NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

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The E-Sylum: Volume 15, Number 37, September 2, 2012, Article 13

NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

Books About a Single Medal
Scott Miller writes:

Regarding books on a single medal, while not as detailed as the Lusitania book probably is, consider The Waterloo Medal: An Address Before the Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Philadelphia by Isaac Myer, B.L., Philadelphia 1885.

Good call, although I'd probably consider the Myer work a monograph rather than a book. Can anyone think of another full-length book on the topic of a single medal? -Editor

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: NEW BOOK: THE MEDALS OF THE LUSITANIA (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a02.html)

Online Sources for Annual Mint Reports
Dave Ginsburg writes:

Regarding your mention of the availability of the Secretary of the Treasury's Annual Reports on-line at the St. Louis Fed's website: This is a great resource, especially for the more recent Reports. However, even though the reports are very useful (and include the Reports of the Director of the Mint and the Controller of the Currency) I should point out that the Mint Annual Reports that are included with the Secretary of the Treasury's Reports are not infrequently incomplete - they are usually missing all or some of the supplementary tables. I recommend that anyone interested in the Mint Annual Reports seek out other digital sources, such as HathiTrust, for complete versions.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: FEATURED WEB PAGE: SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY REPORTS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a25.html)

Notes from Joe Boling
Some miscellaneous notes from Joe Boling:

Regarding the "medal" issued to commemorate the last Canadian cent, I thought when I saw the image that either the wrong image was used, or the piece is not really a medal - it's denominated. But I see the Canadians themselves call it a $20 coin. But how would one ever know what is being commemorated? They devote lots of space to telling us it's .9999 fine silver, and not a word about the cent. Sure, it shows maple leaves (as the cent does) - so do lots of other things Canadian. As a commemorative, it's a failure.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: CANADA ISSUES COMMEMORATIVE HONORING THE LAST CENT (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a18.html)

I'll have to admit, this one left me scratching my head, too. Really? -Editor

The "RBI" mentioned in the article about the Indian coin shortage is the Reserve Bank of India.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: WEST BENGAL COIN SHORTAGE DRIVES MONEY SUBSTITUTES (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a21.html)

The Bloomingdale's security chief caught passing queer booted it by not immediately claiming that she was testing the employee who spotted the fakes

Yeah, testing! That's the ticket!- I was just TESTING you... -Editor

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: DEPARTMENT STORE SECURITY BOSS NABBED PASSING COUNTERFEITS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a23.html)

Comments on Recent Coin Designs
P.K. Saha forwarded several coin images this week. Here are a couple I'd like to comment on.

Slovakia will issue this 100 Euro coin in Dec 2012 There's a lot of design clutter here, with so many different elements squeezed in to each side of the coin. From this image the artist seems to pull it off pretty well, but I wonder what these will look like in person. Call me simple-minded, but I like uncluttered designs with single themes.

Portugal will issue this 5 Euro coin in 2012 for the anniversary of John's coronation. Nice throwback design., in the style of coins of 1722,

The Un-Named Bearded Wonder
George Cuhaj writes:

As to the Alones, photo, it was taken at the 1988 Grand Central show. The un-named bearded fellow is of course NOT David Ganz.

So who IS he? Will we ever know? Hey Scott and Martin - you were there (we have proof) - do you remember this fellow? I wondered if it could it be Numismatist editor Neil Harris. George Cuhaj says no, and adds "I thought that the bearded wonder was a large cent collector." -Editor

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: AUGUST 26, 2012: Further memories of Vincent Alones (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a07.html)

Ken Bressett on Coin Swallowing

Regarding the coin in the New Zealand girl’s stomach, Ken Bressett writes:

Any change in her yet?

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: DOCTORS TRACE COIN IN NEW ZEALAND GIRL'S STOMACH (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a24.html)

The Zahir
Regarding the author Jorge Luis Borges, Loren Gatch writes:

He's one of my favorites. One of Borges' short stories, "The Zahir" (a term from Islamic folklore), is actually about a coin--an ordinary Argentinian 20 centavo piece--that has the particular property of creating an all-consuming obsession in the person who happens to gaze upon it. In this story Borges also meditates on the significance of other famous pieces of money (Charon's Obol, Ahab's Doubloon).

This short story can be found in a number of collections, including "Labyrinths" and "Fictions". Enjoy it if you haven't yet had the opportunity!

Noah's Ark Klippe Silver Medal
Bill Rosenblum writes:

Attached is a photo another Noah's Ark piece. My description of the piece follows:

Germany. Nordlinger. 1650. Klippe Silver Medal or 1/8 Medallic Taler . Noah’s Ark, dove flying left with branch above. Crowned double eagle with Nordlinger coat of arms. Struck for the Peace of Westphalia. Pax in Nummis-1154, Similar to Fr-1796 in gold. VF, mount removed.

Nice piece! I'd never seen this before. By the way, we're still looking for an example of the medal of Noah by Julio Kileny sought by Harry Waterson last week. -Editor

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: QUERY: MEDAL OF NOAH BY JULIO KILENYI SOUGHT (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n36a09.html)

Wayne Homren, Editor

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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