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THE 2018 KOREA SUMMIT CHALLENGE COINSAn E-Sylum reader sent me this story early in the week; it's been all over the news since then. -Editor
  Weeks before President Trump and Kim Jong Un are scheduled to meet for a daylong summit, there is growing uncertainty over how the meeting will go — or whether it will even take place. The administration is still moving forward with plans for the meeting, Trump says. And the White House Communications Agency has already ordered souvenir travel coins, like it does for many presidential trips. The coins celebrate "peace talks" in 2018 — with no specific date. Meanwhile, people on the Internet are amused — or in some cases, alarmed — by the coins the Trump administration has minted to commemorate the planned summit. It's not unusual for the White House to mark a trip with a commemorative coin — known as a challenge coin and inspired by a military tradition. But this coin is raising eyebrows. Some people are just taking potshots — at Kim's double chin or the "romantic" pose. Other critics say it was premature to mint a coin for a summit surrounded by so much uncertainty or are expressing concern that the coin paints Kim in too flattering a light for an autocrat. The coin refers to Kim as "supreme leader." That is one of his titles in North Korea, but it's not one the U.S. typically acknowledges. To read the complete article, see: For a great summary of the media frenzy, see this CoinWeek article. -Editor
To read the complete article, see: Several readers including David Klinger forwarded this BBC News article. Thanks. -Editor
The Trump-Kim summit isn't happening - but has that only added to the allure of special coins made to commemorate the event? Confusingly, there are in fact two commemorative coins doing the rounds. The focus of most of the attention is the coin created by the White House Communications Agency (WHCA) - it hails the talks between Mr Trump and "Supreme Leader" Kim Jong-un. Such coins are often presented to foreign guests and diplomats. The other features silhouettes of Mr Trump, Mr Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in and is available from the White House Gift Shop website. Its popularity appears to be soaring, with demand crashing the site. BBC North America Correspondent Anthony Zurcher says the WHCA coin could be the "1804 Dollar" of numismatics - referring to a series of coins created for diplomatic gifts in the 1800s that now command ultra-high prices. To read the complete article, see: Dick Hanscom forwarded this follow-up article from the Daily Mail. -Editor
 A commemorative coin featuring the faces of Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un has gone on sale at the White House gift shop for a discount after the US canceled its planned summit with North Korea. The coins were listed on the gift shop's website for $19.95 as the 'Deal of the Day' on Thursday, down from its usual price of $24.95. Peaked interest in the commemorative coins ended up crashing the gift shop's website in the hours after President Trump announced he had canceled his planned meeting with the North Korean leader. The gift shop noted on the sale page that the coins would be made 'whether or not the summit occurs as scheduled' and also said that customers could get a refund due to the cancellation. A separate coin which was released by the White House Communications Agency, shows Trump and Kim, described as North Korea's 'Supreme Leader,' in profile facing each other in front of a background of US and North Korean flags. At the top of the front, the words 'Peace Talks' are emblazoned, with the date '2018' beneath. The back of the coin features a picture of the White House, Air Force One and the presidential seal. Trump blamed 'tremendous anger' and 'hostility' from the North Korean regime in calling off the June summit on Thursday. Dick adds: Not much of a discount for non-event... To read the complete article, see: Arthur Shippee forwarded this bit of coin humor from The New Yorker. Thanks. -Editor
 Ultramodern numismatist Pabitra Saha forwarded this 2018 North Korea 5 Won "Destroy the United States, The Only Answer" coin. Thanks. -Editor
  It's a proof aluminum coin and available on eBay. There is also a brass version. -Editor
To read the complete eBay lot descriptions, see:  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 To subscribe go to: https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum All Rights Reserved. NBS Home Page Contact the NBS webmaster 
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