In my trilogy Watercraft on World Coins I applied the following rule: "The obverse is the side that depicts the image of the monarch, the coat-of-arms of the republic or a similar symbol of sovereignty." The exception to this rule were the "ship coins" of the United States. As I wrote in the preamble of the United States chapter, "In the United States, federal law defines which side of a coin is the obverse. The descriptions in this chapter follow the legislation. The obverse of regular circulation coins is the side bearing the date. Commemorative coins sometimes bear the date on the reverse."

Euro coins have a common side and a national side. The national side indicates the issuing country. The common sides of the coins show images of the European Union or of Europe and symbolise the unity of the EU. The national side is considered the obverse.

On the headless soldier medal, might not the medal have the word "translate" being used in, or on a play on, its alternative definition of "to move from one place to another", or from the earthly to the heavenly realm?

An eBay seller of a different product suggested Ziploc® bags. If I can find "freezer bag" quality in a large size, they might just do the trick.

I read Jeff's article with great interest, as I do remember that era clearly. I use to buy large lots of Indian head cent, civil war tokens and proof set to resell them, usually in smaller quantities. Unfortunately I thought erroneously that proof had a great future, since they were of the best quality you could expect and I kept them well beyond their peak. I also purchased a lot of Italian coins from Jeff to assemble a type set.

NumisTube is a new YouTube channel specialized for numismatics with videos about coins, banknotes, orders, medals and related items. It's run by Russian Zlatko Viscevic (IBNS 10489-R) from Croatia.