Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 3, Number 52, December 17, 2000:
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
Copyright (c) 2000, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
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DAVIS LITERATURE SALE RESULTS
Charlie Davis writes: "Here are highlights from our November
4 Mail Bid Sale. The sale in total with buyers premium grossed
$100,000. Prices realized lists will be mailed out in the next
several days.
Volume I of the Numismatist $2900
S. H. Chapman's Hunter sale with plates $2300
Hill 2 volume set of Italian Medals $1700
Complete set of 13 volumes Scott Coin Collector's
Journal $1525
Steigerwalt's Coin Journal $1200
Early ANS Proceedings 1878-1917 $1200
Run of Numisma 51 of the 59 issues $1050
1905 Bolen with Boyd's notes $900
Bathe on Jacob Perkins $875
Run of Plain Talk $750
Woodward's large paper Finotti $700
Complete set of Empire Investor's Reports $650
Autographed 1st edition Red Book $575
superb original Mickley catalogue $475
About 10% of the lots did not sell including a complete set
of Remy Bourne publications on Fixed Price Lists."
MORE NUMISMATIC THEFTS
John Kraljevich of Bowers & Merena Galleries writes:
"Speaking of numismatic thefts, here's the 411 on a little
known one I just found out about last week while researching
the March sale.
I emailed my alma later, the University of Virginia, to ask about
a Jefferson Inaugural listed in their Special Collections online
"card" catalogue. The curator informed me that they had
experienced a theft in 1973 and that this piece was among the
casualties. it was given to UVa in 1922 from a descendant of
the Eppes side of the Jefferson family (the branch from Jefferson's
younger daughter Maria who died in 1804.) Both she and her
mother-in-law received Inaugural medals from Jefferson in
February 1802 and this piece was almost certainly one of these.
The curator remembered the piece and said it was silver (though
it could have been white metal) and couldn't confirm that pictures
exist. I'll try to pass along more info if I can get it -- it would be
a victory for all of us if a Jefferson-pedigreed Inaugural medal
could be tracked down again.
By the way, the March sale is going to be a barnburner. We'll be
offering the biggest selection of Indian Peace Medals since
Raymond's 1925 Wilson sale and the largest collection of Betts
medals ever to be sold at auction -- the second part of this
collection will be offered in May. Get your copies early ... I
expect this catalogue will be a keeper."
WASHINGTON FUNERAL MEDAL INFO FOUND
Over on the colonial coin collectors forum, Chris Stevens
wrote about some research he's doing on Jacob Perkins.:
In reading 18th century issues of The Essex Journal
"I also stumbled upon a number of interesting things.
One being the original ads run by Perkins for the sale of the
Washington Funeral medals. In an add on the front page of
the E.J., Perkins states (exaggerates?) that bulk inquiries are
welcome, and he has ability to execute 3-5 thousand pieces
daily!"
The ad appeared in the Jan 10, 1800 issue; here's the full text,
from a picture published on the forum's web site:
http://www.egroups.com/message/colonial-coins/2559
Jacob Perkins
Takes leave to inform the pub-
lic that he will now be able to answer
orders for the Medals in memory of the late
illustrious Gen. WASHINGTON, from
any part of the continent, and to any a
mount, executed on Gold, Silver, or White
Metal, with punctuality and dispatch -- from
3 to 5 thousand can be made daily.
A liberal discount will be made to those
who purchase quantities to sell again.
Jan 7
[Editor's note: the colonial coins web pages on the egroups
site are open only to subscribers of the newsgroup. Luckily,
anyone can subscribe]
PERKINS' BANK BILL TEST ROUNDUP
Charlie Davis writes: "In answer to Eric Newman's note about
the Perkins' Bank Bill Test, I had the honor of viewing three
copies within four weeks in mid 1999.
The first belongs to a suburban Boston collector who was
offered it about 20 years ago by Goodspeed's. Leonard Finn
had first refusal, but with five kids in college, he passed (at
something like $350.00!) and the present owner snapped
it up.
The second I "discovered" in the Rare Book Room at the
A.N.A. during the 1999 Summer Seminar where its presence
was undocumented. Bob Hoge, ANA Curator, seems to
remember that it came from Roy Pennell.
And the third, the Fuld copy, was shown to me at the Chicago
ANA by George Kolbe just prior to its being included in the
Bass III sale.
Years ago, I saw the copy in the library of the Massachusetts
Historical Society, and something tells me there is one in the
American Antiquarian Society in Worcester as well but that is
not substantiated. That would make the population five for sure
(Fuld, Streeter/Newman, Goodspeeds/Boston collector, MHS,
and Pennell/ANA), and possibly six."
THE SIMEC STOPS THERE
Chuck Shepard's News of the Weird reports: "Wealthy retired
Italian law professor Giacinto Auriti began in July to circulate a
private currency, called the "simec," among citizens (and about 40
shopkeepers) in the town of Guardiagrele (about 125 miles from
Rome), to "prove" his longstanding theory that any currency, if
put in the hands of consumers instead of banks, yields more
purchasing power.
Auriti prints the simecs, sells them at par with the lira, and then
guarantees to merchants that he will redeem them at double their
value (by paying out from his family fortune), thereby encouraging
merchants to lower their prices. The simec has caused an
explosion of consumer sales, but the government believes the
whole idea is ridiculous and will collapse as soon as Auriti stops
guaranteeing simecs' value." Here are a couple of web pages
with more information on Prof. Auriti's venture and theory:
http://utenti.tripod.it/dinogranata/fotointerviste.html
http://www.gdrc.org/icm/owner-money.html
BIBLIOGRAPHY SUBMISSION
Dick Johnson writes: "I support an NBS-sponsored project of
compiling a 19th century Numismatic Bibliography. And I have
an unreported candidate for inclusion.
This is a 3-part series of articles which ran in the weekly
newspaper "Philadelphia Dispatch" January 23 and 30, 1853
and February 6, 1853. Headlined "The Way Coins Are Made,
A Rare Visit to The United States Mint," it is outstanding for
reporting the technology in use by the Mint at that time.
The articles are unsigned, and nowhere is the author's identity
revealed. I suspect he was either an Englishman, or one who
was trained in England. Seven words are spelled in British
English (yet color was not spelled in British English, "colour").
I have visited the National Archives in Philadelphia twice and
have examined the Philadelphia Mint Visitors Registers for
January and February 1853 and the year prior to learn the
author's name, but without luck. I found no useful notation.
The author's scenario goes through the Mint a department
at a time -- he calls them rooms -- and describes what goes
on in 14 such rooms. There is no mention of a Director or
Superintendent, but the author gives credit to Edward C. Dale,
the Mint treasurer, who, I suspect, was his guide."
GUTTAG PUBLICATIONS
In response to an article in our print publication, William A. Burd
writes: "In the Asylum Volume XVIII, No. 3 Summer 2000,
Mike Paradis asked about Guttag Publications.
I have a set of the 1928 Bulletins (without hole punches as issued).
Volume 6, No. 1, March 1928 is 16 pages long, is 6" by 9".
The last page says (to be continued). Vol 6, No. 2 starts with
page 17 and ends with page 32. This continues thru the year with
No. 10, the December issue, ending with page 160.
On page 142 of the Nov. issue is a request for $1.00 for a one
year subscription for 1929.
I also have a price sheet titled "Coin Bulletin" which is dated
February 1936 and is one sheet printed on both sides, is 8 ½
by 14, white paper and appears and be mimeographed. No
series number.
I also have one on blue paper and is titled "New Foreign Issues",
also dated February 1936, printed one side only, and 8 ½ by 14.
No series number."
COGAN-MASON RANDALL CATALOG DEBATE
Former NBS President Michael J. Sullivan writes: "Your
mention of the Cogan letter in the Library of Congress provided
just the first paragraph of a lengthy letter by Cogan on the
Randall Collection cataloguing debate between himself and
"Brother" Mason. Mr. Charlie Davis has done the numismatic
community quite a favor by reprinting all known Cogan letters
on this topic in his three volume reprint of a complete set of
Mason periodicals. The letters appear as a supplement in the
third volume. By reading the Mason periodicals and the
Cogan letters, one can see how the initial rankling turned into
a lambasting debate. Copies of the book are available from
Charlie Davis. Besides, the reprint at around $160 is only
about 2% the cost of originals if you can ever find them."
SULLIVAN CHANGE OF ADDRESS
Michael adds: "Having moved within Cincinnati several times in
the last 12 years, it is time to move the old mail box closer to
home. My new address is:
Michael J. Sullivan
PO Box 1309
West Chester, Ohio 45071
OUT-OF-THE-BOOK THINKING
An excerpt from the December 15th Newscan Daily
(http://www.newsscan.com/) provides food for thought
for bibliophiles:
Do you have a reverence for books? Noted essayist Joseph
Epstein writes in The Weekly Standard:
"Fine things books, but perhaps the moment has come to stop
taking them so seriously. Who was it said that people who are
always reading never discover anything? I'm not sure if that is
true, but I do know that reading and thinking are not necessarily
the same thing. Sometimes reading supplies the most cunning
of all means of avoiding thought. It would be good once in
awhile to try thinking without the stimulus of books, to become
not an out of-the-box -- never, please, that -- but at least an
out-of-the-book thinker. Books may furnish a room, but there
surely are other things quite as suitable for furnishing a mind.
Time, I think, for me to attempt to find out what these might be."
FEATURED WEB SITE
This week's featured web site is recommended by John and
Nancy Wilson: "The Coins and History of Asia," by Thomas K.
Mallon-McCorgray:
http://www.grifterrec.com/coins/coins.html
Wayne Homren
Numismatic Bibliomania Society
The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a
non-profit organization promoting numismatic
literature. For more information please see
our web site at http://www.coinbooks.org/
There is a membership application available on
the web site. To join, print the application and
return it with your check to the address printed
on the application. For those without web access,
contact Dave Hirt, NBS Secretary-Treasurer,
5911 Quinn Orchard Road, Frederick, MD 21704
(To be removed from this mailing list
write to me at whomren@coinlibrary.com)
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