There is a well-known picture of Victor Buono holding a 1913 Liberty head nickel for an episode of Hawaii Five-O, first shown on December 11, 1973. It has been mentioned that he is holding the coin between his eyes and the magnifying glass.

QUICK QUIZ: Who is the man looking over his shoulder?

I wonder if any E-Sylum readers personally knew Clair M. Birdsall, author of The United States Branch Mint at Dahlonega: Its History and Coinage (Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press, Inc., 1984) and The United States Branch Mint at Charlotte: Its History and Coinage. (Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press, Inc., 1988)?

I’m writing about Mint–related literature in the preface to Dave Bowers’s upcoming Guide Book of the United States Mint.

With the ever increasing threat of unmarked, high quality numismatic related counterfeits hanging over the hobby, it is very important that collectors be knowledgeable about reproductions of the coins they love. The Hobby Protection Act (HPA), which was passed in 1973, provides current-day collectors protection against this menace.

The upcoming August issue of The Colonial Newsletter (CNL) will contain a must-read article about the HPA. It is the first in-depth analysis of the act governing numismatic replicas since it was passed some 43 years ago. Although the article focuses on colonial coins, the legal analysis is applicable to all types of numismatic material. Written by a third year law student, the article has been edited for legal content by licensed attorneys within the numismatic field and by well- known hobbyists for the numismatic content.

Also contained in the August issue you will find a biographical study of William H. Coley that was written by his great-great- great granddaughter. Coley was a partner in the Vermont Mint (1785-1788) and is credited with engraving the dies used to strike the Vermont landscape coppers.

CNL is published by the American Numismatic Society. If you don’t subscribe to CNL please contact Catherine DiTuri (email: membership@numismatics.org) for information on how to obtain this issue.

Invaluable.com is an auction alert website for auctions worldwide. A featured auction this week included a 4-day auction in Sydney, Australia for the firm Nobel Numismatics to be held July 25-28. Besides numismatic items from ancients to currency, It includes jewelry, watches, documents and a wide variety of collectibles. Of interest to E-Sylum readers are the 34 lots of numismatic literature.

Invaluable included a brief article, “How To Store Your Coin Collection” to promote the auction. The article contains some very basic information, predominantly on American Whitman blue folders and Dansco’s albums. It also mentions custom wooden frames and trays – and surprisingly does not recommend storing coins in bank deposit boxes.