2026 ANA SUMMER SEMINAR REGISTRATION

 

Summer Seminar is a once-a-year opportunity for numismatic learning and camaraderie that offers students a varied selection of week-long courses designed for discovery or continued study. This year's sessions are June 20-25 and June 27-July 2, and take place on the Colorado College campus adjacent to ANA headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Detection of Counterfeit World Paper Money
Learn to distinguish genuine paper money from counterfeits by analyzing printing techniques, security devices, and the history of fraudulent replication. Use magnification and specialized lighting to compare authentic notes with vintage and modern counterfeits, with a specific focus on pieces designed to defraud collectors.

Applied Techniques in Numismatic Photography and Image Editing Essentials
Photographers of all levels can learn how to capture and edit high-quality numismatic images for purposes such as online sales, research, and publication. Learn to optimize lighting configurations, manage digital files, and perform essential edits using Adobe Photoshop.

Early American Copper Coinage (Copper 1)
This introduction to Early American Coppers (EAC) covers mint distribution, circulation, and methods for identifying cleaned or altered coins. The student-driven curriculum also teaches grading and attribution techniques, encouraging participants to bring their own loupes and copper coins for hands-on study.

The New Orleans Mint Coinage and its History
Explore the history and coinage of the New Orleans Mint from 1835 to 1909, with highlights on its unique challenges such as the Civil War and tropical climate. Engage in hands-on attribution and grading while studying approximately 40 types of silver and gold coins produced at the facility.

Bank Notes Without Borders
Investigate how modern paper money reflects global history and national identity through its design, security features, and cultural symbolism. Gain practical skills in grading, authentication, and collection management, with guidance tailored for both novice and experienced collectors.

Cowries to Coins: Africa's Journey to Modern Money
Explore the art, history, and commerce of over 50 African nations through their 19th- to 21st-century currencies, analyzing how design and materials reflect the continent's political evolution from colonial rule to independence. Gain practical skills in identification, grading, and cataloging, including learning to read Arabic numerals and mintmarks.

Meet Me at the Fair: Numismatics of Fairs and Expositions
Examine the history of 19th and 20th-century domestic and international fairs, examining their background, major attractions, and the coins, medals, and exonumia they produced. Learn about essential reference materials for studying these unique numismatic series.

Introduction to Ancient Coins
This course introduces beginners to the basics of ancient coin collecting, covering gold, silver, and copper issues from the early Greek period through the late Byzantine era. Learn essential identification techniques and explore the historical significance of these ancient currencies.

World War II Numismatics
Use a case-study approach to explore the diverse military and emergency issues of World War II, including both coins and paper money. Examine specific examples in-depth, such as Allied military currency, Japanese invasion money, and U.S. Military Payment Certificates.

Collecting and Attributing Lettered-Edge Half Dollars
Discover the history of U.S. coinage from 1794 to 1836, with a specific focus on the Capped Bust half dollar. Gain hands-on experience in variety attribution using the Overton system and explore essential topics such as the minting process, grading, and counterfeit detection.

Explore the art, history, culture, and commerce of more than 50 nations of Africa through the coins and other currencies of the 19th through 21st centuries. Hands-on study, guided discussion, and specimen analysis reveal how design, language, metal, and message reflect Africa's political and economic evolution from colonial power to independence.

The course emphasizes practical skills in identification, grading, and cataloging, including reading Arabic numerals and mintmarks. This class is ideal for collectors, educators, and dealers seeking to increase their knowledge of modern African numismatics.

Instructors: Benjamin Swagerty, media specialist for Oklahoma City Public Schools, international numismatic researcher, master referee for Numista; and Alan Cutler-Pomex, lead numismatist at #1 Money Man & Numismatic Wholesale, creator and host of Numismatic Explorer

 

With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, it became popular to hold agricultural and industrial fairs and expositions to showcase new inventions, advances in agriculture, and personal achievements in arts and crafts. This class highlights many of the important fairs and expositions of the 19th and 20th centuries, including the Centennial Exposition of 1876, the 1893 Columbian Exposition, the 1904 St. Louis Exposition, and others, as well as foreign expositions, including major expositions held in London, Paris, Brussels, and elsewhere.

We discuss the background of the expositions, major attractions and exhibits, and present many of the award medals, coins, so-called dollars, and other exonumia available to the attendees. We also discuss important references for studying these series.

Instructors: David Menchell; and Jeff Shevlin, past executive director of the ANA, author, owner of So-Called Dollars.

 

 

Explore the art, history, culture, and commerce of the modern world through the study of paper money. This course emphasizes how design, security, and symbolism on bank notes reflect national identity, global events, and the evolution of technology in currency production.

Participants examine common and scarce issues—from everyday notes to artistic masterpieces and special releases. Topics include commemorative and inflationary issues, cherrypicking signatures, watermarks, paper types, engravers, printers, serial varieties, and replacement note identification. Students also learn the basics of grading standards, authentication, and presentation through discussion, workshop activities, and real-world examples.

New collectors are guided in developing a collecting method that fits their interests and goals, while seasoned collectors and dealers can refine systems for cataloging, photography, and presentation. Participants are encouraged to bring favorite bank notes, challenging pieces, and stories from the field to share.

Instructors: Benjamin Swagerty, media specialist for Oklahoma City Public Schools, international numismatic researcher, master referee for Numista; and Alan Cutler-Pomex, lead numismatist for #1 Money Man & Numismatic Wholesale, creator and host of Numismatic Explorer

 

This class is a firsthand trip through the history of how coins have been made, from their earliest beginnings in the 6th century B.C. through today. Both instructors are private minters with decades of experience in striking coins and making dies using ancient through modern techniques.

They use video, printed materials, and actual minting and engraving equipment created by Ron Landis and Joe Rust of the Gallery Mint to illustrate and demonstrate how coins have been made over the last 2,600 years, including hand-hammered, rocker, and screw presses.

This class is a unique opportunity to go hands-on with the tools and technology that created the look and feel of the coins we love to collect.

Instructors: Joe Paonessa, owner of Root River Mint; and Timothy Grat, owner of Landis Studio and Gallery Mint

Counterstamped coins are a window into history. Before Instagram reels and Facebook ads, merchants had to rely on what seems today to be primitive means of getting the word out about their businesses. In the mid-1800s, it was common for merchants to stamp their business name, location, and their own names into the surface of coins with metal punches.

We often hear the line, "If only this coin could tell its story." With counterstamps, the coins actually do tell their stories. We can learn from these coins where they are from and about the people connected to them. History comes alive.

 

In this class, we examine choice examples of United States counterstamped coins, learn about the people who made them, explore rarity, and hear the incredible tales these coins tell.

Instructor: Greg Bennick, speaker and writer on counterstamps and major mint errors, board member of CONECA and TAMS

This course covers how to form a research topic and scope based on an intended audience prior to publication or presentation. Participants learn how to design research and identify useful sources for information depending on the nature of a research topic.

The instructor works through examples with ANA presentation venues in mind, including convention presentation options such as MoneyTalks; publication options in The Numismatist and The Reading Room; and education presentation options such as the NumismaTalks series. The class also covers options on local, regional, and specialized national scales.

Instructor: Akio Lis, ANA Library Manager

To read the full course catalog, see:
Summer Seminar Course Catalog (https://www.money.org/summer-seminar/course-catalog/)

For more information, or to register, see:
2026 Summer Seminar (https://www.money.org/summer-seminar/)

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