Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 4, Number 38, September 16, 2001: 
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society. 
Copyright (c) 2001, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society. 
 

SUBSCRIBER UPDATES 

  We have one  new subscriber this week, NBS member  
  Norman R. Glassburn.  Welcome aboard!  We've had one 
  cancellation and have lost some other subscribers due to 
  bounced emails in recent weeks.  Our subscriber count is 
  now 416.  

SEPTEMBER 11 

  A firsthand account of  Tuesday's tragic events was posted 
  to the internet (and copied to the Colonial Coins mailing 
  list) as the day unfolded by E-Sylum subscriber Eric Cheung. 
  Some excerpts:   

   "I haven't yet gone off to Stanford yet but I will be doing just  
  that in a week and a half.  I live down around City Hall in 
  Manhattan and it's a pretty commercial area; at this time in the 
  morning there's normally quite some commotion down here 
  particularly since everyone is trying to get to work. 

  I just heard a rumble that was about twenty seconds long. ... 
  A couple minutes later, my mom came into my room and 
  told me a plane just crashed into the World Trade Center.  

  In utter disbelief, I kicked out of my bedsheets and looked 
  out the window and saw lots of people running around in the 
  streets heading up Broadway away from the explosion.  I 
  also checked out the living room and saw CNN extensively 
  covering this disaster. 

  About eight or ten minutes later, ... I heard a huge explosion 
  as the legs of my bed and the floor of my 9th floor apartment 
  shook. 

  The first world trade center collapsed down to the bottom... 

  I walked not ten feet from my neighbor's apartment when I   
  heard an even louder rumble.  My neighbors summoned me  
  to return to the apartment, and in the last second as I dashed   
  to the window, I saw the final section of World Trade Center   
  2 tumble straight down into the ground.  My neighbors and   
  mother were hysterical.  Moments later the debris and ash of   
  the aftermath rose into the blazingly sunny sky. 

  I returned to my apartment about 10:28, the hallways in my   
  building filling with smoke. I continued down the hallway   
  where there are windows every ten feet or so, four or five in   
  all down about a hundred feet corridor. There was white dust   
  atop every roof I could see, and it looked like a snowstorm   
  had just hit us, or radioactive waste from a nuclear explosion  
  had just rained down upon us.  After a while, the two look  
  the same, and are both frightening and frustrating in equal  
  magnitude." 

  Eric's full journal may be found at this address:  
  http://www.livejournal.com/~chopin    The journal entries   
  appear in reverse chronological order.  To follow events as   
  they progressed, first scroll down to the  [11 Sep 2001|11:02am]   
  entry.   Be warned that portions are disturbing, though not   
  graphic.  

  Electricity and phone service to their apartment was lost   
  later in the day, and his family split up to stay with friends   
  elsewhere in the city.  Eric walked 20 minutes to a friend's   
  place.  As of Friday the 14th there was still no word of when   
  his family would be able to return home. 

  Eric recently won the ANA's Outstanding Young Numismatist   
  of the Year Award.  We wish him and his family all the best,   
  as he heads off to Stanford amid this tragic backdrop.  

AMERICAN NUMISMATIC SOCIETY EFFECTS 

  At 1:25 PM Tuesday, September 11, Michael Bates of   
  the American Numismatic Society (located far uptown at   
  Broadway and 125th) sent this note : "The ANS is closed   
  now, but with several others I'm stuck here because there's   
  no way to get home.  The chaos downtown has not had much   
  effect this far north.  Before noon, I walked 20 blocks north   
  to the bus station for New Jersey commuters, only to find   
  both the bus station and the George Washington Bridge closed,   
  so I walked back.  Traffic is being diverted at different points   
  along Broadway, but there is no gridlock that we can see here.   
  Some Manhattan subways are running.  Buses are running on   
  Broadway.  On my walk I encountered many mothers taking   
  their children home from school.    

  I can't say if the ANS will be open tomorrow.  All staff   
  members are safe, although some may be stuck somewhere   
  in the city trying to get to Brooklyn or Queens--or New   
  Jersey."    

  On Friday, September 14th, ANS Executive Director Ute   
  Wartenburg sent this note:   "Many of you will be curious   
  about the state of the new ANS building, which is within a  
  few blocks of Ground Zero. Right now, we have not been   
  able to get to William Street.  Just before the attack on   
  downtown Manhattan, subcontractors were working on   
  the final stages of demolition on all floors in the new building.   
  At this point we are uncertain when this work can resume.    

  We are also waiting to hear whether the exhibition "Drachms,   
  Doubloons and Dollars. A History of Money" will open on   
  October 17th as planned.  Designers, mountmakers, printers,   
  and ANS staff are on schedule, but the final decision will be   
  taken jointly with the Federal Reserve Bank.    

  Although the future about our major projects, which are all   
  located in the downtown area, is uncertain, we feel fortunate   
  as our members have been so supportive.  Many of you have   
  sent emails or called to express their support at this difficult   
  time.  We at the ANS are very grateful for these kind words   
  and the help that we were offered. We are presently unable   
  to make outgoing long-distance calls but we will stay in touch   
  with everyone via email....   

  The best news from the ANS is that Sebastian Heath, our   
  Director of Information and Technology, and his wife Sarah   
  had a healthy son on September 11th. We are all very happy   
  for them."  [Congratulations!  -Editor]   

EXHIBIT OPENING POSTPONED    

  As a result of the emergency, the opening of the long-awaited   
  "Numismatics in the Age of Grolier" exhibit, scheduled for   
  September 12th, has been postponed.  The exhibit was set to   
  open at the Grolier Club headquarters in midtown Manhattan   
  (47 East 60th Street).   

AUCTIONS RESCHEDULED    

  On Wednesday the 12th, Vicken Yegparian of Stack's (57th   
  Street)  wrote on the Colonial Coins mailing list:   
  "--everyone, including family, is fine, but necessarily a bit shaken   
  up.  We did postpone our Auction Sale scheduled for yesterday   
  and today, and the new dates are November 12 and 13. As for   
  Sotheby's--they are located even further away from the disaster   
  than we are, so they were not directly affected. I did hear that   
  they closed down yesterday and that they might not have been   
  open today."  

  Coin World Online (http://www.coinworld.com/) reported that 
  Bowers and Merena Galleries announced they postponed their 
  September 14-15 public auction scheduled for New York City.  
  As of today, no new date has been announced.    

   These rescheduled auctions will take their place in numismatic   
  history alongside the J.N.T. Levick sale by Edward Cogan.   
  Originally scheduled for April 27-29, 1865, the sale was   
  postponed due to the assassination of President Lincoln on   
  April 14th, 1865.   Lincoln was shot while attending a   
  performance at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C.   
  The following information about the sale was published in the   
  December 26, 1999 issue of The E-Sylum (v2#52):    

  "E. J Attinelli, in his 1876 work "Numisgraphics", had this to   
  say about the sale:  "... it was thought advisable to postpone,   
  in consequence of the excited state of the entire people,   
  consequent upon the assassination of President Lincoln by   
  Junius B. Booth, who had escaped, but was subsequently   
  captured mortally wounded."   [NOTE:  Attinelli confused   
  the facts here - Junius B. Booth, also an actor, was the   
  FATHER of John Wilkes Booth, the Lincoln assassin.]    

  "The catalogue was printed and issued in several ways, with   
  and without the part in which was the catalogue-portion of   
  Mr. Levick's collection, also each separately; also, 12 copies   
  of each printed on large paper.  Mr. Levick, in consequence   
  of the state of affairs, issued but few copies with the cover   
  bearing the preceding date, the greater portion of the   
  edition was stripped of its covers and replaced with a new   
  one, bearing the following date, when the sale took place."    

  Attinelli lists the sale as having taken place May 29th."    

  [Will any of the September 2001 catalogs be reissued or 
  amended?   Most are already in the hands of bidders. 
  Will sale-day copies be overprinted or updated with an 
  addendum?  -Editor]   

NEW YORK NUMISMATIC CLUB MEETING RESCHEDULED    

   A note from Michael Bates on Thursday, September 13 read:   
  "I am informed by David Alexander, Secretary-Treasurer of   
  the New York Numismatic Club, that the Club's meeting   
  scheduled for tomorrow, September 14, will have to be   
  canceled because the 7th Regiment Armory--which is still,   
  after all, a military site--is closed for the duration of the   
  current emergency.    

   David and the club officers are trying to arrange an   
  extraordinary meeting on September 21 or 28, at a site   
  to be determined."    

   [We now resume our regularly scheduled coverage of   
  numismatic literature and research.  -Editor]   

NUMISMATIC BOOKS ON CD    

   Fred Reed writes:  "Regarding the first numismatic book   
  on CD-ROM,  I don't claim that "Civil War Encased   
  Stamps:  The Issuers and Their Times" was the first,   
  but it was available in 1995 on CD-ROM.  Check out   
  the back of the title page for information.    

   We burned a dozen copies as an experiment.  I only   
  had one inquiry, but the guy didn't want to pay the price   
  requested, which was more than the hard back price.   
  The book was also reproduced on microfiche but not   
  for sale."    

   Allan Davisson writes: "Question: The Scott Catalog on   
  stamps is now published on CD-ROM and is compatible   
  with Windows and Macintosh. When will Krause do the   
  same for their world coin catalogs?  As much as I value   
  actual books on my shelves, the sheer size of the Krause   
  volumes coupled with their potential utility when I am   
  traveling would seem to make them strong candidates   
  for the CD-ROM format.   

WEB SITE WRITING CONTEST    

   On the subject of electronic literature, Jim Halperin writes:   
  "Thanks for another enjoyable issue.  Perhaps some E-Sylum   
  subscribers might be interested in entering Heritage's   
  Numismatic Writing Contest. For more information, see   
  http://www.heritagecoin.com/features/NumisArticles/contest.asp"    

   From the web page: "Heritage Numismatic Auctions is   
  pleased to announce a major contest for ... numismatic writers,   
  for articles to appear on the world's leading numismatic website:   
  HeritageCoin.com. The most popular article will receive the   
  $5,000 Grand Prize."    

   A Heritage press release issued on September 12th stated:   
  "Articles from America's leading numismatists are pouring in   
  to the Heritage website at the rate of 2-3 articles per day,   
  on numismatic subjects as diverse as Building a Liberty Nickel   
  Set, Great Numismatists I Have Known, Survey of Colombian   
  Cobs in Major English Museums - Ashmolean, and Collecting   
  and Classifying Indian Peace Medals and Related Medals &   
  Currency. On September 10, Heritage began allowing its   
  members to rate each article for selection as the Grand Prize   
  winner."   

HAWAIIAN REFERENCES    

   Ed Krivoniak writes: " I noticed that no one has answered   
  David Yamamoto's question on the periodical that mentioned   
  Hawaiian coins.  I don't have time to look through my library   
  for the reference but the following might be of some help:     

  1) The OIN (Organization of International numismatics) had     
       a journal called JOIN in the 70's. 
  2) Coins Monthly a monthly periodical published in the United    
       Kingdom had an annual periodical called COIN.    
  3) A little more offbeat could be Coin World if Mr.Yamamoto     
      didn't remember the last word.    
  4) COIN -- I believe it was the Congress of International         
      Numismatists used to put on world coin shows in Los Angeles.         
      They may have had an organizational periodical."   

FITZWILLIAM WEB SITE    

  Mike Hodder writes: "Interesting bit about Fitzwilliam   
  College's on-line library.  I believe that Theodore Buttrey   
  was curator of their collection of coins at one time. Fitz   
  was also my Dad's college after he was demobbed from   
  the RAF."   

NUMISMATIC AUTHORS    

  In response to the topic of famous numismatic authors,   
  Dr. Howard M. Berlin writes: "In my case, I have three   
  patents and have written 29 books. 21 of which are on   
  electrical engineering/electronic circuit design, 4 are on the   
  stock and bond markets, 3 are on film/cinema, and 1 on   
  numismatics (Coins and Banknotes of Palestine Under the    
  British Mandate, 1927--1947) - awarded the NLG 2001   
  prize for the "best specialized book on world paper money."   
  Perhaps in time I will be as famous as some of the other   
  authors  :)"   

INDIAN SULTANATES BOOK PUBLISHED    

  Achal Madhavan,  Director of Vedams, New Delhi, India,   
  writes: "A new book entitled "The Coins of the Indian   
  Sultanates : Covering the Area of Present Day India, Pakistan   
  and Bangladesh/Stan Goron and J.P. Goenka" has just been   
  published.    

  Lavishly illustrated with several hundred plates, this book is   
  printed on art paper. It is definitive study on Indian coins.   
  The details of the book can be accessed on our website:   
  http://www.vedamsbooks.com/no21272.htm   

COINS OF PELLA JORDAN EXCAVATION    

  From a press release: "The Near Eastern Archaeology   
  Foundation, University of Sydney, is pleased to announce   
  the publication of:    

  PELLA IN JORDAN (1979-1990): THE COINS   
  Kenneth Sheedy, Robert Carson & Alan Walmsley  
  with a contribution by J. Basil Hennessy   
  editor: Kate da Costa 2001    

  This volume contains the catalogue and associated   
  commentaries for the 1106 coins from the University of   
  Sydney's excavations at Pella in Jordan from 1979 to   
  1990. The material includes Ptolemaic, Seleucid, Hellenistic   
  city, Jewish, Roman Imperial, Greek Imperial, Byzantine,   
  Umayyad, Abbasid and Mamluk issues. The volume also   
  includes a short introduction to the site and concordances   
  of mints, hoards, findspots and registration numbers to   
  locate the coin corpus within the overall publication plan   
  of the excavation project.  210 x 265mm, softcover, 186   
  text pages, 15 black and white plates. $AUD75.00 plus   
  postage    

  Please visit our web site for a pdf order form, or further   
  contact details:  

http://www.archaeology.usyd.edu.au/neaf/Adapa/Pella_in_Jordan_The_Coins.html    

FEATURED WEB SITE    

   This week's featured web site is the Carnegie Hero Fund 
  Commission.   The awards were created by industrialist   
  Andrew Carnegie, who was inspired to act after a massive   
  explosion on January 25, 1904, in a coal mine at Harwick, Pa.,   
  near Pittsburgh, claimed 181 lives.  Two of the accident's   
  victims had entered the mine after the explosion in ill-fated   
  rescue attempts.    

  "Within three months of the disaster, Carnegie had set aside   
  $5 million under the care of a commission to recognize  
  "civilization's heroes" ...and to provide financial assistance for   
  those disabled and the dependents of those killed helping others."    

  "The Commission's definition of a hero has been largely   
  unchanged since 1904: A civilian who knowingly risks his   
  or her own life to an extraordinary degree while saving or   
  attempting to save the life of another person.  The cases   
  submitted for consideration--in excess of 75,000 to date --   
  are scrutinized by a full-time staff before formal review by the   
  Commission itself.  Persons selected for recognition receive   
  a bronze medal and a grant of $3,500, and each becomes   
  eligible for scholarship aid.  Those disabled in their heroic   
  acts or the dependents of those killed are eligible for additional   
  benefits, including ongoing aid to meet living expenses.    

  Approximately 20 percent of the awards are made   
  posthumously, reflecting a verse from the New Testament   
  embossed on each medal: "Greater love hath no man than   
  this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13)."      

  http://www.carnegiehero.org/History.shtml    

  "Over the 97 years of its existence, the Fund has awarded   
  8,510 medals and $24.9 million in accompanying grants,   
  including scholarship aid and continuing assistance."    

  As a result of Tuesday's events, the fund could become   
  swamped with nominees, beginning with New York   
  police and fire personnel who raced to the scene of the   
  World Trade Center attack, only to lose their lives in the   
  collapse.    

  Just a few weeks ago, a featured web site highlighted the   
  Congressional Gold Medal (August 5, 2001, v4#32).   
  While medals of any sort are on no one's priority list at   
  the moment, perhaps someday there will be awards for   
  some of those who perished on the fourth hijacked airliner,   
  which crashed in Pennsylvania after some passengers tried   
  to stop the hijackers, according to cell phone messages from   
  the doomed aircraft.    

  From a Sunday, September 16th New York Times account:   
  "[Vice President] "Cheney guessed that "some real heroism   
  by Americans" aboard that plane had prevented the hijackers   
  from crashing it into the Capitol in Washington.    

  "What they did was to foil the attack on Washington," the vice   
  president said of the passengers who fought back."    

  These brave citizens were among the first to resist and fight   
  this incarnation of evil, and they won't be the last.   

  Wayne Homren 
  Numismatic Bibliomania Society