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V15 2012 INDEX       E-SYLUM ARCHIVE

The E-Sylum: Volume 15, Number 7, February 12, 2012, Article 9

NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: FEBRUARY 12, 2012

Coin World Article Links Fixed
Tom Caldwell, Beth Deisher and others noticed that last week's links to two Coin World articles weren't working. Oops! I missed a quote mark and messed up the HTML code. We've fixed our archive, and thanks to Beth, here are the specific links to the articles referenced:

To read the Wilson dollar story: www.coinworld.com/articles/wilson-dollar-medal-obverse-die-surfaces/

To read the Lee Guest Commentary: www.coinworld.com/articles/current-organizational-structure-impedes-ana-/

How The Internet Helps Auction Consignors
Martin Kaplan writes:

One of your readers in last week's issue lamented the demise of auction formats of years past where the presence of famous collectors bidding strategies and methods brought excitement to the room. As a seller at auction, the Internet has, in my opinion, been the greatest addition to the auction format. Knowledgeable buyers now do not have to travel, an expensive proposition, to have access to every significant auction anywhere in the world. Buyers have a hard, if not impossible, time "ripping" an item when buyers are now global. This is much fairer to sellers and I welcome the Internet and the continued advances we will enjoy because of technology.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: MORE THOUGHTS ON OLD-TIME COIN AUCTIONS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n06a15.html)

On Greek Paper Money
Joe Boling writes:

In response to Martin Purdy's observation of the excessive zeros on the listing for Greece P135 in the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money: in the 13th edition the error is still there. Tarassouleas' book on Greek notes does not transliterate the denominations - it simply illustrates each note and expects the reader to read them. But the book on WWII Greek emissions published by the Mining Credit Corporation Scientific Section, without apparent byline, gives the denominations of P234 and P235 as 10,000,000,000 and 100,000,000,000 drachmai. The KP publication has an extra cluster of zeros for the second note (which we westerners would read as 100 trillion drachmai).

The latter of the Greek books, incidentally, is a bibliophile's delight - all the notes are illustrated with real notes tipped into the book (25 total). I don't know what the print run was, but apparently they ran out of the 10 July 1941 100 drachmai note - that one shows up in dealer junk boxes as a black and white halftone marked "facsimile" on the left face. I am told that some copies of the book have that reproduction inserted where the real note was supposed to appear.

One reader reached out to a Greek retired economics professor to confirm that a billion in the Greek system does equal a billion American. -Editor

Pinches and The Franklin Mint
On another topic Joe Boling writes:

John Pinches medal I adore the Pinches medal that has been written about the past two weeks. Someplace in my unaccessioned purchases, buried now since I moved from Seattle, is a Pinches reproduction of the Pistrucci Waterloo medal. I had thought it was fairly recent - later than 1969. Apparently not, unless the Franklin Mint continued to use the Pinches name for a while after acquiring the firm. What a shame that they declined to serve clients the way Pinches had. They could still be in the medal-making business.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: JOHN PINCHES, LTD, MEDALISTS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n06a18.html)

Annie Oakley's Shot Coins
David Lange writes:

Rick Sage commented that the "shot" coins and tokens were all from the 19th Century, but the penny with an unreadable date is of George V, so it can't be any earlier than 1911. The first two numerals of the date are, in fact, readable as 19, though I couldn't make out the second two.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: WHERE DID ANNIE OAKLEY'S BULLETS COME DOWN? (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n06a20.html)

The Salvador Dali Easter Plate
I passed along this note to Joe Boling from web site visitor Cassandra Crownover, who writes:

I read a note that you wrote about the stand alone jewelry that was created from the Salvador Dali Easter Plate in the 1970s. You said you had bought your wife one. My grandfather bought two, one for my mom and one for my grandmother, and I was wondering where I might find more information about them.

Joe hasn't found another. Have any E-Sylum readers seen one? Here's the original note from Joe, published May 16, 2004:

"In response to Dick Johnson's report on Salvador Dail as a medallist, he also designed a sterling silver Easter plate for the Lincoln Mint, in the mid-'70s if memory serves. It had an abstract crucifix and an egg near the bottom edge. The crucifix design was also struck as a stand-alone piece of jewelry, one of which I gave to my wife. She left it in a motel room about 1984, and I have been searching for a replacement ever since. Anyone know where one is?"

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: SALVADOR DALI, MEDALIST (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v07n20a10.html)

Notes from Dave Hirt
Dave Hirt writes:

I'm spending the winter in Europe, and the last two weeks have been REAL winter - cold and snow. While at an antique gallery I noticed two chairs that would look great if they were in my library.

Dave Hirt library chair Dave Hirt library settee

I saw my name mentioned in last week's issue in connection with Frank Van Zandt. I did replace him as an officer in the Bibliomania Society. During the transition I had to call him several times. As we talked about numismatic literature, I think he was surprised at my knowledge of dealers, auction sales and auction catalogs.

After that he started to call me every now and then. While an interesting person to talk to, these calls were never short, lasting between an hour to an hour and a half. He often mentioned what seemed to be almost daily calls to George Kolbe. I thought to myself that if those calls were as lengthy as the ones to me, I don't know how George got any work done.

But Is it a Real Copy?
Regarding the item on itinerant coin buyers touting obvious copies as genuine coins, Ken Berger writes:

I think the most tell-tale sign of the coins being fakes (besides their obvious appearance) is that the article never states that the traveling coin buyers actually bought the coins!

Alan Luedeking writes:

On the subject of fake coins posing as real, thought readers would get a kick out of this one, in an NGC holder certifying it as authentic, despite being clearly marked "COPY" at the top. This coin sold on 2/6/2012 in eBay listing as item number 200707578059. Caveat emptor!! I guess that for the folks at NGC stamping a coin "COPY" constitutes "environmental damage"!

COPY in NGC holder COPY in NGC holder closeup

COPY in NGC holder closeup

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: A TALE OF TRAVELING COIN BUYERS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n06a12.html)

Who Picked Up The Super Bowl Coin Toss Medal?

Superbowl 2012 coin toss
On still another topic Joe Boling writes:

About the Super Bowl coin toss medal, I noticed that after the referee flipped the piece he did not pick it up. I didn't keep watching to see who did. That's the one that's supposed to go to the Hall of Fame.

Hmmm. SOMEONE must have picked it up, but probably not on camera. -Editor

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: THE HIGHLAND MINT'S SUPER BOWL COIN TOSS COIN (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n06a24.html)

Wayne Homren, Editor

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The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization promoting numismatic literature. See our web site at coinbooks.org.

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com

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