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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 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 MARCH 1, 2026

New subscribers this week include: Joe Cassano, Donat  Charron, Doris  Duggins, Marty  Hanyckyj, John LePage, David  Morrison, Fred Pasternack, Brian  Pistolese, Raymond Raboin, and Andy  Vacco of the Mansfield Numismatic Society via John Ferreri; Welcome aboard! We now have 6,668 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 book review, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, notes from readers and more.

Other topics this week include 1794 cents, U.S. Postal Notes, multiple auction previews, segmented collars, U.S. Mint artists, another Trump coin design, a short snorter, and fake stories of fake money.

To learn more about one of the largest banknotes in the world, shell medals, collector of elongateds Emilie D. Searle, gold key money, world paper money, the Bury St. Edmund's Hoard, a Silver Center Cent, the Peter Bartlett and Harold Welch collections, the $100 Gold Certificate that became illegal, Una and the Lion, Eric David Custer, and the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

 

BOOK REVIEW: A YEAR IN COPPER: THE 1794 LARGE CENT

After seeing the cover of Robert Powers' new book A Year in Copper: the 1794 Large Cent: History, Provenance, Attribution in last week's edition of the E-Sylum, I decided to purchase a copy. It is Powers' fifteenth in a series on various early US coinage types, with an emphasis on large cents (6 books). It's a strange book for a hardcover edition. It has no title page, no table of contents, no footnotes or endnotes, no ISBN number and no page numbers.

The most useful section consists of descriptions and good, fairly recent photos of each of the NC (non-collectable) varieties. NC is a term coined by William H Sheldon back in 1949 to designate coins that were so rare that many of the most advanced collectors were unlikely to own one.

From there, things go downhill. In discussing the founding of the Mint, he claims that Robert Scot "was the primary orchestrator of the activity at the first US Mint." He was not. That credit belongs to Henry Voigt, the first Chief Coiner and much more. The Mint opened shop in 1792. Scot wasn't even hired until November of 1793, after all of the 1793 coins had been delivered.

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THE U.S. POSTAL NOTES 1883-1894

Kent Halland Publishes The U.S. Postal Notes 1883-1894: How Many Were Issued at Each Post Office?

Between 1883 and 1894 the U.S. post office issued postal notes, which were used to transmit small of amounts of money through the mail. The post office charged three cents for each note, which could be used to forward sums up to five dollars. These items are similar to paper money, and not surprisingly were printed by firms such as the American Bank Note Company. Because most were redeemed upon receipt, few remain today.

Kent Halland has made of study of these notes, focusing on the question of where they were issued and how many remain. By compiling data from over 59,000 known notes and identifying highest serial numbers for 2,679 offices, he is able to account for nearly 48% of all Postal Notes issued, using extrapolation methods to estimate totals for remaining issuing offices.

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VIDEO: CSNS PRESIDENT BRUCE PERDUE

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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: MARCH 1, 2026

More on the 1978 Camp David Accords Peace Memorial Medal
Jim Haas writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
1978 CAMP DAVID ACCORDS PEACE MEMORIAL (https://www.coinbooks.org/v29/esylum_v29n07a26.html)
NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: FEBRUARY 22, 2026 : Reflections from Cairo (https://www.coinbooks.org/v29/esylum_v29n08a10.html)

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VOCABULARY TERM: SHELL

Shell. A very thin medallic item. Shells are struck of sheet metal and have design on one side only. The back side of a shell is usually a recessed negative of the obverse design. Shells are always struck with a single blow and only moderately high relief can be created in this manner. The design, however, cannot have any steep-pitched relief at any point or the metal will shear and break at this point. Shells are either intended to be mounted against a flat surface, to be filled in with some substance, or, joined together to form a hollow piece, as a shell medal.

Creating a shell is a form of embossing. It is like repoussé but instead of being hammered from the back it is diestruck, with a die force applied to the back. Shells are always made uniface. Special dies, called embossing dies, are used: a face die – like any other obverse die produces the design – and a force or back die whose only purpose is to drive the thin gauge metal into the face die. The force is a mirror image of the face die, though somewhat smaller; it is positive or male and the face die is female, all of the same image. (How embossing dies are made is explained under embossing dies.)

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EMILIE D. SEARLE (1917-2018)

If Emilie D. Searle had not issued a personal mirror, it is unlikely that she would be recognized as a hundred-year-old numismatist. She was born in Chicago as Emilie Louise Frances Danielson on August 27, 1917, and died on April 3, 2018, in Vancouver, Washington. That qualifies her as a hundred-year-old.

Qualifying as a numismatist is not as obvious. Her mirror stated that she collected elongated coins. In 1972 she served on the board of directors for the California Collectors of Elongateds. A 1977 story in Coin World included her as helping Ed McClung with his new firm Trademark Castings. Her numismatic experiences were side tracks off the main lines.

The rest of this article will say nothing about numismatics. Public attention came from other areas of her life. The Newspapers.com site has no articles listed for "Emilie Danielson" during 1917-1936, and no engagement or wedding announcement.

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PRIVATE NUMISMATIC MUSEUM IN DHUBRI, INDIA

In Assam's Dhubri lies a unique museum that talks about the history of currency from the era of King Ashoka to the present day. This Museum has rare ancient coins, notes and stamps on display that provide a glimpse into India's monetary past.

Gopal Chandra Saha of Pound Road has been on a mission to collect these rare items since the 1980s. Interestingly, he is neither a historian nor an archaeologist. He is an ordinary street food vendor indulging in this activity purely out of passion.

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STEPHEN ALBUM: AUCTION 54 AND ACCUMULATIONS 4

Stephen Album Rare Coins completed two recent auctions, its premier Auction 54 on January 22-25, 2026 and the accompanying Accumulations & Collections Auction 4 on February 23, 2026. The Premier auction brought prices realized of $2.125 million (including buyer's fees) on an estimate of $1.25 million. The sell-through rate was 94.8%. The Accumulations sale brought $473,000 on an estimate of $285,000 and a remarkable sell-through rate of 100%. The firm's Chief Operating Officer commented: "This was our first auction of any kind to sell 100% of the lots. In addition to that the prices that these large lots achieved came as a great surprise to us. This sale format has proven to be very popular among dealers and collectors."

A few highlights from the Premier auction follow (prices before buyer's fees):

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STACK'S BOWERS: MARCH 2026 COLLECTORS CHOICE

AFGHANISTAN. Da Afghanistan Bank. 100 Afghanis, ND (1939). P-26a. PMG Gem Uncirculated 66 EPQ. Estimate: $300 - $500.

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NOONAN'S TO SELL THE BURY ST. EDMUND'S HOARD

The largest known hoard of Iron Age gold coins to be deposited during the reign of the Iron Age King Dubnovellaunos, who ruled the Trinovantes between 25BC – 10AD, will be offered in an auction at Noonans Mayfair (16 Bolton Street) on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. The 16 coins will be sold individually and are expected to fetch in the region of £25,000.

Known as The Bury St Edmunds hoard, it was found in two parcels by Tom Licence, Professor of Medieval History and Literature at the University of East Anglia, in a field near Bury. In Autumn 2024, Tom, who is 46 years old, discovered 16 full gold Iron Age Staters and one quarter-Stater, and these were promptly reported to the Finds Liaison Officer and were declared treasure. He returned to the site a few months later and found one more Stater.

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SOVEREIGN RARITIES AUCTION XXI

Edward III (1327-77) Edward III (1327-77),gold Noble, Fourth Coinage, London Tower Mint, Treaty Period (1361-69), without flag and omitting FRANC in legend, group B with annulet before E of Edward in legend, ships rigging ropes 3/2, Quatrefoils 3/3, King standing in ship with upright sword and quartered shield of arms, beaded circle surrounding, legend surrounds ED W?RDxx DEIxx GR?xx REXxx ?nGLxx DnSxx hYBx Z x AQT, curule X in REX, rev. initial mark cross potent,E at centre of ornamental cross with lis terminals, crowns over lions in angles, all within a beaded and linear tressure, fleurs in spandrels, legend +IhCxx ?VTEmxxTR?nSIEnSxx PERxx mEDIVxx ILLORVmxx IBAT, last A barred, 7.68g (Schneider 86-87; N.1232; S.1503).Struck from a rusted obverse die with characteristic stippling to background and fields, otherwise well struck with raised die flaws at rudder, a bold very fine.

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SBG SPRING 2026 SHOWCASE U.S. COINS AND AMERICANA

One of the first signs of spring in the numismatic year is the Whitman Spring Expo in Baltimore, MD, and with it Stack's Bowers Galleries' official auction. The Spring 2026 Showcase Auction is replete with incredible collections and laden with rarities spanning American numismatics from the colonial era to the most recent physical cryptocurrency issues, and everything in between.

Session One is dedicated to colonial coins and begins with another sensational offering from the Richard August Collection. As with previous offerings from this cabinet, there is virtually something for every collector. His frontline collections of Connecticut and Machin's Mills coppers are among the most extensive we have had the honor of presenting. In addition, duplicates from his Massachusetts, Vermont, and Fugio collections (previous offerings of which were featured in Stack's Bowers Galleries' 2025 sales) are also set to cross the block. Following more than 550 coins from the Richard August Collection is a diverse array of other colonial types, including selections from the John Bulger and Cookie Family collections.

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KUENKER AUCTION SALES 438-441, PART THREE

Rarities from Poland

Are you interested in Polish coins? If so, you will be thrilled by what Künker has to offer in auction 439. There are several multiple gold coins by Sigismund III as well as the 1630 ducat from Bydgoszcz, which Polish collectors refer to as the "white raven".

Coins of Sigismund III enjoy iconic status among Polish collectors because the coinage system was expanded to an unprecedented extent during this period. A wealth of new mints were established. Today, it is said that there were nine royal and six municipal mints. Connoisseurs of Polish coinage are particularly enthusiastic about the fabulous engraving, which was primarily used for gold coins.

The highlight of the Künker offering is an extremely rare portugalöser of 10 ducats minted under Sigismund III (No. 2173), presumably from Cracow. But the other pieces are impressive, too. Two other extremely rare 10-fold ducats are on offer, one minted in Olkusz, and the other one in Vilnius. There are also two ducats, one minted under Sigismund I in Cracow in 1532, and the other is the famous "white raven", the 1630 ducat of Sigismund III from Bydgoszcz. It is considered extremely rare. In fact, only two specimens appear to be in circulation on the open collectors' market. This might be because it is difficult to clearly identify the images in old auction catalogs with modern coins. The piece that is on offer now was also auctioned by Künker 2021 and is probably from the Chelminski Collection – Otto Helbing (25 April 1904) – and the Frankiewicz Collection – Felix Schlessinger (15 September 1930). However, it was customary for old auction catalogs to create plaster casts of the coins and glue them to a plate before taking a photo of the entire plate. This is why it is impossible to determine the form of the blank in old auction catalogs, which makes it difficult to clearly identify a coin on the market today with a photo in an old catalog.

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DAVISSON'S AUCTION 45

A catalog we spend a year creating—seeking consignments, selecting exceptional pieces, spending hours of effort and research cataloging, meticulously and conservatively grading, reviewing values from auctions and sales around the world to settle on estimates, carefully photographing each piece.

This catalog is the result—the highest value sale we have ever produced, the most important collection of ancient coins we have ever handled, more exceptional classic hammered gold than we have ever presented in one catalog—this catalog sets some new standards for us. The front cover of the print catalog (shown on the opening page of our website) is an introduction to the magnificent collection formed by Peter Bartlett, a distinguished collector who began as a youth. Though his academic background is in the biological sciences, including a PhD from the University of California in Riverside, he is also a world-renowned expert in the coins of the Visigoths, having written and contributed to numerous important articles and studies in the field while collaborating with academics worldwide from Costa Rica where he resides.

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ROBINSON AUCTION 131: ANCIENT COIN HIGHLIGHTS

Included in this sale is a further segment of a major collection of Judaean and Judaic related material, highlighted by Jewish War Year 2 Shekel in EF.

Greek coins include two nice Armenian Tigranes II Tetradrachm; a classic Athenian "Owl" tetradrachm in choice quality; a Nice EF Baktrian Tetradrachm of Menander; a Nice VF spread flan Kroton Stater; and an excellent run of Parthian coins.

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NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: MARCH 1, 2026

Brenner Plaque of Abraham Lincoln

Victor David Brenner
(Lithuanian/American, 1871-1924)

Plaque of Abraham Lincoln, 1907
bronze
14 1/2 x 11 1/4 in.

Inscribed at bottom, "1809 Abraham Lincoln 1865", additionally inscribed at lower right, "V.D. Brenner, Sc."

Victor David Brenner emigrated to the United States from Lithuania in 1890 and immediately enrolled at the Cooper Union to hone his craft as a sculptor and medalist. While working in New York, he became acquainted with Theodore Roosevelt, who posed for Brenner numerous times over the years. Upon winning a second term as president in 1904, Roosevelt sought to modernize the design of American currency, beginning with the penny.

During this time, Brenner began work on a bas-relief of Abraham Lincoln based on a 1864 photograph by Mathew Brady, believing that the centennial of Lincoln's birth in 1909 would be a highly profitable time for high-quality likenesses of the sixteenth president. The first twenty-five plaques produced were made by Brenner himself and bear no additional manufacturing marks. Later versions of Brenner's plaques tend to be smaller and exhibit his mark rather than his signature. The image proved so popular that Teddy Roosevelt requested that Brenner create a scaled-down version for the United States penny; this coin would ultimately be the first to feature the likeness of a former president.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Victor David Brenner (Lithuanian/American, 1871-1924) Plaque of Abraham Lincoln, 1907, bronze (https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/Victor-David-Brenner-Lithuanian-American,-1871-1-148-c-71EAE87737)

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THE UNA AND THE LION SEGMENTED COLLAR

The Una and the Lion five-pound coin of 1839 is a celebrated work by William Wyon, admired for its artistry and precision. Its raised lettered edge was struck using a segmented collar, a complex technique requiring the collar to separate after striking.

The original three segments used in its production were rediscovered during the Royal Mint's move to South Wales and joined the Museum's collection in the late 1960s.

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JAPANESE COIN FOUND AT AUSTRALIAN GOLDRUSH CAMPSITE

A metal detectorist exploring an Australian Gold Rush-era campsite made a remarkable discovery in recent weeks — even without striking gold.

Angus James, a treasure hunter in the Australian state of Victoria, was sweeping an abandoned sports field — known locally as a sports oval — on Jan. 24 when he uncovered an unusual coin.

The field, north of the mining town of Ballarat, had been used as a campsite during the Australian Gold Rush, which began in 1851 and continued for decades.

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U.S. MINT ARTISTS PROFILED

The U.S. Mint produces coins in four cities: Denver, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and West Point, New York. But the Philly location — located just a few blocks north of Independence Hall — is the Mint's hub for engraving, and employs a team of medallic artists who sculpt all the new designs for circulating coins, Congressional medals, and collectible pieces.

Yes, sculpts. The images in coins are three-dimensional and extremely detailed despite being only slightly raised.

"There's a great challenge in making something in relief like this," said Phebe Hemphill, a medallic artist who's worked at the Mint since 2006. "It's kind of a weird, fascinating challenge to fit everything into that very, very low space we're allowed to sculpt."

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ANOTHER TRUMP COIN DESIGN PROPOSED

The Trump administration has worked hard to ensure that this year's celebration of the nation's 250th anniversary celebrates President Trump as well. Perhaps nothing reflects its concerted efforts better than a plan for a one-dollar coin depicting the president in profile, despite a national tradition of avoiding symbolism that even faintly evokes a monarchy.

But one Trump coin, it seems, is not celebration enough. The administration has now proposed an additional coin that portrays the president with fists planted on a desk, his face evoking a determination bordering on fury. This coin would match the dominant color scheme of just about every nook, cranny and plaster cherub in the Trump Oval Office.

Gold.

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SILVER SALES SURGE

Despite its status as a precious metal, silver has lacked the allure of gold — a more popular investment for those seeking a store of wealth. But the extreme rally in silver prices over the past few months has spurred a reappraisal of the silver items sitting in drawers and cupboards at home.

Some customers are coming in with "stuff that they'd completely forgotten that they had, and it was just sitting in a safety deposit box or in a closet somewhere," said Greg Cohen, a senior numismatist at Stack's Bowers Galleries, a rare coin shop on Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. "They never thought about it until now. And then they realize, wow, this actually added up to quite a bit."

It's been a busy year at Stack's Bowers, which has locations worldwide and is owned by Gold.com Inc. At its Manhattan store, the average number of daily visitors has grown to 50 from 30 over the last year, Cohen said. Most are there to sell, he said.

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1942 AUSTRALIAN SHORT SNORTER

An extraordinary piece of wartime history is now on display at the RAAF Townsville Aviation Heritage Centre: a 10-shilling ‘short snorter' banknote signed by Allied aviators in July 1942.

This rare artefact, discovered by chance in a Townsville second-hand store in the 1980s, has been safeguarded by the centre ever since.

The note, believed to have been signed at a café from July 1 to 19, 1942, carries up to 30 signatures from RAAF and United States Air Force personnel who served in the defence of Darwin and Townsville.

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FAKE STORIES OF FAKE MONEY IN UKRAINE

Russian propaganda continues to create absurd lies about life in Kherson and the Kherson region. For example, recently information appeared that the occupiers are dropping American money over the right bank of Kherson region.

To understand why they would do this, you need to try to switch off your own logic. The bills are supposedly not counterfeit and are used to force Ukrainian soldiers to surrender, because the dollars have a special QR code.

According to the propagandists, the surrender of Ukrainian military personnel in the indicated directions is «massive», although this is not confirmed by any photo or video evidence. Narratives about greed and moral degradation within the ranks of the AFU are common for Russian propaganda, so there is practically nothing new here.

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BRYAN GARNER'S 39,000-VOLUME LIBRARY

Most collectors have at least one woeful tale about the one that got away, the prized item they missed out on because of bad timing, misplaced frugality, or some other regrettable reason. Book collector Bryan A. Garner — a Dallas lawyer and writer who has spent the past 50 years amassing a 39,000-volume-and-counting library — has one of those stories, too, except he let an entire collection get away. Even worse, it wasn't so much that he let the books slip through his fingers. It was more like he balled up his fists and refused them even a chance to graze his palms. Garner was just 14 at the time, so his youthful short-sightedness can be forgiven, but even back then, the rebuff reverberated and proved to be the impetus for a lifelong pursuit.

Today Garner runs a company called LawProse, which specializes in language seminars for lawyers, and is recognized as a leading expert on English usage and grammar. He is also a law professor and the author of 31 books, including 1998's A Dictionary of Modern American Usage, which prompted none other than Pulitzer Prize finalist David Foster Wallace to dub him a genius in a lengthy review first published in Harper's Magazine. His most recent work, 2025's The Etcher: The Life and Art of Oskar Stoessel, follows the career of an obscure Austrian artist who, in the 1940s, etched portraits for the entire U.S. Supreme Court. It should come as little surprise, then, that Garner's book collection reflects his fascination with law and the English language and functions as a working library. Among the stacks are some 2,000 English grammars and about 4,800 dictionaries, some of them dating all the way back to the 15th century. By Garner's estimation, his assemblage of dictionaries is likely the largest privately held collection of its kind. "I'm a lexicographer, and I'm a grammarian, so it's really practical to have these," he says, "but maybe that's just my rationalization for my compulsion to collect."

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LOOSE CHANGE: MARCH 1, 2026

Penny Cessation FAQs

How should my business respond as the supply of pennies drops?

As pennies fall out of circulation, merchants will need to round transactions either up or down to the nearest five cents. However, most states require sales tax to be calculated on the final sale price rounded to the nearest penny. How states and localities will ultimately amend their sales tax laws is the right and responsibility of those jurisdictions. Recent guidance from the National Council of State Legislators gives some indication how states may adapt. The NCSL's November 21, 2025 report entitled Elimination of the Penny: Cents-able Considerations states: "The most recommended form of rounding is symmetrical rounding whereby if the final digit of the total transaction amount (including taxes) is 1, 2, 6, or 7 cents, the amount is rounded down to the nearest multiple of five. If the final digit is 3, 4, 8, or 9 cents, the amount is rounded up. Transactions totaling exactly $0.01 or $0.02 might be rounded up to $0.05. Rounding rules would not apply to payments made via electronic methods, checks, gift cards, or other non-cash instruments."

Are businesses required to accept pennies after they are no longer distributed?

Retailers should continue accepting pennies and providing penny change for cash transactions while the coin remains in circulation. When penny change is not available, businesses may round the final amount of a cash transaction to the nearest five-cent increment, recognizing that states will approach this issue differently based on unique considerations. The penny will remain legal tender, meaning it retains its status as an acceptable form of payment.

We recommend that non-cash transactions, such as payments made by check, credit card, or debit card, continue being priced and processed to the exact cent.

Businesses should apply rounding practices in a fair, consistent, and transparent manner.

To read the complete article, see:
Penny Production Cessation FAQs (https://home.treasury.gov/news/featured-stories/penny-production-cessation-faqs)

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ABOUT THIS ISSUE: MARCH 1, 2026

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