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About Us The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit association devoted to the study and enjoyment of numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at coinbooks.org Subscriptions Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers can go to the following web page Subscribe You may Unsubscribe Here Membership There is a membership application available on the web site Membership Application To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Print/Digital membership is $40 to addresses in the U.S., and $60 elsewhere. A digital-only membership is available for $25. For those without web access, write to: Jeff Dickerson, Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society P. O. Box 578, Weatherford, TX 76086 Asylum For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact Jeff at this email address: treasurer@coinbooks.org Submissions To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com BUY THE BOOK BEFORE THE COIN Sale Calendar 02/28/2026 - Kolbe & Fanning - George F. Kolbe Anniversary Auction 04/25/2026 Workman's Book Sale 8

 

Content presented in The E-Sylum is not necessarily researched or independently fact-checked, and views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.

WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM FEBRUARY 22, 2026

New subscribers this week include: Dan Rice, courtesy Nathan Markowitz; Gary Forgue, President of the Michigan Huron Coin Club, courtesy Steve Starlust; and Fox Besch. Welcome aboard! We now have 6,703 subscribers.

Thank you for reading The E-Sylum. If you enjoy it, please send me the email addresses of friends you think may enjoy it as well and I'll send them a subscription. Contact me at whomren@gmail.com anytime regarding your subscription, or questions, comments or suggestions about our content.

This week we open with a new Asylum issue, two numismatic literature sales, two new books, a periodical, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, and more.

Other topics this week include Italian "Miniassegni" scrip notes, chopmarked coins, 1888 views on the 1804 Dollar, collectible pocket mirrors, fixed price and auction offerings, Olympic medal values and where winners store them, and a lesson from Bob Evans on why you should pay attention in algebra and trigonometry class.

To learn more about Edwin L. Hobart’s suppressed Denver Mint booklet, William E. Du Bois’s 1846 Pledges of History, the new Mega Red X, U.S. paper money errors, the 1923 National Sculpture Society Exhibition, finding the wreck of the SS Central America, the Charles I Crown, and numismatic nepo babies, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

 

ASYLUM SPRING 2026 ISSUE PUBLISHED

Welcome to The Asylum's Spring 2026 digital edition.

In this issue:

• "'Glitters of Gold': Edwin L. Hobart’s Suppressed Denver Mint Booklet" By Roger W. Burdette
• "My Spark Book: An Illustrated History of U.S. Commemorative Coinage by Don Taxay" By Mike Costanzo
• "Eric Newman and the Case of the London Forgeries" By Julia Casey
• "Book Review: Siege Notes of the World: 1793-1913 by Lawrence Korchnak, Ph.D." Reviewed by Greg Bennick

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KOLBE & FANNING SALE 176 MORE HIGHLIGHTS

The 50th anniversary auction of Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers is being held on Saturday, February 28, 2026. The sale celebrates the 50th anniversary of the first mail-bid sale held by our founder, George Frederick Kolbe, on February 28, 1976. The sale features a wide array of rare and out-of-print works on ancient, world and U.S. numismatics, including a selection of works from Kolbe’s personal library.

Some highlights of the sale include:

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LANG NUMISMATIC LITERATURE AUCTION 10

Please note: our 10th auction of numismatic literature will take place on February 24, 2026, on Auex. With 1.278 lots, we would like to draw your attention to the following highlights in particular:

The auction catalogs include not only numerous catalogs from the duplicates of the BCD library, but also personal copies belonging to the respective auctioneers. Lot 1022 is particularly noteworthy. The original Gnecchi collection iThe auction catalogs include not only numerous catalogs from the duplicates of the BCD library, but also personal copies belonging to the respective auctioneers. Lot 1022 is particularly noteworthy. The original Gnecchi collection is rarely offered for sale, but as a personal copy belonging to the auctioneer "Hamburger," it is a truly unique item. It contains not only the hammer prices and results, but also information on rival bidders and bidders present. This makes this lot a significant source of information. Other hand copies are lot numbers 1028 (Ford and Leeds collections), No. 1030 (Ebner collection, Württemberg) and No. 1203 (collections of a South German collector and Sallmann).

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NEW BOOK: TENTH EDITION MEGA RED X

Whitman Brands™, a leading full-service provider of data, media, and product distribution for the numismatics and collectibles marketplace, proudly announces the return of the legendary Mega Red: A Guide Book of United States Coins, Deluxe Edition in an all-new tenth edition—bolder and more powerful than ever.

Mega Red X delivers the most comprehensive and fully updated U.S. coin catalog available today. This supersized companion to the Official Red Book® features more coins, more varieties, deeper pricing, and fresh research—including a landmark special feature covering more than 130 years of $5 Half Eagle gold coins (1795–1929).

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NEW BOOK: CATALOGUE OF ITALIAN MINIASSEGNI

Massimo Palermo:
I Miniassigni –
Come non li avete mai visti

The Miniassigni –
Like you've never seen them before

Nomisma spa, Serravalle, 2022
Hardcover, 17 x 24 cm,
522 pages, full color throughout.
ISBN: 978-88-943358-4-2

Price: 70 EUR
Contact: https://www.nomismaweb.com/en/

These coins were issued by many Italian banks in the 1970s as a substitute for small change. At that time, Italy suffered from an acute shortage of coins due to a lack of minting capacity. Anyone who has ever vacationed in Italy when the lire was still the currency knows that 1000 lire was roughly equivalent to one Deutsche Mark.

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PERIODICAL: CHOPMARK NEWS DECEMBER 2025

Chopmark News
Vol. 26, Issue 2 | December 2025

From the Editor

New Members

Meet our Members:
Nick Ostroy

Coins from the Nick Ostroy Collection

Coins from Our Members' Collections

Chop Marks on Trade Dollars: Should We Avoid this Damage or Embrace it as Part of the Coin's Journey?
By: C. Maisano

Organized Chaos - Chopmarks on Foreign Coins By: S. Tai

Recent Chopmark Books
By: C. Gullberg

Blood Money
By: E. Brothers

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NNP ADDS 2026 FUN PRESENTATION VIDEOS

FUN Convention Presentation Videos on Newman Portal

Courtesy of Steve Martin, Florida United Numismatists (FUN) board member, NNP has added videos from the educational program presentations delivered at the recent January convention. Sessions from the January event include Bianca Bart speaking on paper money errors, Bill Jones speaking on U.S. half eagles, David Harper with his ever-popular "numismatic predictions" for the coming year, and others. This year’s winter FUN convention felt like a gathering of the entire U.S. collector community - but for those who couldn’t make the trip, these videos are now available to enjoy.

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VIDEO: WHO ARE THE EAC "BOYS OF '94?"

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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: FEBRUARY 22, 2026

How Opium Funded The British Empire
Anil Bohora writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
Opium Inc. How A Global Drug Trade Funded The British Empire (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58941231-opium-inc-how-a-global-drug-trade-funded-the-british-empire)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
THE TRADE DOLLAR'S LINK TO OPIUM TRAFFICKING (https://www.coinbooks.org/v29/esylum_v29n07a21.html)

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1888 VIEWS OF THE 1804 DOLLAR

In February 1888, a correspondent from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch traveled to New York City and interviewed a group of coin dealers about the state of the hobby. Previously in the E-Sylum, I wrote about how Harlan Page Smith used this opportunity to elaborate on how he obtained his prized 1822 Half Eagle. The transcription below is from the first part of the Post-Dispatch article, in which, at lunch, the group discussed the known facts and gossip concerning the legendary 1804 dollars.

As will be seen below, most of the information provided to the reporter about 1804 dollars comes from Richard Cogan (1845-1939), the eldest son of a clan of children born to the grand and most estimable dealer, Edward Cogan (1803-1884). Though perhaps we are all to be considered children of this "Father of Coin Collecting."

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SUMMER SEMINAR MILITARY NUMISMATICS SCHOLARSHIPS

Scholarships Available for ANA’s Summer Seminar 2026 WWII Military Numismatics Class

Interested in attending the WWII Military Numismatics class taught by Fred Schwan and Joseph Boling? Held the 2nd week of ANA’s famed Summer Seminar, from June 27- July 2, 2026, this class will be educational and fun! Below is a summary of the class.

Allied military franc notes were secretly printed in the United States for the D-Day invasion of France, shipped to England, and paid to the troops mere hours before the assault. To hold one is to touch another time—history in your hands! Vast numbers of military and emergency issues were produced during World War II, and their study is fascinating. The issues are remarkably diverse in purpose, use, design, and production. Most were paper, but coins were also created. United States military payment certificates, Allied military currency, and Japanese invasion money are covered in- depth. Axis issues in Europe are included. Most of these series pose many questions and mysteries, making for studies that range from introductory discussions to cutting edge research.

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VOCABULARY TERM: SHEFFIELD PLATE

Sheffield Plate. An early form of silver bonded to copper by fusion, then rolled to desired thickness. While the process was invented by Thomas Boulsover about 1743, it was generally replaced by electroplating about 1850. Electroplating did not require the rolling, as the object could be completely fabricated in base metal then silverplated. Rolled gold is similar to the process of Sheffield plate and is still made to this day, but the modern technology of clad metals has surpassed all early forms of bonding by fusion.

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COLLECTIBLE POCKET MIRRORS

There are thousands of collectible pocket mirrors and perhaps a hundred ways to collect them. Some people collect items that fit a theme like American Indians, transportation, saloons, cigars or pretty women. Some may collect items from their city, state or region. Mirrors overlap into other collectible areas. Examples are mirrors from political campaigns, world’s fairs and Coke.

I did an eBay search on February 19, 2026, for "advertising pocket mirror" and got more than 4400 listings. I suspect fewer than 5% would be considered numismatic.

If the mirror says "GOOD FOR 10 CENTS IN TRADE" it has a stated value and qualifies like metal "GOOD FOR" tokens. If it states GOOD FOR ONE DRINK" it also qualifies as a "GOOD FOR" trade token. Average costs to merchants was six cents.

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TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 12.1

Three of us comprised the core of the Project’s early "Home Office" in Columbus. Project founder Tommy Thompson and I were joined by Tommy’s friend from high school, Barry Schatz. Barry was our communicator, writing Tommy’s letters to his investment partners, and assuming the role of a second company spokesperson. Tommy’s thoughts didn’t always coalesce into words understandable to "normal people." So, Barry translated Tommy for the investors and the wider world. Often, I had to translate Tommy for Barry, the scientific and engineering jargon and concepts being nebulous or obscure, and sometimes fanciful.

Here are the three of us, on the bridge of our ship a few years later, in 1989.

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TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 12.2

Our experience in 1987, using the prototype version of Nemo as a towed camera sled, had taught us that pinpointing the exact location of anomalies imaged by the SeaMARC 1A sonar fish towed miles behind the mothership is no simple matter, even if the mothership has precise navigation records. Fortunately, the high-resolution pass that had imaged Site FA had also imaged another fairly nearby anomaly on both that pass and a second reciprocal pass in the opposite direction. The sonar operators apparently had dismissed the importance of the "large geological feature" while focusing on a much smaller and brighter object. But, their chasing of this ultimately unimportant feature gave me additional, comparative numbers allowing me to calculate the "layback" much more accurately. Combining the course of the mothership with the winch-wrap counts and the bathymetry (depth contours,) gave me enough to tell how far the sonar fish was tracking behind the Pine River, and so we had a good estimate of where we thought we would find Site Foxtrot Alpha.

Tommy had Alan Scott check my math. I didn’t mind. Alan, our key electrical engineer, C++ programmer, etc., had much better math chops than I did, fluency with calculus and all that. But the current problem was survey stuff, triangles and angles and numbers, algebra and trigonometry, part and parcel of my academic study and professional practice as a geologist. I presented my plot and figures to Alan, and he concurred with my numbers. We drew up a trackline, a path along the bottom over which we would tow Nemo a few meters above the bottom, while we learned the ground truth about Site FA.

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ATLAS NUMISMATICS SELECTIONS: FEBRUARY 22, 2026

1084996 | ROMAN IMPERIAL. SYRIA. Antioch. Nero. (Emperor, 54-68 AD). Struck 63 AD. AR Tetradrachm. NGC AU? (About Uncirculated ?) Strike 5/5 Surface 4/5. 25mm. 15.32gm. NEPON KAISAP-SEBASTOS. Laureate bust of Nero wearing aegis, right ETOYS-BIP•I (dates). Eagle standing facing on thunderbolt, head right, tail left, wings spread; palm branch in right field. RPC 4189; Prieur 89.

Dated Regnal Year 10 and Year 112 of the Caesarean Era (AD 63/4). Given the star designation by NGC for exceptional eye appeal.

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NUMISMAGRAM MEDAL SELECTIONS: FEBRUARY 22, 2026

103272 | SWITZERLAND. Frauenfeld. Silver Shooting Medal. Issued 1890. Commemorating the federal shooting festival in Frauenfeld in Thurgau, from 20–30 July (45mm, 38.49 g, 12h). By Hughes Bovy in Geneva.

HEIL DIR HELVETIA, personification of Helvetia standing left, head right, holding a sword and shield; Frauenfeld Castle in the background to the left; to right, personification of Thurgau seated left, resting hand upon a garnished cantonal coat-of-arms // EIDGENÖSSISCHES SCHÜTZENFEST IN FRAUENFELD / JULI 1890, civic coat-of-arms over laurel and oak branches, and rifles crossed in saltire. Richter 1250b.

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HERITAGE: SEATED LIBERTY SHOWCASE

1837 H10C No Stars, Small Date (Flat Top 1) AU50+ PCGS. The Plus designation on this piece is certainly intriguing, though I do wonder if the PCGS graders deemed this piece finer than the typical AU50 because of the wear level or because of the toning. In both areas, the coin is exceptional. It also represents the highly sought after No Stars design type, which is my personal favorite Seated Liberty design variation. The collector seeking a simple but attractive type coin need look no further.

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KUENKER AUCTION SALES 438-441, PART TWO

German States

You will find coins from the German States spread across three catalogs:

• Gold coins and medals in Künker 439,

• Silver coins and medals with the Dr. Wolfgang Kümpfel Collection of Saxony, Coburg and Gotha in Künker 441,

• as well as Württemberg rarities from the Gaiser Collection in Künker 440.

And these are just a few highlights on the subject of the German States.

In this auction preview, we present just a few of the many outstanding pieces. From Prussia, for instance, there is an award medal of the Leopoldinisch-Carolinische Akademie that was presented to Professor Adolf Fick in 1893 (No. 2380). Adolf Fick was arguably the most important physiologist of the 19th century. He worked both mathematically and experimentally, breaking new ground in medical research. Even today, cardiologists are familiar with the "Fick principle" and physicists with "Fick’s laws of diffusion". His importance to the development of modern medicine is demonstrated by the fact that his Wikipedia article is available in 33 languages.

A Nuremberg gold medal (No. 2458) commemorates a key event in monetary history during the Thirty Years’ War. On 15 May 1624, a "Probationstag" – a meeting to test coins – was held in Regensburg. At this gathering, the three southwestern German imperial circles of Swabia, Franconia and Bavaria agreed on a new, fixed exchange rate between small coins and coins of stable value, such as talers and ducats. This brought an end to the devastating period of currency instability during the financial crisis called "Kipper und Wipper" in the south of the empire, which had caused lasting damage to trade due to the unpredictable and poor quality of the currency. The fact that the three major imperial cities of Augsburg, Regensburg and Nuremberg guaranteed compliance with the convention – at least within their territories – can be considered a significant diplomatic achievement.

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WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: FEBRUARY 22, 2026

On Tuesday, February 17 I headed out from home for the monthly dinner meeting of my Northern Virginia numismatic social group Nummis Nova. Our host was Steve Bishop, who'd chosen the Southeast Impression restaurant in Fairfax. It was the first day of the 2026 Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year). The place was packed and we were the only non-Asians in the building. They put us in a room at the back. The food was marvelous - good pick, Steve!

I was the first to arrive and was quickly joined by Robert Hoppensteadt. The table filled quickly and we had to squeeze in another chair. Julian Leidman arrived and sat between us at the head of the table. Other attendees were Steve, Mike Packard, Erik Douglas, Jon Radel, and my guests Kellen Hoard and Fox Besch. Fox is a fellow student with Kellen at George Washington University who studies archeology and has an interest in British coinage.

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SHIPWRECK COINS WEREN’T ALWAYS SO DESIRABLE

Twenty of the ships managed to ride out the storm that day and the next, but eight were lost, including the Atocha and her sister ship, the Santa Margarita. Those two were swept into the Florida Keys, where the Santa Margarita ran aground and wrecked on the reefs. The Atocha was overcome by waves and sunk in deeper water. Of the 265 lives onboard, only five survived.

Spanish salvage efforts recovered most of the Santa Margarita’s treasure over the next decade by sending enslaved people down in brass diving bells, killing many of them in the process and writing off their lives as business expenses. But the vast treasures in the Atocha remained out of reach, 55 feet below the surface, for the next 350 years.

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WHEN AUSTRALIA ADOPTED THE DOLLAR

It was a jingle that became firmly stuck in the minds of people across Australia.

In come the dollars, and in come the cents.

To replace the pounds and the shillings and the pence.

Set to the tune of Click Go the Shears, the earworm was sung by animated cartoon character Dollar Bill to educate the public about the transition from imperial to decimal currency.

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HAYM SALOMON AND GEORGE WASHINGTON MEDAL

In August 1781, the Continental Army trapped Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis in the Virginia coastal town of Yorktown. George Washington and the main army, and Count de Rochambeau with his French army, decided to march from the Hudson Highlands to Yorktown and deliver the final blow. But Washington’s war chest was completely empty, as was that of Congress. Without food, uniforms and supplies, Washington’s troops were close to mutiny. Washington determined that he needed at least $20,000 to finance the campaign. When he was told that no funds and no credit were available, Washington said: "Send for Haym Salomon." Salomon raised $20,000, and with that money, Washington conducted the Yorktown campaign, which proved to be the final battle of the Revolution.

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AMSA AMERICAN MEDALS OF THE YEAR

Geer Steyn and Eva-Maria Wohn tied for the 2024 medal of the year. It is the first time since the inception of the AMY that a tie has been declared.

Geer Steyn was awarded first place for his evocative medal Van Pallandt in honor of Charlotte Dorothée van Pallandt (9-04-1898 to 30-04-1997). "The portrait medal is based on my admiration for her work and my personal meetings with her," Geer stated, describing the obverse. "She is looking downwards to find the expression of her introvert character, but with an open mind. An elderly lady with a very determined royal appearance." He describes the reverse as, "Modelling an echo of a monument she had created in 1968 of Queen Wilhelmina, who had lived in exile in London during WWII. I included no feet, only a base, and I deliberately did not close the surrounding of the background to emphasize the expression of a freestanding figure in the public space. Her name and birth and death date finish the four edges of the medal."

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JIMMY CARTER GOLD INAUGURAL MEDAL OFFERED

Official Presidential inaugural medal by Julian Hoke Harris, minted by The Franklin Mint, one of four produced in this oversized (70 mm diameter) format, weight 466 grams (over 14 oz. T. actual gold), edge marked 24kt (XRF tests closer to 23kt, a second analysis read 98.6% fineness), serial numbered "1", presented to President Carter by the Inaugural Committee; with original box

Provenance: The Estate of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter

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WHAT'S THE RESALE VALUE OF AN OLYMPIC MEDAL?

The medals athletes win during the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan could be far more valuable than in past games because of soaring gold and silver prices.

Olympic gold medals are no longer made of solid gold. The last time a pure gold medal was awarded was at the 1912 Summer Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden, Bobby Eaton, an Olympics memorabilia expert at Boston-based RR Auction, told CBS News. Now, the International Olympic Committee only requires that gold medals consist of at least 92.5% silver, according to IOC guidelines.

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WHERE MANY OLYMPIANS KEEP THEIR MEDALS

Olympic medals are among the most coveted prizes in sports. Athletes can spend decades in their pursuit, and only the greatest in the world succeed.

So it might be surprising to learn that after the sweat and tears, the triumph and glory, so many of these treasures tend to end up in the same unremarkable place: a sock drawer.

"My parents wanted me to get a safe for it, but that sounded ridiculous," said Alex Hall, 27, a slopestyle skier, who stores his hard-won gold medal from the 2022 Games beneath a pile of socks and thermal underwear. "It hasn’t seen sunlight in a long time," added Mr. Hall, who now needs to find space for the silver medal he won last week.

Mikaela Shiffrin, one of the greatest Alpine skiers of all time and the owner of three Olympic medals, is a sock drawer person. So is Ryan Lochte, whose 12 medals make him the second most decorated male swimmer in the history of the Games. The IKEA dresser drawer where Christopher Mazdzer keeps his 2018 silver medal holds not only assorted hosiery but also other important possessions like belts and ties.

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OLYMPIC MEDALS FALLING OFF THEIR RIBBONS

Woo! Snap! Clang!

That’s the sound of an Olympic medal detaching from its ribbon and plummeting to the floor as its proud new owner jumps in celebration, and it has become an unwelcome addition to the Milan-Cortina Games amid the cheers and national anthems. Multiple athletes have shared stories of their medals breaking off their ribbons shortly after receiving them — sometimes mid-celebration.

Olympic organizers are scrambling to find out what the problem is.

"We are going to pay particular attention to the medals, and obviously this is something we want to be perfect when the medal is handed over because this is one of the most important moments for the athletes," Andrea Francisi, the chief games operation officer for these Olympics, said when asked about the broken medals at a news conference on Monday.

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ABOUT THIS ISSUE: FEBRUARY 22, 2026

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