Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 6, Number 34, August 24, 2003:
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
Copyright (c) 2003, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society.


ROSENBLUM BOOK LIST

  Bill Rosenblum writes: "My Fixed Price List #33D (that's
  33 years of issuing  FPL's) contains 228 numismatic and
  related books for sale dating in publication from 1887
  (original edition of Head) to 2003. Most are from one
  library of a serious coin collector. Discounts are already
  built in but E-Sylum subscribers can take an additional 10%
  off.  You must advise us that you are an E-Sylum subscriber.
  You can find the list on our website at
  http://www.rosenblumcoins.com."


ZAVOS BOOK LIST

  Robert Zavos writes: "I am selling back issues of the Asylum
  from 1991 as well as the Harry W. Bass Numismatic Literature
  sale catalogues by George Kolbe.   At a later date I will have for
  sale most of the earlier Asylum issues back to Vol 1 No. 1.  I
  will also be selling complete sets of the Money Tree auctions as
  well as Function Associates sales.  For more information, please
  contact me at RobertZavos at netscape.net"


13TH INTERNATIONAL NUMISMATIC CONGRESS

  Ralf Boepple writes: "I will be in Madrid at the 13th
  International Numismatic Congress in September. If any
  E-Sylum readers will be there as well, I would be more
  than happy to be able to meet with them personally during
  the week, if only to shake hands and 'put a face to the name'.
  You may contact me at dosmundos at hotmail.com.
  Thanks and kind regards from Germany."


BOWERS SEEKS PHOTOGRAPHS FOR NEW BOOKS

  Coin World columnist and author Q. David Bowers is busy at
  work on two new specialized books, one to cover Morgan
  silver dollars 1878-1921 and the other to treat the series of
  $20 gold coins 1849 to 1933.   In a note to Coin World, Dave
  stated that the Morgan dollar manuscript is nearing completion
  and is expected to be finished in the third week of September,
  and the double eagle text is scheduled for a month later. Both
  will contain historical information, collecting suggestions and
  advice, market information, illustrations of dates and mintmarks,
  and other details, each volume intended to be a comprehensive
  study of the series. Whitman Publishing Company will issue the
  books for numismatic as well as mass-market distribution.

  In connection with these two books Dave is seeking to borrow
  historical illustrations relating to the design, coinage, storage,
  distribution, and any other aspects of Morgan dollars and double
  eagles, including, for dollars, distribution during the Treasury
  releases of 1962-1964. Credit will be given for any items used.

  Contact: Q. David Bowers, P.O. Box 539, Wolfeboro  Falls,
  NH 03896, or e-mail at: qdbarchive at metrocast net.


LOST GOLD OF SAN FRANCISCO

  Earlier this year a book of fiction featuring the San Francisco
  mint was published.  Written by Michael Castleman, "The Lost
  Gold of San Francisco" is a murder mystery that follows a
  shipment of misstruck $20 gold pieces that disappears during
  the 1906 earthquake and fire.  The action later moves to
  modern-day San Francisco just in time for the 1989 quake.
  For more information, see the book's web site at:
  http://www.thelostgold.com/.  The site includes links to three
  book reviews as well as the first five chapters of the text.


LIBERTY SEATED COINAGE WORKS BEING READIED

  Coin World reported that "the fifth collective volume of
  editorial matter from The Gobrecht Journal is in final stages
  of preparation.  The quarterly journal is published by the
  Liberty Seated Collectors Club, a group specializing in
  the 19th-century Seated Liberty silver coinage.  The volume
  will include 15 issues from 1995 to 2000, encompassing
  670 pages."

  The article also stated that "Gary Fortin reported his
  reference work on dimes was '90 percent complete."
  It will be on CD-ROM, maybe held in a 'book shell,'
  he said.  He said he had about 6,000 illustrations ready
  for the publication, representing about 900 coins."
  (August 25, 2003 issue, p73).


BEISTLE DELUXE EDITION CENSUS

  Also in Coin World (the August 18, 2003 issue, p54)
  is a discussion of U.S. silver references by Brad Karoleff
  in his "Designs of the Times" column.  The article discusses
  the Haseltine Type Table and M. L. Beistle's  1929  "A
  Register of Half Dollar Varieties and Sub-Varieties."
  Karoleff notes: "David Davis, President of the John
  Reich Collectors Society, is conducting an ongoing census
  of the extant leather editions.  If you own one, please
  contact me with the number of your copy.  Send details
  to the John Reich Collectors Society, P.O. Box 135,
  Harrison, OH 45030-0135."

  [My own copy is #122 of 135 produced.   I sent this
  information to Brad, and encourage other owners of
  the book to do the same.  -Editor]


CONVICT LOVE TOKENS

  Bill Fivaz wrote to say he has a copy of "Convict Love
  Tokens :  The Leaden Hearts the Convicts Left Behind."

  The article said: "The tokens were scratched in prison cells
  on to the smoothed-out surface of copper pennies, just
  36mm in circumference. Intended for sweethearts and family
  members, they carry poignant messages heavy with despair."

  Nick Graver writes: "The article on Convict Love tokens
  probably intended to say 36 mm in "diameter", as few coins
  are ever measured around the edge!    Not a big concern.
  Just showing that we are somewhat awake.  A very
  interesting issue, and I intend to send it to several friends."


EXPLORATOR EMAIL NEWSLETTER

  Arthur Shipee writes: "I get the Explorator newsletter on
  Classics, archaeology, ancient history, medieval to early
  modern history on the web, & here's a few coin notes from
  the current issue:

  An Iron Age coin hoard has been found in Norfolk:
  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/norfolk/3147527.stm

  ... while a similarly-dated coin die has been found in
  Hampshire:
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/dorset/3156829.stm

  Things relevant from Esylum I forward to Explorator."


GOOGLING THE E-SYLUM

  Although the NBS web site has a search feature, you can
  also search the site using the popular search engine Google
  (Google).   To restrict your search to just
  our site, include the following in your search string:
  "site:www.coinbooks.org"

  For example, to search the NBS web site for pages which
  reference encased postage, use the following search string:
  "site:www.coinbooks.org encased postage"


1907 CLEARING HOUSE SCRIP ARTICLE

  One of your Editor's collecting specialties is 1907
  Clearing House certificates, a substitute for paper
  money resulting from the 1907 U.S. bank panic.
  Nolan Mims, in the August 2003 issue of Numismatic
  Views, a publication of the Gulf Coast Numismatic
  Association, has an article featuring a piece of 1907
  scrip from the Second National Bank of Hamilton,
  Ohio.  The note is a $2.00 denomination.  Mims
  references a February, 1950 Numismatic Scrapbook
  article by Elston G. Bradfield on the scrip, which
  appeared in 42 states in response to the short-lived
  panic.


KRAUSE 17TH CENTURY WORLD COINS CATALOG

  In response to last week's query, Howard A. Daniel III
  writes that the 17th Century 2nd Edition of the Krause
  Standard Catalog of World Coins is in his library, so it exists,
  but Robert Laviana might have to find it in the secondary
  market or by checking with several numismatic dealers who
 also stock catalogs.  The third edition is in the works because
  Howard has worked a very little on the Viet Nam section for
  Colin Bruce."

  Joe Boling adds that the second edition was published in
  1999, and that the full title is "The Standard Catalog of World
  Coins, 1601-1700."


EXECUTIVE ORDER ON GOLD COIN AND BULLION

  As noted in the June 2, 2002 E-Sylum (v5n23),  an article
  by Mark Van Winkle in the June 3, 2002 Coin World
  pictured a great piece of numismatic ephemera - a printing of
  the 1933 executive order recalling "all gold coin, gold bullion,
  and gold certificates in the U.S.  There was some follow-up
  on this item in subsequent E-Sylum issues.

  At the recent ANA convention in Baltimore, your Editor
  picked up a reprint of the broadside "compliments of
  Delaware Valley Rare Coin Co., Inc., Broomall, PA"


A NOTE ON SCISSEL AND CLAD COINAGE

  Last week, Dick Johnson wrote that "Scissel or skeleton
  scrap is useful at a mint because it is the exact alloy formula
  as coins being struck.  It can be melted and rerolled into new
  strips for blanking  without being reformulated (tested and
  virgin metal added to give the exact ratio of two or more
  metal elements)."

  Joe Boling counters: "Not when the coinage is clad, as is true
  in many countries besides the U.S."


MARIS PLATE ARTICLE

  U.S. bibliophiles, particularly those who collect literature
  on colonial coinage, should be sure to read the August 2003
  issue of  The Colonial Newsletter.  The issue features an
  article on "The Maris Plates" by Roger A. Moore, M.D.
  and Dennis P. Wierzba.  The 32-page illustrated article
  is an in-depth study of the photographic plates from Edward
  Maris' 1881 work, "A Historical Sketch of the Coins of New
  Jersey."   The authors identify three major versions of the
  plates and trace their provenance.


BERGOS ON THE LILLY GOLD BAR TALK

  Henry Bergos writes: "I was at the Evans/Holabird/Fitch talk.
  I think it was the best presentation I have EVER heard/seen.
  I cornered Fred Holabird whom I had met previously.  I
  asked him about the Mike Hodder/Ted Buttrey "dispute". He
  didn't want to answer, saying "That wasn't today's topic."

  They used a round robin technique. As they showed slides,
  each spoke of his specialty, then moving over to give the
  next one room. I have never seen one person let alone three
  work so smoothly. Their talk was even more fun than the
  large bank deposit I made after the convention!"


TOPIC OF THE WEEK: BOOKS WITH ERRORS

  Dan Gosling's topic of the week is: "Error books or
  catalogues - examples of past mistakes - their value
  or use."

  [I'd define two classes of errors in numismatic literature -
   errors of fact, and errors in production.  Production
   errors include problems with printing, binding, labeling,
   etc.   One type of mistake is when a signature is bound
   upside down, or is missing or duplicated.  Somewhere
   I have a copy of a Redbook with an entire section
   (signature) duplicated.   I would not include binding
   variants as errors - these were intentional or perhaps
   happenstance, but not errors.  What do our readers
   think?  -Editor]


FORGIVE ME FATHER, FOR I HAVE MEDALSIN

  Speaking of errors, Dick Johnson writes: "Generally I
  collect only numismatic bloopers in print. This week I
  have an electronic blooper.  It's a doosey from the
  Smithsonian's website on their magnificent numismatic
  holdings.  The SI's collection is unparalleled and their
  attempt to describe it contained a dropped space in the
  first line of this paragraph:

  "The collection emphsizes the development of money
  and medalsin the United States. The core of the U.S.
  collection, consisting of more than 18,000 items,
  including coins of great rarity, came to the Smithsonian
  in 1923 from the United States Mint.  Among exceptional
  rarities in this section are the Brasher half doubloon, the
  1849 double eagle (first of the gold 20 dollar pieces),
  and two 1877 fifty dollar patterns.

  Other rarities are the very popular and rare 1913 Liberty
  head nickel as well as all three types of the 1804 dollar,
  and two of three known examples of the world's most
  valuable coin, the 1933 double eagle, the third of which
  recently sold for 7.6 million dollars. Among recent donations
  are the unprecedented Josiah K. Lilly holdings, consisting
  of 6,150 gold coins, including an almost complete US gold
  coin collection, a very rich Latin American gold section,
  and many of the great rarities of European gold coins, such
  as a 20 excelentes de la Granada of Ferdinand and Isabella,
  and two large and heavy 100 ducats of Austria and Poland."

  You can find this at:
  http://americanhistory.si.edu/csr/cadnnc.htm."

  [Is it "Medalsin" to mishandle or damage a beautiful medal?
   Dick also notes that "emphasizes" was misspelled on the
   same line.  Typos can creep into the best of publications.
   My secret diversion is finding spelling and grammar errors
   in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.  It
   happens more often than you might think.  -Editor]


NORRIS, GREGG & NORRIS BOOK

  Has anyone seen the book by George H. Hull on
  "The Norris, Gregg & Norris Coin and the Gold Rush
  of '49"?   I believe it was published last year.  It was
  advertised in Spring 2003 issue of The Brasher
  Bulletin, the newsletter of the Society of Private and
  Pioneer Numismatics (SPPN).


BURIAL SITES

  Regarding coins recovered from shipwrecks and other
  burial sites, Joe Wolfe of Sterling VA.writes: "This is a
  popular topic among treasure and relic hunters, only our
  discussions concern searching for relics near or inside
  graveyards and near or in graves.  It is of course illegal in
  all states to dig in a grave or graveyard to recover relics or
  coins and no responsible treasure hunter does this. There
  are a multitude of marked and unmarked grave sites on
  land in the US outside of graveyards and most no longer
  contain any remains but when marked show the spot
  where the deceased was laid to rest. It would of course
  be illegal to dig a marked grave.

  Unmarked graves where no remains have survived are
  often unknown until relics or coins are recovered. Finding a
  row of shirt or coat buttons may indicate a grave site or only
  a coat. Also finding a civil war belt plate with coins next to
  it might indicate a grave site or a pair of pants.  I myself
  found old iron nails arranged in a rectangular pattern six foot
  in length which does indicate a coffin in an unmarked grave.
  I moved away from the grave before starting to search again.
  There is no certainty a grave exists when no remains have
  survived and no coffin was used and so it is not illegal. It is
  of course illegal to dig an unmarked grave when one is found.

  Emotions run high when discussing digging for relics near
  graveyards. Nearly all treasure hunters avoid it and encourage
  others to avoid it also. When someone is seen near a graveyard
  with a metal detector they are assumed to be desecrating
  graves and present a bad image of our hobby so most treasure
  hunters avoid it.

  In the case of a sunken ship there is no certainty that remains
  stayed within the ship when it sunk nor afterwards so in fact
  the sunken vessel may contain no remains. And if it did at one
  time the remains have by now merged into the mud, dirt, and
  sand of the ocean floor. A sunken ship is not a burial site but
  merely the site of an accident. It is not a grave since no person
  was buried there. In some cases we as a society create shrines
  to persons lost in accidents or wars such as the battleships in
  Pearl Harbor but we do not treat the crushed automobile or
  bus from a traffic accident as a shrine.

  A sunken ship is not a grave nor burial site but it may be
  declared a shrine when society chooses to do so.  I say
  recover the coins and then later if there is enough interest then
  the site could be declared a national shrine if needed."


CRIME HITS THE ANA CONVENTION

  An article by John Iddings in the April 2003 issue of
  Coinage magazine about numismatics in the year 1910
  notes: "Crime hit the [American Numismatic Association]
  convention when the official photographer collected $1
  advance payments for a group photograph from several
  attendees, then promptly disappeared without taking the
  photo."


FEATURED WEB SITE

  This week's featured web site is "Art Nouveau and Art
  Deco medals" by Nicolas Maier.  It's loaded with great
  illustrations of beautiful art medals from round the world.
  Medals are arranged by artist and themes, including:
  International Exhibitions and World Fairs, Marianne - the
  National Symbol of France , and Medicina in Nummis

  http://www.finemedals.com/



  Wayne Homren
  Numismatic Bibliomania Society