Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 9, Number 02, January 8, 2006:
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
Copyright (c) 2006, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society.


WAYNE's WORDS

Among our recent subscribers is Bill Bremmer.  Welcome aboard!
We now have 834 subscribers.

I'll skip the commentary tonight, although I can think of a
few choice words for the managers of the hotel I'm staying at
tonight while out of town on business.  The wireless Internet
access I was promised doesn't exactly work very well in my room.
So here I am in the parking lot at midnight, tapping away at
my laptop keyboard in my car, parked in a space near the office,
where the connection actually works.  What I won't do get an
E-Sylum out the door....  Have a great week.

Wayne Homren
Numismatic Bibliomania Society


BOOKLOVER's REPAIR KIT

John Isles of Hanover, Michigan writes: "Further on the
topic of book repair, I see that remaindered copies of
"The Booklover's Repair Kit" by Estelle Ellis et al. are
now being sold by HamiltonBook.com for only $29.95.  This
comprises a book and a box of supplies that I've found
very useful for small repairs, while I've used its soft
red archival tape to hold together some of my worst cases
until I get around to having them rebound.  Here's the
full description:

THE BOOKLOVER's REPAIR KIT: First Aid for Home Libraries.
By Estelle Ellis et al.  Unique kit provides step-by-step
instructions and everything you need to clean, patch,
preserve, repair, and restore the books you love, in your
own home and with no previous experience. Includes guide
book, document-cleaning pad, transparent mending tape, red
cotton library tape, binder's board, archival mat board,
brushes, clamps, etc. 65 photos. 117 pages. Published by
Knopf. Hardbound . Remainder . ISBN 0375411194 . Item
#3256774 Save $95.05.  Published at $125.00.  Your Price
$29.95   hamiltonbook.com

Of course I have no stake in the kit or in Hamilton Books,
but I have to say that at this price it's worth buying a
couple just to stock up on supplies."

[We mentioned this kit in the September 11, 2005 E-Sylum.
Here's what we said:  v08n39a23.html.
I've also seen the kit for sale in discount mall bookstores.
Lucky me, I got one for Christmas thanks to a well-placed
hint.  -Editor]


PHOTOGRADE PRINT RUN INFORMATION SOUGHT

Bill Bremmer writes: "I recently purchased a copy of
Photograde, the 1970 edition. It states the various
printings as follows:

1st printing August 1970
2nd printing September 1970
3rd printing October 1970
4th printing November 1970

It would seem that the book must've caused
quite a stir in 1970 to have that many printings
so fast.  Would you happen to know how many books
would have been a typical printing back then?"

[Great question - does anyone happen to know the
answer?  How many printings did the 1970 edition go
through in all? What's the highest printing number
anyone has seen? -Editor]


LANDMARK NUMISMATIC LITERATURE

The previous question about Photograde brings to mind
a more general topic for discussion: landmark literature
in numismatics.  Which books or catalogs caused such a
stir at their issuance that they changed the hobby landscape
forever?  Here in the U.S., each major modern grading guide
could probably fit in that category (Brown & Dunn, Photograde,
ANA Grading Guide).  Among U.S. titles published in the 19th
century, Dickeson's Numismatic Manual and Heaton's book on
Mint Marks are probably sure-fire nominees.  What do our
readers think?  What publications would you nominate for a
list of landmark numismatic works?


DEL MONTE BANANA LABEL ERROR NOTE SELLS FOR $25,300

The Orlando Sentinel covered the story of a famous error
note sold at the FUN show: "Collectors covet flaws, and
one of the most dramatic defects in recent years fetched
$25,300 at an Orlando auction Friday. The drab $20 note
sports a colorful Del Monte banana sticker next to the
solemn portrait of Andrew Jackson, one that was undoubtedly
affixed before the bill left the printer.

"You'll never find another item like this one," said
Michael Moczalla, consignment director with Heritage
Galleries & Auctioneers, the agency that conducted the
sale. "We had pretty heated bidding. The room was packed."

An unidentified Texan placed the winning bid, becoming
the bill's third owner since an Ohio college student
scooped it from a cash machine in 2003 and auctioned it
for $10,100 on eBay."

"The red, green and yellow sticker -- the kind stuck on
Del Monte bananas -- covers part of the background design
but is itself stamped with a serial number. The 1996 series
bill most likely was printed in the late '90s but didn't
surface until years later.

Just how the sticker ended up on the bill is a mystery.
Bradford said a printer might have accidentally dropped it.

"It is possible that it was done intentionally, but if
that happened, it would seem somebody might have tried
to profit from it," Bradford said. "These things just
happen occasionally."

To read the full story and view an image of the note, see: Full Story


ANOTHER VICTORIA CROSS DONATED

On January 3, the Ottawa Citizen reported the donation
of another Victoria Cross medal to a local museum:
"The price of the rare Victoria Cross medal is reaching
extraordinary heights when it comes up for sale at
international auction houses. But the Merrifield family
of Sault Ste. Marie has decided its Victoria Cross will
never be sold to the highest bidder and will never leave
Canada.

In November, the Merrifields donated the Victoria Cross
medal set that belonged to Sgt. William Merrifield to the
Canadian War Museum. The family was donating a military
artifact that would be worth a lot of money on the collectors'
market; a British Victoria Cross sold for $482,000 in 2004.

William Merrifield was an infantryman in the First World War
who became one of only 94 Canadians to win the high honour.
He won the medal in France for attacking German machine-gun
posts that had trapped his platoon, then leading the platoon
forward on the battlefield. He was wounded twice. He received
the medal from King George V at Sandringham in January 1919."

"The family saw the rising amounts of money being sought
for military medals, and saw the angst and controversy
over the recent sale of Fred Topham's Victoria Cross.
The executors of Mr. Topham's widow's estate wanted to
auction the medal in Britain, causing a national outcry
in 2004. The federal government eventually stepped in
and bought the medal for $300,000.

The Merrifield family wanted to avoid all that."

"We don't want it sold and off to another country,
just regarded as a piece of metal. We were taught as
kids that this was a very highly respected honour and
we should keep it that way. The museum was a good way
to do it."

"So the family decided to hand over the medal set to
the Canadian War Museum in a little ceremony in November."

"Families typically do a lot of thinking before donating
such a piece, says Mr. Glenney. So far, the war museum has
collected 29. Mr. Glenney says the medals are great for the
museum to collect, not just because they are small and easy
to store and display, but also because there's a story behind
each set and it's the museum's mission to tell those stories."

To read the complete story, see: Full Story


BOSTON "T" TOKENS GO BY THE WAYSIDE

A January 8 Associated Press story covers the story of
the end of transportation tokens in Boston:

"Transit tokens have jingled in the pockets of Bostonians
since 1837 -- from the silver-colored coins of the
horse-drawn Roxbury Coach, to the worn brass discs that
have been plunked into MBTA turnstiles since 1951.

But soon, in the city that is home to America's first subway,
where folk singers have rhapsodized about public transportation,
tokens won't be good for a ride.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority recently
announced that the $1.25 token will be phased out in early
2007, making way for fare cards.

"I think there is certainly something symbolic in the
passing of the token," said transit system general manager
Daniel A. Grabauskas, who has already ordered his set of
commemorative token cuff links."

"Chicago killed its token on May 31, 1999. The New York
Times ran an obituary for its 50-year-old subway token on
the last day it could used in turnstiles -- March 14, 2003."

"Tokens were as revolutionary a technology change in their
day as electronic fare collection is today," said Clarke,
who has written nine books on public transportation. "Instead
of fishing in your pocket for two dimes and a nickel, you
just had to find a single coin."

There been have about 12,000 different transit tokens minted
in the United States and Canada, said Rev. John M. Coffee Jr.,
editor of The Fare Box, a monthly newsletter for transportation
token collectors. Three hundred to 400 are still in use in
smaller cities and towns, he said."

To read the full story, see: Full Story


DROPPED "THE" PROMPTS RUCKUS OVER BANKNOTE

"Korea's online community is up in arms at the decision
to omit the definite article from the new 5,000-won ($5)
bill, leaving "Bank of Korea" to stand alone.

"If the bank has omitted 'the' by mistake," read one
online posting, "then it has not only wasted taxpayers'
money, but caused our national shame."

The story of the new banknote, released on Monday, started
auspiciously. With its new design, holograms and other
anti-forgery features, demand for the new notes was such
that local banks had to limit the number of new bills they
will exchange for old ones to 10 per person.

But eagle-eyed netizens soon spotted that on the new notes,
the name of the nation's central bank is printed as "Bank
of Korea," prompting curious users to ask the bank why "the"
has been dropped."

"In response, the central bank said it left out "the" for
design purposes. The bank added its official title, The
Bank of Korea, has not changed.

The central bank also said a number of foreign countries
such as New Zealand, India, Israel and Hong Kong do not
use "the" when referring to their respective central banks."

Full Story


THE DRIFFIELD NEW YEAR COIN SCRAMBLE

Last week Dick Johnson shared an article about New Year's
traditions around the world that involve coins.  Jeff
Starck forwarded this article from a Yorkshire newspaper
about the annual "coin scramble" in the East Yorkshire
town of Driffield:

"IT IS as much a sign of the dawning of a new year as
the chimes of Big Ben and the quaffing of champagne.
And yesterday, once again, the annual Driffield coin
scramble attracted a crowd.

For more than 200 years the children of Driffield have
scrambled in the gutter for sweets and treats, in a
ceremony whose origins have been lost in the mists of
time. Yesterday saw the annual coin scramble in the East
Yorkshire town, with dozens of children scuffling and
laughing in the street as they tried to scoop up treats."

"And, with all the fervour of their predecessors, they
chanted the old rhyme:  "Here we are at our toon's end wi'
a shoulder'a mutton and a croon ti spend Are we doon 'arted?
- No! Shall we win? - Yes!"

The festivity was first recorded in the 1700s, and for
decades children up to the age of 12 have run through
Middle Street in the scramble.  Although it is all now
fun and games, shopkeepers added a cruel twist to the
game in years gone by when they heated the coins on metal
shovels before throwing them to the children."

Full Story



ROBERT COULTON DAVIS PAPERS SOUGHT

Roger Burdette writes: "Do any E-Sylum readers know of
the existence and whereabouts of the personal papers or
collection notebooks of R. Coulton Davis, 19th century
Philadelphia druggist and coin collector?  Thanks!"


COLLECTION DES HOMMES ILLUSTRES INFORMATION SOUGHT

Bob Fritsch writes: "My question is a simple one --
does anyone know about this series which appeared
around 1830+ in Switzerland?  The medallist I am
studying, Antoine Bovy, did a few of them, but I
have never seen anything else in the same series
by other medallists.

Appearing around the same time were two French series,
GALERIE METALLIQUE DES GRAND HOMMES FRANÇAIS and SERIES
NUMISMATICA UNIVERSALIS VIRORUM ILLUSTRUM.  If one
wants to extrapolate to modern times, maybe a comparison
with the Franklin Mint who issues medal series like
THE INVENTORS OF GRASS SEED could be made.

In particular I am looking for the names of the medals
in all three series, and most importantly, printed
references about them.  Just the reference would be
valuable to my research.   A Happy New Year to all!"


BASHLOW PLATINUM CONFEDERATE CENT RESTRIKE INFORMATION SOUGHT

Harold Levi writes: "In a recent article I wrote for
Coin World, I included information received from David
Laties, Bashlow's partner at the time the so-called
second Confederate cent restrikes were made.  Laties
stated that a large number of coins were struck in
platinum, but all were melted when a deal fell through
that Bashlow was working on.

In a recent e-mail, Jesse Patrick (The Patrick Mint)
stated that as a dealer he has handled a platinum
Bashlow restrike.  According to his information, one
or more of the platinum restrikes were found in Walter
Breen's estate when he died.  Patrick believes that
three copies escaped melting.

Can anyone shed any light on this issue?  My e-mail
address is haroldlevi@hotmail.com."


MINOR COINS CHANGE IN MODERN SOCIETY

Dick Johnson writes: "There is a reason we call minor
coins "change."  Events are causing a lot of change
in our coin change. ATMs, debit cards, and Coinstar
coin-counting machines - products of modern technology -
are all influencing how we make small payments thus
affecting the very existence of our cents, nickels,
dimes and quarters.

This was dramatically brought to mind this week by an
excellent article in the Delaware News Journal. Writer
Christopher Yasiejko reported some interesting facts
including these two: about $10.5 billion in coins sits
idle nationwide, and the average U.S. home has about $99
in idle change [read "minor coins"].

"A stream of innovations," Yasiejko reports, "during the
past quarter-century have made it easier to avoid coins
altogether."  He cites credit cards, EZPass, Speedpass
and PayPass among these innovations.

He notes that some coins are lost. "Mostly, though, change
ends up at home, scattered atop tables and counters or
collected in a container for later use." He cites several
examples of people recognizing this fact, carting their
coin stash to the local supermarket or bank and converting
coins to cash.

Commerce Bank in seven states in his area placed coin-exchange
machines in each of their banks and coin counted nearly $349
million in 2005. He also quoted coin dealer Steven Hershkowitz,
owner of the Coin Gallery of Delaware, who reported he doesn't
much like debit cards. (Do you, E-Sylum reader?)

He mentioned Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz) introduced a bill in 2001
to eliminate the cent. His proposed legislation, Legal Tender
Modernization Act, died in committee.

Four pages long, this great article (he even gets penny / cent
usage correct) can be read at:

Full Story "


CALLS TO LEAVE SCOT BANKNOTES ALONE

According to a report published The Scotsman,
"NATIONALISTS launched a petition today calling
on the Treasury to leave Scottish banknotes alone."

"Bank bosses say the proposals, aimed at modernising
the way money is issued in the UK, do not threaten
Scottish notes.

The SNP is demanding that the present independent
system be left alone."

"Mr Hosie said: "The proposals hand power over to
the Bank of England to determine what denominations
of Scottish notes are acceptable and even the design
of Scottish notes.

"The Treasury proposals offer no benefit to Scottish
banks and simply place more burdens on them. It is
another example of London government attempting to
eliminate Scottish traditions".

Three Scots banks are allowed to issue their own
notes, the Bank of Scotland, Clydesdale Bank and
the Royal Bank of Scotland."

To read the full story, see: Full Story


TURKISH MUSEUM PONDERS MYSTERY OF GOLD COINS OF PERGAMAN

Arthur Shippee forwarded the following from The Explorator
Newsletter: "One of two surviving golden coins stamped
during the period of the foundation of the Kingdom of
Pergamon is being exhibited at the Eregli Archaeology
Museum in Konya."

"Pergamon was an ancient city founded on the Aegean coast
of Anatolia at the site of the present-day city of Bergama.
Located 100 kilometers north of Izmir in the Bakirçay River
basin, Bergama is one of Turkey's oldest civilized settlements,
inhabited from pre-historic times through the periods of the
Ionic, Roman and Byzantine civilizations."

"Stressing that only two golden coins remain from that time,
Bilici said the one exhibited in the Eregli Archaeology Museum
was unearthed from a tomb on a hill located five kilometers
east of Eregli during excavations in the region in 1974.

"This golden coin, along with some other finds from the
same tomb, is being exhibited at our museum. It'll be worthwhile
to put these coins and the other unearthed items under
comprehensive technical observation, as according to the age's
religious beliefs coins were put into tombs for the dead as a
gift to be given to the keeper of the Sirat Bridge," he said.
"However, it's a great secret as to how the coins came from
Bergama to a central Anatolian settlement."

Bilici said Eregli will also be a place of major interest
for archaeologists and art historians from all around the
world if the body found in the tomb is proven to be one of
Alexander the Great's commanders, as some archaeologists presume."

To read the full article (registration required): Full Story


ANS LIBRARY CATALOG ENTRY FOR LES MONNAIES D'ARLES

Bob Leonard writes: "Bob Knepper should consult
the ANS on-line library catalog, which is far, far
superior to the ANA catalog.  In it he would find:

Main Author:
 Ferrando, Philippe.
Title:
 Les monnaies d'Arles : de Constantin le Grand
 Romulus Augustule (313-476) / Philippe Ferrando.
Publication Info:
 [Arles] : F. Ferrando, 1997.
Extent:
 254 p. : ill., map, tabls. ; 25 cm.
Note:
 Includes bibliographical references (p. 238-240)
  and indexes.
Summary:
 Roman coinage of Arelate from Constantine I through Romulus.
Subject Info:
 Rome Mints Arelate.Arles (France) Antiquities, Roman.
Year:
 1997

Thus we see that his suspicion is confirmed, this is
a catalog of the Roman coins minted at Arelate (modern
Arles) from A.D. 313 to 476, and has nothing on his
paper notes."


DON TAXAY FOLLOWUP

Fred Reed writes: "I'll add my two cents on the Don Taxay
thread in the recent E-Sylum.

On Dec. 26, 1991, John J. Ford (presumably, he wrote the
introduction) renewed the copyright on Taxay's "Counterfeit,
Mis-struck, and Unofficial U.S. Coins" (originally registered
May 15, 1963) in favor of himself and Don Taxay.

Also, on October 14, 1998, Scott Publishing Co. (owned
by Amos Press since 1985) renewed the copyright on Taxay's
"Scott's Comprehensive Catalogue and Encyclopedia of U.S.
Coins, 1971" which had originally been registered on Dec.
3, 1970.

This is the straight poop.  It's from my significant
numismatic date database which forms the basis of my
"The Week That Was" weekly column in COIN WORLD, and
is based on Copyright Office records.

As for the suggestion that Taxay sold rights to his
"The U.S. Mint and Coinage" for some exorbitant sum
such as $100,000, and the disposition of his other
works, I can't add anything since I refer to the
records on line which only go back to 1978."

[Ron Benice, using an Internet people-search service
writes that it "shows a Donald Taxay, age 72... The
age seems about right."

I've edited out other details.  This may or may not
be the Don Taxay we're curious about, but in any case,
if he wanted to reconnect with the numismatic world
he could have done so.  This has been an interesting
topic, and I'd still like to hear other stories from
those who knew him, but as far as our search goes,
we'll stop here.  -Editor]


ANOTHER REVIEW: FRICKE's COLLECTING CONFEDERATE PAPER MONEY

John and Nancy Wilson forwarded their review of the
Pierre Fricke's "Collecting Confederate Paper Money:
A Complete and Fully Illustrated Guide to All Confederate
Note Types and Varieties".  They write:

"This hard bound fully illustrated 800 page book contains
both full color and  enlarged black and white pictures
of each of the Criswell Type notes and also some color
varieties of some notes.  The book contains much original
information from sources including the late Dr. Douglas J.
Ball.  Many of the rare types have the known surviving
serial numbers as well as some condition census information.
Prices in several conditions are also included.

When we received the new reference by Pierre we could
hardly put it down.  We were amazed at the valuable
information contained within the pages of this important
reference.   We have a nice type set of CSA issues, not
including the rare First Series, Essays, or Indian Princess
note(s).  This reference helped us find some scarce varieties
we never would have known about if it wasn't available.
This CSA reference will add information greatly needed by
the collectors of these important numismatic items.  It was
obvious that the Author, Pierre Frick spent countless hours
in the research and production of this Confederate States
of America reference.

This reference could also be "The Book of the Year" because
of the important information contained as well as the high
quality printing and pictures.  It will be a must for all
collectors of Confederate States of America Issues.  It
now takes up a prominent location in our Numismatic Library.
Visit  www.smytheonline.com for more information on the book."


DON'T MESS WITH NUMISMATISTS

On Sunday, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer published an
editorial correcting some numismatic errors in an earlier
story.  Regret the Error, a web site devoted to "corrections,
retractions, clarifications and trends regarding accuracy
and honesty in the media" wrote:

"We already mentioned that the press needs to come correct
when it writes about Star Wars, comics, and other elements
of geek-culture. Add coin collecting to the list. The
editorial page editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
got slapped down, numismatics style, for a column about
coins.

I'd like to start the New Year by correcting a mistake.
Actually two mistakes. A couple of weeks ago I wrote a
column and suggested we get rid of paper dollars and
instead use coins."

The following excerpts are from the Post-Intelligencer:
"I read your editorial and found it interesting," wrote
a reader. "I find any story about numismatics interesting,
primarily because the information contained within is
rarely correct. It seems that whenever the price of gold
or silver makes any kind of significant move, or a new
coin design is forthcoming, the newspapers throw together
a story or editorial riddled with inaccuracies. While your
editorial was rather tame in that respect, errors were made."

The first error was a dumb one: Nearly a billion Susan B.
Anthony coins were produced -- not the million I said. I
just looked at the number wrong.

The other error sits on my desk, too. I compared the Susan
B. Anthony coin to the Sacagawea -- and said they were
different sizes. That's not true. They are the same size
(and weight, for that matter) but the gold-toned Sacagawea
has a smoother edge with a wide rim. It just looks different.

The column was posted online and immediately I heard from
folks who picked up on the misstatements... And that's
what's best about the Internet -- there's a large body of
knowledge out there, representing people who care deeply
about an infinite range of topics."

To read the full article, see: Full Story


MORE ON REMOVING LINE BREAKS

Alan Luedeking writes: "Bob's suggestion was good, but
instead of Line breaks find Paragraph breaks instead.
All you need is the caret-p command instead of caret-l.
To make sure you get it right, put this in the 'Replace
What' field. To get there: Edit/Replace/More/Special and
choose Paragraph Mark. Then put a space in the 'RepLace
With' field.

To facilitate this every week, go to Tools/Customize/Commands/Edit
and put the Replace button on your Word toolbar. This exercise
is only necessary with older versions of Outlook, since
newer versions do indeed allow automatic removal of line
breaks: Tools/Options/Preferences/E-mail
Options: Check the "Remove Extra Line Breaks in Plain Text
Messages" checkbox. Simply resize your mail message window
to the desired print size and print. If you like headerless
E-Sylums, then copy/paste to Word and do as Bob said to
format."


NUMISMATIC HARDWARE: COMMEMORATIVE COIN TOILET SEAT

Stephen Pradier of Murfreesboro, TN writes: "I periodically
search eBay's Coin Publications listing and have noticed
that the US section is receiving listings for a more than
just books.  One seller is offering a toilet seat embedded
with "U.S. and Commemorative coins".  I haven't ever taken
my numismatic books to that area of the home. Perhaps this
is for the very serious numismatic bibliophile."

Ralf W. Böpple of  Stuttgart also saw this one. He writes:
"This is definitely the weirdest item I have ever seen at
offer in the coins publications section of eBay! Somebody
took his desire to be as close as possible to his collection
at any time a little too far, I guess!! I leave it to you to
decide whether it's something for the E-Sylum (I can guarantee
that I do not have any business interest in this auction,
though)!"


FEATURED WEB SITE: AMERICAN VECURIST ASSOCIATION

This week's featured web site is the Wikipedia entry
for the American Vecurist Association, which has some
interesting information about the history of the standard
workS on transportation tokens:

"In 1920, Mr. F.C. Wentworthy began cataloging his
transportation token collection. Five years later, Mr
Wentworthy handed his work off to Mr. R.W. Dunn. In 1932
Mr. Dunn printed his list of U.S. and foreign transportation
tokens. Shortly after printing, Dr. Dunn passed the task of
cataloging transportation tokens off to Ronald C. Atwood.
In 1948, Mr. Atwood had his National Check and Premium List
of All U.S. Transportation Tokens published by the American
Numismatic Company of Los Angeles.

Meanwhile, Mr. R.L. Moore began publishing the Fare Box, a
monthly newsletter about transportation tokens. On October
31, 1948, the American Vecturist Association was formed in
New York City out of interest sparked from Mr. Moore's
newsletter. Two months later, Mr. Moore turned over the Fare
Box to the newly formed American Vecturist Association."

wikipedia.org


  Wayne Homren
  Numismatic Bibliomania Society