html for more information.

First of all, thank you for the work you do every week. Hubert and I are big fans of your eclectic, almost omnivorous newsletter. The E-Sylum is a frequent source of inspiration, constantly pointing out fruitful new avenues for us and our writing. Also, we collect books on coins just as avidly as we collect the coins themselves. So we were thrilled – THRILLED – at the handful of recent mentions and excerpts we’ve garnered.

Predictably, this inspired us to do even more thinking on the topics we’d already addressed. And before we get to the crux of our piece, let’s just say that there must be something in the air regarding the legalization of gold and gold-related numismatic collectibles. No sooner had we readied the Herb Hicks article for submission to Coinweek but the E-Sylum featured a bit on Grover Criswell and his efforts to legalize gold medallions. Maybe we should go for the trifecta and write a piece on James Blanchard?

Anyway, back to that crux. In the February 24, 2013 issue of the E-Sylum, you included an excerpt from our then-recent piece on Anthony Swiatek’s 1981 volume on classic commemoratives (“Booker T. On the Tarmac: A Story about First Coinvestors”). That excerpt really made us feel like we were on to something. We don’t care who knows it – validation is nice.

We have no doubt that experienced and sophisticated collectors aren’t surprised in the least by the blatant promotion that exists in such books as Swiatek and Breen’s commemorative opus. Modern collectors also have the benefit of hindsight and can see the far-off price predictions in that volume for what they are: hopelessly detached from current levels. Mind you, some of these projections were actually met before the commemorative bubble burst, so we’re not indicting the authors and publishers on those grounds, but one thing sticks in our craw. The Encyclopedia won the 1981 Numismatic Literary Guild award.

As a hobby, are we so jaded and cynical that such self-promotion in what advertises itself as a reference book is okay? Is it acceptable that such things are ignored by institutions within the hobby? Does everyone kind of assume that collectors are all on the same level, and can figure things out for themselves? Or do we assume that the gullible and less-experienced among us deserve to be taken in, and that maybe they’ll know better next time?

To read the complete article, see: An Open Letter to Wayne Homren (www.coinweek.com/commentary/opinion/an-open-letter-to-wayne-homren/)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: FIRST COINVESTORS AND THE SWIATEK-BREEN COMMEMORATIVE BOOK (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n08a15.html)

QUERY: HARRY RAPP'S EXTENSION OF WOOD'S COMMEMORATIVE BOOK

Speaking of books on U.S. Commemorative Coinage, here's an interesting item about early 20th century books on the topic.

Bruce H. Smith writes:

I don't know how Harry Rapp comes into the picture, but the American Numismatic Society published Howland Wood's book The Commemorative Coinage of the United States in 1922. I don't have a copy for comparison. The ANS published an update by David M. Bullowa titled The Commemorative Coinage of the United States 1892-1938 in 1938 (Numismatic Notes and Monographs No. 83). I have that one on my shelf, and in it Bullowa devotes the volume to Wood, who passed away that year. He writes that Wood's 1922 work was the "point of departure" for his study.

Interestingly, as shown in the image above, the title page reads as follows:

Bruce adds:

Perhaps Rapp was working on a manuscript unawares that Bullowa was doing the same. Can anyone tell us more about Rapp and his book?

ARCHIVES INTERNATIONAL BANKNOTE AUCTION CLOSES APRIL 16, 2013

Archives International Auctions will offer 1,176 lots of U.S. and worldwide banknotes, scripophily and security printing ephemera at auction on Tuesday, April 16th, 2013 at 10 a.m. (EDT) in Fort Lee, New Jersey. The auction will offer live gallery, phone and Internet bidding at www.archivesinternational.com.

We are fortunate to have another outstanding offering of numismatic treasures that rarely if ever cross the auction block, including two different unique banknotes, a U.S. Legal Tender $10 Series of 1890 Presentation Proof as well as a 1906, 2 Silver Pesos, Philippine Islands Presentation Proof,” stated Dr. Robert Schwartz, president of Archives International Auctions.

The auction is packed with rare and desirable banknotes including 34 rare Chinese banknotes and over 650 different foreign banknotes. Also included are dozens of U.S. Colonial, Obsolete, Large and Small Type and National banknotes.

The scripophily section will include 220 lots of stocks and bonds (banking, mining, railroad, foreign, etc.), for every level of collector. Included is a John D. Rockefeller Signed Standard Oil Company Rarity as well as a 1795, North American Land Company Founder’s Share signed by Declaration of Independence signer, Robert Morris.

The catalog is online on their website and also as a virtual catalog.

The next auction is scheduled June 4th, 2013 at their offices in New Jersey and will include a wide variety of banknotes, scripophily and coins.

Previews are scheduled for Thursday, April 11th until the day of the sale by appointment. To pre-register for live Internet bidding, log on to the Archives International website, at http://www.archivesinternational.com .

Lot 209 Siege De Lyon, 1793 ND Issue Banknote

Lot 578 Philippines, ND (1944) Victory Issue Star Note

Lot 941 Miners Bank of Savings of Alta - California, Payable in Gold Dust, 18xx (ca. 1850-60)

THE NEW BEDFORD HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY WHALE MEDAL

Last week I asked:

Pete Smith writes:

Cheater! Cheater! Actually, there's nothing wrong with that. I'm impressed with research skills that start with the obvious before marching headlong into the obscure. But who knows the piece from memory?

Jonathan Brecher writes:

Dick Hansom writes:

Paul Bosco writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: APRIL 7, 2013 : Quick Quiz: Find That Whale! (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a12.html)

NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: APRIL 14, 2013

Wall Street Journal Features New Doty Book
Dennis Tucker writes:

I don’t have a current subscription, but a reader forwarded this image from the article. Thanks! "Cash With Flash" - I like it! I understand not all of the editions had this printed in color. Do we have a new numismatic ephemera collectible here?

For more information, or to order, see: www.whitman.com/Inventory/Detail/Pictures-from-a-Distant-Country+0794832555

2013 ANA Summer Convention Exhibiting and Speaking

The ANA's 2013 Anniversary convention will be held in suburban Chicago on August 13-17, Tuesday through Saturday -- near O'Hare airport, at the same venue as in 1991, 1999, and 2011. At this early date, the ANA web site has some planning information available; details on the actual events will appear later, once they are finalized. See http://www.worldsfairofmoney.com/

It takes time and effort to create an exhibit; the Exhibiting page at http://www.worldsfairofmoney.com/collector-exhibits.aspx has links to the rules, application, and an essay on preparing an exhibit. The application must be received at ANA by June 21. Exhibits vary in size and scope -- from a one-case specialized exhibit, to a ten-case sampling of a topic, or anything in between.

Exhibiting does take a commitment of time -- the exhibits must be in place by the Tuesday morning opening of the convention, and the exhibits cannot be removed until very late on Saturday afternoon (when the convention closes).

The Numismatic Theatre of years past has been renamed as Money Talks; the page at http://www.worldsfairofmoney.com/numismatic-events/money-talks.aspx has links for proposing a talk at the summer convention. The speaker's proposal must be received at ANA by June 5; in some years, the schedule filled up before the posted deadline, so do not procrastinate.

Send any questions to the local committee at ANA2011Exhibits@ChicagoCoinClub.org (that is not a typo -- it means we have a little experience!)

On John Work Garrett's Senate Race
Tom DeLorey writes:

Paul Bosco writes:

Fred Michaelson writes:

Pete Smith writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: QUERY: JOHN WORK GARRETT SENATORIAL RACE INFO SOUGHT (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a10.html)

Reed Hawn 1803 US Large Cent Price
Regarding Bob Metzger's question about lot #1112 in Stack's Reed Hawn Auction Sale of December 1993, W. David Perkins writes:

Pete Smith also confirmed the catalog listing. Thanks, folks!

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: APRIL 7, 2013 : Query: Reed Hawn Sale Hammer Price Sought (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a12.html)

The U.S. Mint's Five-Star Generals Coins
Joe Boling writes:

Howard Daniel III writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: THE U.S. MINT'S LASER FROSTING TECHNIQUES (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a16.html)

On Curved Coins
Fred Michaelson writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: APRIL 7, 2013: More on Curved Coins (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a12.html)

THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT'S 1893 COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION EXHIBITS

Greg Adams writes:

NBS Vice President Marc Charles Ricard writes:

George Cuhaj writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: QUERY: COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION TREASURY DEPARTMENT EXHIBITS INFO SOUGHT (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a15.html)

ODIUM NUMISMATICA: CONTEMPORARY POLITICS IN NUMISMATICS

Paul Bosco writes:

Dusty Royer writes:

Jeff Kelley writes:

Ron Guth writes:

To read the Collector's Universe thread, see: I am curious.... Who has been awarded the biggest "You Suck" around here? The Ultimate... The Current Record Holder??? (forums.collectors.com/messageview.cfm?catid=26&threadid=603592&highlight_key=y&keyword1=you%20suck)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: MORE ON POLITICS AND NUMISMATICS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a13.html)

WATCH FOBS AS NUMISMATIC ITEMS

Tom Casper writes:

Fob from the Bill Hyder collection

Medal from the Iversen collection

Die trial of the obverse die from the Iversen collection

The loop for the AYPE piece may have been incorporated in the reverse die since it is not present on the obverse die trial. An example of an integrated loop can be seen on the Medallic Art die for the McCormick Reaper Centennial medal (H&K 460). I have not seen the McCormick medal with a loop, so I suspect they were trimmed off when the medal was finished, although they could have been retained when needed.

Gene Brandenburg writes:

Joe Boling writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: ARE WATCHFOBS NUMISMATIC? (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a17.html)

SYLVESTER SAGE CROSBY’S PERSEVERANCE PREVAILS

Sylvester Sage Crosby’s timeless classic, The Early Coins of America, was the brainchild of Charles Chaplin, vice president of the New England Numismatic and Archeological Society.

Chaplin (not the silent movie star), named Crosby to chair a six-person Publications Committee in 1872 to write the definitive reference on American Colonial coins.

When the Publications Committee members realized the magnitude of the topic, five — including Chaplin — resigned.

Crosby was left alone to do six men’s work. Most people would have quit, but Sylvester came from strong stock. His father, Rev. Jazaniah Crosby, at age 18, walked 80 miles to start theological training at Phillips Exeter Academy.

Late in 1872, Sylvester began visiting archives, studying laws authorizing coinage, and corresponding with numerous collectors and scholars. He planned to write 10 sections of 32 pages each, to be published, as each was completed, in The American Journal of Numismatics. Ultimately, he required a dozen sections of 32 pages, for a total of 384.

Each section was priced at $1, and in 1875, when all were completed, the unbound set of 12 could be purchased for $12. This was a hefty price for the era, but The Early Coins of America was a hefty book, and impressively, it was illustrated by 12 photographic plates.

Crosby’s plates featured superb images of coins borrowed from famous collections, all produced by the new heliotype process. Only 350 sets of the 12 sections were printed, and today they are found in a bewildering variety of bindings. A total of 160 individuals and institutions subscribed to the project; their copies are bound according to their individual tastes.

Today, 1875 originals sell for at least $1,000. Crosby got the last laugh on the Publications Committee quitters. When the American Numismatic Society erected its new headquarters building in 1931, they engraved the names of six great numismatists into its entablature.

The only American name was “Crosby.”

To read the complete article, see: Perseverance prevails (www.coinworld.com/Articles/ViewArticle/perseverance-prevails)

ERIC NEWMAN’S 1866 FIVE CENT LINCOLN JUDD-487 PATTERN

Watching Daniel Day-Lewis’s outstanding portrayal of our 16th president last night provided the inspiration for this week’s contribution to The E-Sylum. Abraham Lincoln’s courage and steadfastness seemed even more extraordinary as he stayed his course despite opposition from those closest to him.

Most Americans who have held Lincoln’s ubiquitous portrait in their hands since childhood would be surprised to learn that the first Lincoln coin did not progress beyond the pattern stage. A variety of medals and tokens with Lincoln’s likeness were being produced after his assassination, and to feature his image on a coin seemed appropriate. James B. Longacre was asked to provide designs for the new five cent coinage that had been proposed. His 1866 five cent design with the profile of recently assassinated President Lincoln was not adopted. Breen stated that Mint Director Pollock’s concern about a negative reception from the southern states was the reason. However, Pollock also rejected Longacre’s Washington head designs, leaving us with the shield nickel as our first five cent coin.

Eric P. Newman’s example of this excessively rare pattern is among the EPNNES coins being offered at Heritage Auction’s Platinum Night on April 25 at CSNS. The description follows:

3955 1866 Five Cents, Judd-487, Pollock-576, R.7, PR64 Brown NGC. CAC .

Design. The obverse centers around the portrait of Lincoln in profile, facing right. The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA circles the bust above, with the date below. The reverse shows the denominational figure 5 above the word CENTS, encircled by a large wreath, with IN GOD WE TRUST above. Struck in copper with a plain edge.

Commentary. “The excessively rare pattern with the bust of Lincoln” is the description of this pattern on the accompanying envelope. The Lincoln portrait patterns include Judd-486, 487, and 488, with a combined NGC and PCGS population of eight, nine, and four pieces respectively. In an early auction appearance, an example of Judd-487 was paired with a specimen of Judd-486 in lot 1090 of the R.C. Davis Collection (New York Coin & Stamp, 1/1890):

Robert Coulton Davis wrote the first serious work on patterns, published in the Coin Collectors Journal in 1885, and the sale of his collection was a landmark event for pattern collectors. Eric P. Newman’s evaluation of these patterns as “excessively rare” echoed the New York Coin & Stamp cataloger’s assessment half a century earlier.

The U.S. Mint’s consideration of the Lincoln portrait for coinage was an extraordinary gesture of compassion, coming within a year of his assassination. This tribute culminated in Lincoln’s appearance on regular issue coinage in 1909 via Victor David Brenner’s unsurpassed depiction of Lincoln on the new cent of that year.

Physical Description. This Choice proof has satin luster with slight field reflectivity, rather than the mirrored surfaces of most proof patterns. Both sides are medium brown with hints of delicate green patina and a few scattered toning specks. The design elements are sharply detailed throughout and visual appeal is quite strong. All Lincoln patterns are rare and seldom encountered.

Provenance. “Colonel” E.H.R. Green; Green Estate; Partnership of Eric P. Newman/B.G. Johnson d.b.a. St. Louis Stamp & Coin Co.; Eric P. Newman @ $125; Eric P. Newman Numismatic Education Society.

From The Eric P. Newman Collection. PCGS# 60683

To read the complete lot description, see: 1866 5C Five Cents, Judd-487, Pollock-576, R.7 (coins.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=1184&lotNo=3955)

QUERY: NEW ORLEANS MINT SILVER DOLLAR RECEIPT INFO SOUGHT

Dave Ginsburg writes:

To read the complete article, see: ()

1906-D DOUBLE EAGLE STRUCK BY DAVID H. MOFFAT

1906-D $20 Special Strike SP66 PCGS. CAC. Fourth 1906-D Double Eagle Struck in Denver

This branch mint proof 1906-D Liberty Head double eagle certified SP66 by PCGS is the fourth example of six pieces struck to mark the official opening of the Denver Mint on April 2, 1906. This coin was presented to Colorado early pioneer Isaac Gotthelf (1844-1910) in April 1906 a few days after its striking; documentation attesting to the coin's creation and presentation are included with the lot. This is a coin of immense historical importance, as well as an aesthetically beautiful example of the early-20th century proof Liberty Head gold coinage. And seldom does a coin of such vintage appear with original documentation that places its creation exactly as to time and circumstances as well as place, despite the fact that this marvelous coin is now 107 years old.

The Denver Mint was formally opened in 1906, but its history dates back much further to the late 1850s-1860s, when gold was discovered in Colorado along the Platte River as early as 1852. The Denver Mint's forebears were the Territorial assayers and coiners Clark, Gruber and Co. Brothers Austin Clark and Milton Clark went from equipping gold miners and assaying gold dust to making "Pike's Peak Gold" in Denver, Colorado Territory, 1860, in partnership with Emanuel Gruber. Clark, Gruber were well-respected coiners of the era, making gold coins from their facilities at 16th and Market streets that were actually a tad overweight compared to the Federal standard, a refreshing change from some of the debacles of the California Gold Rush coiners.

Their 1860-dated quarter eagles and half eagles imitated the Federal style, while their ten and twenty dollar pieces of that year had the fantastic "volcano" motif intended to represent Pike's Peak. By 1861 all of the four gold denominations resembled the Federal coinage. In 1862 the United States actually purchased the property of Clark, Gruber, proposing a new branch mint for gold coinage. However, to the chagrin of the local populace, the United States Mint at Denver opened in September 1863 -- as an assaying operation only.

The Denver Mint thus existed for some four decades before it ever made its first Federal coins. The generally accepted reasons were the existence of the San Francisco Mint, opened in 1854, and the Carson City Mint, which struck coins from 1870 to 1893; the two together were believed sufficient for the coinage needs of the far West. A new Denver Mint facility was begun on West Colfax Street in 1897, and the assaying operations were transferred there in 1904. Herman Silver was listed variously in records as Mint director, assayer, and superintendent.

Accompanying the coin is an original letter dated April 10, 1906, testifying to the coin's authenticity as the fourth example struck, addressed to the Hon. Isaac Gotthelf and signed by two Denver Mint officials. The full text of the letter reads:

"MINT OF THE UNITED STATES AT DENVER
OFFICE OF THE COINER

April 10, 1906.

Hon. Isaac Gotthelf
2601 Champa St.,
Denver, Colorado.

My Dear Mr. Gotthelf:-

I take pleasure in handing you herewith the fourth $20 gold piece stamped at the United States Mint at Denver, Colorado on Monday, April 2, 1906. You will notice by the Denver Republican of April 3rd., 1906, that the Honorable David H. Moffat fed into the press six double eagle blanks, from which were made $20 gold pieces, he receiving the first one, my brother Charles Tarbell the second one, Mr. F.G. Moffatt the 3rd., and I am saving for my brother-in-law Mr. W.L. Hartman of Pueblo the 5th.

With kindest regards, I am,

Yours very truly,

(signed) Harry Tarbell / Coiner

I hereby certify that the above double eagle mentioned was the fourth $20 gold piece struck at the United States Mint at Denver, Colorado, on April 2, 1906.

(signed) Paul R. Hempel / Foreman Coining Room."

To read the complete article, see: Lot 4597 1906-D $20 Special Strike SP66 PCGS (coins.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=1184&lotNo=4597)

WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: APRIL 14, 2013

Not much time this week to write my diary. I did have a meeting of my Northern Virginia numismatic social group, Nummis Nova. Eric Schena delighted me with a gift of two different examples of "Floyd Hours" notes, an alternate currency from Floyd, VA. He's tracked these down and is trying to schedule time with one of the creators of the notes to document their history.

On a non-numismatic note, I took my son Tyler and his grandfather to see "42" Saturday night - the new biopic about baseball player Jackie Robinson. All three of us would highly recommend it. Harrison Ford is unrecognizable as Branch Rickey, the Brooklyn Dodgers owner who signed Robinson as the first black player in the major leagues. Ford channels Burgess Meredith with a gravelly voice and perpetual cigar. Yet he doesn't steal the show because the entire cast is awesome. Trust me - there will be a slew of Academy Award nominations for this film next year. At the end our audience broke into spontaneous applause, a rare event these days.

THE HARVEY STACK INGOT COLLECTION

I gravitated toward series that were not commercially in vogue at the time I collected them. I have always been a student of history and the lore of the past and this, in combination with the economic training I received in college, led me to an interest in pioneer and territorial ingots. These were the introduction of currency, primarily in the western United States. Occasionally as part of a collection, Stack’s would acquire gold nuggets, mixed metal ingots (made of a combination of gold, silver and copper), and other ingots with assayer names, weights, and valuations stamped on them.

Back in the 1950s, I didn’t have the funds to acquire gold ingots and so I concentrated on the mixed metal ones that came into the shop. At the time the value of the bullion and silver were small, so I could acquire some of the pieces. I became interested in the mining areas where the precious metal was found and also in the history of the assayers and refiners, some of whom worked “right on the spot.”

I learned of the history surrounding these early monetary ingots, starting with the discovery of gold in California in 1848, the difficulties of panning and mining, the primitive living conditions and the early use of dust and nuggets in commerce. I learned of how San Francisco developed virtually overnight as the port city where supplies came in and precious metals went out. I learned of how the people in the West progressed from using dust and nuggets, to assayed metal bars with their values stamped in dollars and cents, and eventually to coins, both private and, eventually, federal.

J.K. Lilly, who also was fascinated by the sea and the monetary history of the Western Hemisphere, shared these interests. He started his collection with a dozen different doubloons from Stack’s in 1951. I had the opportunity to discuss these matters with him and enjoyed talking with him about the economics, history and lore of early western United States culture.

I eventually gave my collection of silver and mixed metal ingots to the National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institution where it still resides today.

To read the complete article, see: Remember When: What Do I Collect? (stacksbowers.com/Blogs/remember-when-what-do-i-collect.html)

THE BITCOIN BUBBLE

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have been many things in a short time: Olympic rowers. Nemeses of Mark Zuckerberg. Characters on "The Simpsons." Now they can add a new label: bitcoin moguls.

The 31-year-old identical twins have amassed since last summer what appears to be one of the single largest portfolios of the online currency that has caused such a stir in financial and technology circles.

An array of speculators have now bid up the price of the bitcoin to the point where the outstanding supply of the digital money was worth $1.3 billion at last count. The Winklevii—as they are popularly known—say they own nearly 1 percent of that, or some $11 million.

The decision by the brothers to go public with their position signals a new stage for what has been an experimental alternative to national currencies. Created in 2009 by a programmer or programmers known only by a pseudonym, the bitcoin world has been dominated by anonymous programmers and traders.

Now mainstream investments in the digital money are starting to emerge. On Thursday, a group of venture capitalists, including Andreessen Horowitz, announced that they were funding a bitcoin-related company, OpenCoin.

To read the complete article, see: As Big Investors Emerge, Bitcoin Gets Ready for its Close-Up (www.cnbc.com/id/100635418)

Kavan Ratnatunga writes:

To read the complete article, see: Digital Gold Rush: The Bitcoin Boom and Its Many Risks (www.spiegel.de/international/business/boom-of-digital-currency-bitcoin-raises-questions-of-stability-a-893342.html)

To read the complete article, see: How to buy and sell Bitcoins -- Part 1: Theory (www.zdnet.com/how-to-buy-and-sell-bitcoins-part-1-theory-7000013661/)

To read the complete article, see: How to buy and sell Bitcoins -- Part 2: Practical (www.zdnet.com/how-to-buy-and-sell-bitcoins-part-2-practical-7000013662/)

To read the complete article, see: BitCoin Value Collapses, Possibly Due To DDoS (news.slashdot.org/story/13/04/10/215227/bitcoin-value-collapses-possibly-due-to-ddos)

To read the complete article, see: Bitcoin Is Crashing (www.businessinsider.com/bitcoin-plunges-2013-4)

John Burns writes:

With $600 stuffed in one pocket and a smartphone tucked in the other, Patricio Fink recently struck the kind of deal that's feeding the rise of a new kind of money — a virtual currency whose oscillations have pulled geeks and speculators alike through stomach-churning highs and lows.

The Argentine software developer was dealing in bitcoins — getting an injection of the cybercurrency in exchange for a wad of real greenbacks he handed to a pair of Australian tourists in a Buenos Aires Starbucks. The visitors wanted spending money at black market rates without the risk of getting roughed up in one of the Argentine capital's black market exchanges. Fink wanted to pad his electronic wallet.

In the safety of the coffee shop, the tourists transferred Fink their bitcoins through an app on their smartphone and walked away with the cash.

"It's something that is new," said Fink, 24, who described the deal to The Associated Press over Skype. "And it's working."

It's transactions like these — up to 70,000 of them each day over the past month — that have propelled bitcoins from the world of Internet oddities to the cusp of mainstream use, a remarkable breakthrough for a currency which made its online debut only four years ago. When they first began pinging across the Internet, bitcoins could buy you almost nothing. Now, there's almost nothing bitcoins can't buy. From hard drugs to hard currency, songs to survival gear, cars to consumer goods, retailers are rushing to welcome the virtual currency whose unofficial symbol is a dollar-like, double-barred B.

One Bitcoin supporter with a unique perspective on the boom might be Mike Caldwell, a 35-year-old software engineer based in suburban Utah. Caldwell is unusual insofar as he mints physical versions of bitcoins at his residence, cranking out thousands of homemade tokens with codes protected by tamper-proof holographic seals — a retro-futuristic kind of prepaid cash.

Caldwell acknowledges that the physical coins were intended as novelty items, minted for the benefit of people "who had a hard time grasping a virtual coin."

But that hasn't held back business. Caldwell said he'd minted between 16,000 and 17,000 coins in the year and a half that he's been in business. Demand is so intense he recently announced he was accepting clients by invitation only.

Some may wonder whether Caldwell's coins will one day be among the few physical reminders of an expensive fad that evaporated into the electronic ether — perhaps the result of a breakdown in its electronic architecture, or maybe after a crackdown by government regulators.

When asked, Caldwell acknowledged that bitcoin might be in for a bumpy ride. But he drew the analogy between the peer-to-peer currency enthusiasts who hope to shake the finance world in the 2010s with the generation of peer-to-peer movie swappers who challenged the entertainment industry's business model in the 2000s.

"Movie pirates always win the long game against Hollywood," he said. "Bitcoin works the same way."

Dick Johnson writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see: BITCOIN: ANOTHER ONLINE CURRENCY (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n21a06.html)
BITCOINS GO FROM VIRTUAL TO PHYSICAL (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n45a22.html)

1640 BAY PSALM BOOK TO BE AUCTIONED

On 26 November 2013, Sotheby’s New York will auction one of the finest surviving copies of the Bay Psalm Book – the first book printed in what is now the United States of America. The Congregationalist Puritans who emigrated to Massachusetts Bay in search of religious freedom quickly set about to translate and produce a version of the Book of Psalms that was a closer paraphrase of the Hebrew original than the one they had carried from England. The first edition of the resulting Bay Psalm Book was printed in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1640. No example of the Bay Psalm Book has appeared at auction since 1947, when another copy achieved a record auction price for any printed book at the time – many multiples of what other icons of printing achieved in that period, including the Gutenberg Bible, Shakespeare’s First Folio and Audubon’s Birds of America. The present example of the Bay Psalm Book from the Old South Church’s collection comes to auction at Sotheby’s New York with a pre-sale estimate of $15/30 million. “The Bay Psalm Book is a mythical rarity. Unseen on the marketplace for more than two generations, it has become too rare to collect. Yet here it is today, this modest little book printed in the American wilderness but embodying the values that created our nation: political freedom and religious liberty.”

To read the complete article, see: Sotheby's New York to auction the world's most valuable book: The Bay Psalm Book (artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=61893#.UWocGbWNo0E)

JAMES JOYCE COIN QUOTATION ERROR

A silver €10 coin issued by Ireland's central bank to commemorate James Joyce's Ulysses misquotes a line from the modernist masterpiece.

The new coin features a portrait of the author's face and a short quotation taken from the book's third chapter, into which an extra word has mistakenly been added.

The coin was launched at a private event at Newman House, St Stephen's Green – Joyce's alma mater when he was a student at University College Dublin.

The central bank's governor, Patrick Honohan, said: "The coin's design, combining portrait and concept in an original manner, reflects Joyce's standing as one of the leading figures in the modernist movement."

The quote comes from a scene when one of the two main characters, Stephen Dedalus, is walking along Sandymount Strand in the writer's native Dublin.

Joyce wrote: "Ineluctable modality of the visible: at least that if no more, thought through my eyes. Signatures of all things I am here to read."

However, on the €10 (£8.50) coin the extra word "that" is inserted into the second sentence.

To read the complete article, see: What a Blooming mistake: Irish coin misquotes line from Ulysses (www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/11/ireland-james-joyce-coin-misquote)

The Central Bank of Ireland has said it regrets an error on a new commemorative coin that misquotes James Joyce.

The 10 euro coin features an image of the writer and a quote from his groundbreaking novel, Ulysses, which contains an extra word.

The Central Bank said that the coin was an artistic representation of the author and the text, and was "not intended as a literal representation".

However, the bank said it accepted there was an issue with its internal processes and was reviewing those processes.

The coin remains on sale, but the bank said it would inform purchasers of the error in advance.

Anyone who has already bought the coin and wishes to return it, will be given a full refund of the 46 euro purchase price.

To read the complete article, see: James Joyce: Bank regrets 'error' on coin (www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-22105076)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: IRELAND'S NEW 10 EURO JAMES JOYCE COIN (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n14a19.html)

A James Joyce commemorative coin featuring a misquote from the author’s masterpiece, Ulysses, proved popular with collectors when it went on sale yesterday.

A spokesman for the bank said yesterday evening that about 7,000 coins, of which 10,000 had been minted, had already been sold.

“He’s quite a popular figure so there was always going to be demand for it,” the spokesman said.

The special €10 coin depicts the first lines of chapter three of the novel pouring out of the top of the writer’s head in a stream of consciousness.

Joyce’s words read: “Ineluctable modality of the visible: at least that if no more, thought through my eyes. Signatures of all things I am here to read.” However, the Central Bank coin mistakenly includes the word ‘that’ in the second sentence.

Earlier the bank said it regretted the error but added “the coin is an artistic representation of the author and text and not intended as a literal representation”.

Anyone who purchased the collectors’ item – at a cost of €46 – was informed of the error in the text and “anyone who may already have purchased the coin and wishes to return it will be facilitated with a full refund”, the Central Bank said in a statement.

To read the complete article, see: Flawed Joyce coin proves popular (www.irishtimes.com/news/flawed-joyce-coin-proves-popular-1.1357767)

SOME WRITER-THEMED COIN DESIGNS

Maironio (Jonas Maciulis), Lithuanian poet

Rudolf Blaumanis, Latvian writer

THE 500 EURO ‘BIN LADEN’ BANKNOTE

The banknotes are called by many Europeans as ‘bin Ladens’ because they are rarely seen by ordinary people, as they are often the illicit currency of criminals.

The debate to discontinue the €500 ($655) note is being revisited, this time by Bank of America analyst and former International Monetary Fund employee Athanasios Vamvakidis, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In a research note released on Tuesday, Vamvakidis argues pulling the high denomination bill from circulation would lead to a slight depreciation in the euro, which would benefit local exports, and in turn, increase GDP. Above all, discontinuing the banknote would directly target organized crime.

Because many of the banknotes are tied up in contraband activity, this creates a ‘store of value’ according to Vamvakidis, and is the core problem with the €500 bill, as they end up as ‘mattress money’. This money doesn’t circulate through the economy in day to day transactions, and for this reason they should be done away with.

A European Central Bank study found only one-third of these notes are actually used for transactions the rest lay dormant.

The €500 notes were first printed in 2002, and since their introduction, only one-third are in circulation, according to a study by the ECB. Because of their high value, they are used for saving, not spending.

To read the complete article, see: Time to pull the plug on the ‘bin Laden’ 500 euro note – Bank of America (rt.com/business/banknotes-euro-criminals-bank-628/)

ARTICLE COVERS PALESTINE CURRENCY BOARD NOTE SALE

An Arab buyer in London has paid £65,000 (almost $100,000) for a rare Palestinian banknote that was auctioned this week in the British capital.

The note, which was offered by Spink Auctions on Thursday, appeared for the first time in 40 years and was on sale with another 1,690 rare notes, many of them Palestinian.

The notes go back to the years between 1929 and 1944, before the creation of the state of Israel. Many of the other notes were from the Gulf, some dating back to the early stage of the Saudi Arabian state and others issued from Qatar, Dubai, and Kuwait.

The 100-pound Palestinian note, issued in 1929, is extremely rare and has attracted great attention at the auction, Ayman Abdou, an expert in rare banknotes said this week.

“The price which the note was sold at is not actually that expensive,” he told Al Arabiya.

“At the time, this note could have bought an entire plot of land in the most beautiful parts of Palestine,” Abdou said.

Abdou also said the note was particularly special because it remained in good condition, adding that its serial number is “A000000.”

“The notes that have zeros are usually very rare. They are printed to be distributed amongst central banks across the world. This means it had been rare since the day it was issued,” he said.

Spink did not name the names of its sellers and buyers for confidentiality, and so the identity of the Arab buyer has not been revealed.

To read the complete article, see: Rare Palestinian banknote bought for almost $100,000 in London (english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/13/Palestinian
-banknote-bought-for-almost-100-000-in-London-.html)

THE FUNDAMENTAL UNITS: BIG PHOTOS OF LITTLE COINS

Did you know that it costs the US Mint 2 cents to produce every 1 cent coin due to the cost of materials and production? Countries such as Canada have already done away with their lowest denomination coins due to their costs and lack of usefulness.

As these “worthless” coins cause debates in their governments about whether or not they should be abolished, photographer Martin John Callanan is on a mission to save them… not as a currency, but rather in photographs.

Callanan is working on a photo project titled The Fundamental Units, which is a series of extremely large prints showing the lowest value coins of countries around the world. The goal is to photograph the fundamental coins of 166 different countries.

He’s not just using any ol’ camera to shoot the images. Instead, he has teamed up with the National Physical Laboratory in Teddington, UK, which runs what Callanan says is “Europe’s best microscope” (it’s an infinite focus 3D microscope).

Each coin is photographed with 4,000 individual (and tiny) exposures, and it takes three days of processing to turn those individual photos into a single composite photograph weighing 400 megapixels. Printed out, each photo measures 1.2×1.2 meters (~3.9 square feet).

The resulting photographs are meant to shown the “materiality of the coins and all the wear, tear, damage and corrosion.”

To read the complete article, see: Coins of the World Photographed Using Europe’s Best Microscope (petapixel.com/2013/04/09/coins-of-the-world-photographed-using-europes-best-microscope/)

To learn more about The Fundamental Units, see: units.greyisgood.eu

VIDEO DISCUSSES ELIMINATION OF THE CANADIAN NICKEL

Speaking of lowest denomination coins, Dick Johnson writes:

To read the complete article, see: Is the nickel next on the chopping block? (www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsb3tfLqtOY)

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