WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM OCTOBER 16, 2011

Among our new subscribers this week are Travis Hearn, courtesy of Dave Bowers, Serge Melkizian and Mark Williams. Welcome aboard! We have 1,462 email subscribers, plus 166 followers on Facebook, including Eric Schena.

This week we open with a report from David Sklow on his recent numismatic literature sale. Other topics this week include the Celtic Coin Index, the Journal of Ancient Numismatics, and measuring irregularly shaped coins.

To learn more about Dr. John and Dr. John, skewing, Sammy Marks tickeys, the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and how not to store a coin collection, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Numismatic Bibliomania Society

SKLOW BID SALE NO. 14 PRICES REALIZED ARE AVAILABLE

Mail bid sale no. 14 featuring the paper money works and scarce items from the library of Myron Xenos is now closed – some results from the sale are listed below. The Prices Realized are viewable on our website NOW!

• Lot 13 The Hyperinflation Collection brought $195 on spirited bidding!
• Lot 348 Senate Letters attracted several interested bidders driving it to $825!
• Lot 416 Stack's June 28, 1940 had multiple bidders resulting in $145 finish!
• Lot 683 American Bond Detector with a great pedigree realized only $1700.
• Lot 689 Deluxe Bowers &Merena Norweb Sales Copy # 4 brought $1681 on a heavily reduced bid!
• Lot 702 Cooper's Art & Craft of Coin Making attracted more bids than any other lot in the sale and hammered down at $533 on a reduced bid!
• Lot 894 The Very Scarce Deluxe Leather Mehl Catalogue of the Mores, Faelten and Todd Collections obtained a final price of $2007 after a war of bidding!

Mail Bid Sale # 15 will be February 11, 2012

DAVID SKLOW – FINE NUMISMATIC BOOKS
P.O. BOX 6321
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO 80934
TEL: (719) 302-5686
FAX: (719) 302-4933
finenumismaticbooks@aol.com
www.finenumismaticbooks.com

NEW BOOK: STANDARD GUIDE TO SMALL-SIZE U.S. PAPER MONEY, 10TH ED.

Krause Publications has released the 10th edition of the Standard Guide to Small-Size U.S. Paper Money.

Authored by leading paper money experts John Schwartz and Scott Lindquist, the Standard Guide is the ultimate price guide for dealers and collectors of small-size U.S. paper money. Features include:

• 300+ color photographs
• Complete serial number data
• Current market values in up to four grades of condition
• Precise quantities of notes printed observed
• Design and production details

For more information visit www.sellcoinbooks.com/us-paper-money/standard-guide-to-small-size-u-s-paper-money-10th-edition

DR. JOHN E. WILKISON OF SPRINGFIELD, TENNESSEE

Jeff wrote:

David Stone writes:

Howard Cohen writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: QUERY: INFORMATION ON DR. JOHN E. WILKISON SOUGHT (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a15.html)

DR. JOHN WILKINSON OF CANADA

Joe Foster writes:

Pete Smith writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: QUERY: INFORMATION ON DR. JOHN E. WILKISON SOUGHT (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a15.html)

SKEWING - A TECHNIQUE FOR SIGNATURE IDENTIFICATION

Recently Paul Horner submitted a question about a hard-to-read signature.

John MacVean identified it as "Eugene Newman M.D." I couldn't have guessed that one in a million years, but Paul agreed, and he'd already been puzzling over the signature for some time.

This week Bill Eckberg writes:

Wow! Neat idea. This does help make the signature more legible. Thanks! This technique could prove very useful for deciphering banknote, check and stock certificate signatures.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: NORTH CAROLINA STATE TREASURY NOTE SIGNATURE IDENTIFIED (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a07.html)

MEASURING IRREGULARLY SHAPED NUMISMATIC ITEMS

Last week Leon Saryan wrote:

If you have a problem measuring odd shaped coins, imagine the problem measuring medals and medallic items. Medals can appear in far more odd shapes and often have several parts attached to each other, as badges, decorations and such.. Thus, medal catalogers have come up with some rules to make the task easier. If you wish to adapt these for coins, be my guest.

1. Stretch out the item if it has chains or a ribbon to its greatest length.

2) Measure this length in metric -- millimeters or centimeters.

3) Measure the width at its widest point wherever that may be.

In other words, imagine the item in the tightest box in which it would fit -- measure the inside of that box -- height by width.

For a freeform medal determine its precise horizontal and vertical orientation. Again, measure the inside of a box in which it would fit, still maintaining that horizontal-vertical orientation.

If the item has a loop, disregard this in any measurement.

For medals list height first using metric then its width using "mm" or "cm," separated by a lower case "x" -- then translate Metric into Aliquot and add a single "-inch." In America we think in inches, but prefer Metric for its scientific accuracy. You can list inches first if you wish, I do (and add Metric in parenthesis).

Height is always listed first in numismatic cataloging. This is opposite to philately which always gives width first.

Circular coins and medals obviously need only one measurement -- its diameter anywhere.

Use a caliper to measure any numismatic item, never a ruler (for greater accuracy -- even to one-tenth of a millimeter). But metal calipers are not recommended -- they can scratch a surface. Instead use a plastic caliper. They are cheaper and just as satisfactory as metal calipers.

There is another term of measurement -- longest dimension -- but you don't have to worry about that since it is only used in diemaking. A blank diestock must be chosen for a rectangular medallic item to accommodate it longest dimension, diagonally from one corner across to its farthest corner.

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: QUERY: HOW TO MEASURE AN IRREGULARLY SHAPED COIN (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a09.html)

ASSISTANCE WITH PERIODICALS SOUGHT FOR THE NBS ONLINE BIBLIOGRAPHY

Tom Wetter writes:

To visit the 100 Greatest section of the NBS site, see: The One Hundred Greatest Items Of United States Numismatic Literature (wiki.coinbooks.org/index.php/The_One_Hundred_Greatest
_Items_Of_United_States_Numismatic_Literature)

MORE ON THE SHIP OF THE LINE VIRGINIA

Last week Alan V. Weinberg shared images of a nautical love token for the "Virginia" on a host 1874 quarter dollar. This "Ship of the Line Virginia" was the third U.S. ship to bear the name "Virginia," being a 74-gun, North Carolina Class, "Ship of the Line" intended for 820 officers and enlisted men.

Ships of the Line were multiple deck, wooden sailing vessels designed for Napoleonic naval tactics such as sailing in a line to exchange broadsides with enemy lines of sail. This Virginia was authorized by Congress in 1816, laid down at the Boston Navy Yard starting in 1821 and was ready by 1825, a time when no U.S. naval battles were on the horizon.

She was kept in stocks, never launched, commissioned, or mothballed. At 197 feet long by 53 feet in beam and 22 feet depth of hold, she was held in reserve for decades and later served as a store ship, like a warehouse in port as the age of wind and wooden ships evaporated, in favor of screw-driven steam ships sheathed in iron cladding. Subsequent ships named "Virginia, " were more famous cousins.

This Boston love token documents the final "breaking" in 1874. Further research into the history of the Boston Navy Yard may reveal more stories about machinists that might feel the need to commemorate breaking a warship that never swam. Could this be a precursor to the "DaDa" movement, to honor warships with nonviolent and peaceful records, or did some salvage yard operator, sawing fifty year old oak beams back into lumber planks have special reason to note the provenance of this load of nautical scrap?

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: ON GERMAN ANHäNGER OR "GOOD FOR" MEDALS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a14.html)

WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: OCTOBER 16, 2011

Tuesday evening was the October meeting of Nummis Nova, my Northern Virginia numismatic social group. This time we met at The Max Fox, a brew pub in Falls Church. Present were Tom Kays, Mike Packard, Ron Abler, Gene Brandenburg, Joe Levine, Jon Radel, Eric Schena, Dave Schenkman, Bill Eckberg, Chris Neuzil and S. Stewart.

Related to our earlier discussion of the origin of the U.S. dollar sign, Dave Schenkman asked the question, which was he first coin to bear the word "Dollar"? America's first dollar coin was minted in 1794. Dave proposed as the earliest a coin he'd brought to the meeting: a 1791 dollar of Sierra Leone. What do readers think? Is there an earlier coin with the word "dollar"?

Among the points of discussion at my end of the table was a recent National Public radio story about moon rocks distributed to states and congressional districts in the 1970s. Many are now missing, having been lost or stolen over the years. To ease the problem of identification I suggested that the rocks should have been originally encased in something like a Lucite block with identification information and a serial number. Apparently that wasn't done and now we have a bunch of loose rocks that few understand the significance of. Someday someone will write a science fiction story where these missing rocks turn out to store a secret to save the Universe. Your ex-senator may be using one for a paperweight. Or his kid painted it like a ladybug for a gradeschool project.

Anyway, the topic of unearthly rocks led to another numismatic question for E-Sylum readers - has there ever been a coin, token or medal made from ore from a meteorite? None of us had an answer, but if anyone can help, it's probably one of our readers.

Wednesday evening I noticed an ad in the Tuesday Washington Post for a product of GovMint.com (see - I'm always behind the times in my reading). It was a replica of the Lovett "Confederate Cent". It got my attention since I never would have expected to see an image of this obscure item in a newspaper (obscure for the public anyway, not E-Sylum readers). It turns out this is another in the series of replicas authorized by the Smithsonian Institution - a portion of the proceeds supports the National Numismatic Collection.

Later in the week I noticed Scott Barman's Coin Collectors Blog article about numismatic items featured on recent television shows. I don't see much TV, but I probably would have enjoyed these. Did anyone see them?

To read the complete blog post, see: Numismatics On Television (coinsblog.blogspot.com/2011/10/numismatics-on-television.html)

On a related note, David Ganz sent a link to this History Channel episode which ran on October 5th. It also discusses Ft. Knox. From the web site:

To view the complete show, see: Brad Meltzer's Decoded: Season 2 Full Episodes ()

QUERY: WHAT IS A SAMMY MARKS PENNY?

Dick Johnson forwarded the following item asking,

With over 15 year's industry experience, South Cape Coins have long been considered one of South Africa's premier rare coin dealers. So when they launched their first rare coin competition in July earlier this year, there was immediate interest from local and international numismatic communities as well as South Cape Coin's existing customers and Facebook followers.

The competition prize was an incredibly rare 1898 Sammy Marks Penny, graded MS64 RB by independent coin grading company PCGS and valued at an astounding R45 000.

To read the complete article, see: R 45,000 Rare Coin Competition Giveaway (pressportal.co.za/business-and-economy/item
/5780-45000-rare-coin-competition-giveaway.html)

And here's a photo of the 1898 Sammy Marks Penny that could be yours!

To read the complete article, see: WIN! 1898 Sammy Marks Penny MS64 RB (www.cointalk.com/t181471/)

Samuel Marks, better known as Sammy Marks (1843 - 18 February 1920), was a South African industrialist and financier.

Marks contributed generously to Jewish communities all over South Africa. The Pretoria synagogue was built in 1898, for which he donated all the bricks and paid for the electric light installation and chandeliers. At the end of the Anglo-Boer War, he presented a cast-iron fountain to the city of Pretoria, shipped from Glasgow and very Edwardian in design, it stands at the Zoological Gardens. Marks commissioned the statue of Kruger on Church Square in Pretoria - sculpted by Anton van Wouw and cast in bronze in Europe, it carried a price tag of ₤10 000.

In 1898 Marks was allowed the extraordinary privilege of using the state mint for a day. He was awarded the Jewish Cross for his services to his race. Marks used the opportunity to strike 215 gold tickeys – three-penny pieces that were normally silver – as mementos for his relatives and friends, including President Kruger and members of the Volksraad. The gold would certainly have come from the Sheba mine near Barberton, the only gold mine in which Marks had a substantial stake.

To read the complete article, see: (www.southcapecoins.co.za/index.php/news
/the-story-behind-the-1898-sammy-marks-penny-that-you-can-win)

THE CELTIC COIN INDEX

How and why was the Celtic Coin Index founded? And what is there to celebrate? Setting up an index of Celtic coins found in Britain was first thought of in 1959 by the archaeologist Professor Sheppard Frere, excavator of Verulamium and author of Britannia (1967), and the numismatist Derek Allen (1910-75), who authored five books on Celtic coins (four of them for the British Museum) and who was the undisputed ‘king of Celtic coins' for thirty years.

Frere and Allen had previously collaborated on a coin gazetteer for Problems of the Iron Age in Southern Britain (1960) a collection of lectures given at a CBA conference held at the Institute of Archaeology, London, in 1958, which was edited by Frere and which contained Allen's pivotal paper ‘The origins of coinage in Britain: a reappraisal.'

Philip de Jersey writes: "As a result of his collaboration with Allen on this gazetteer and the discovery that many coins had become separated from their findspots, Frere realised that unlike mass-produced modern coinage, Celtic coins each possessed a unique identity, having been individually struck and with small differences resulting from the position of the dies. It followed that a photographic record would tie each coin to its context – even if its provenance was forgotten in the future – and would also facilitate the detailed study of die-chains. Early in 1959, Allen and Frere thus conceived the idea of the CCI: a record of every British Celtic coin, plus continental Celtic coins found on British soil.

Today the CCI comes under the protective wing of Chris Gosden, Professor of European Archaeology, University of Oxford, and co-editor of Communities and Connections: Essays in Honour of Barry Cunliffe (Oxford 2007) and Rethinking Celtic Art (Oxbow 2008). Moreover, the CCI now houses one of the world's finest libraries on Celtic numismatics, and at present the total number of CCI records exceeds 50,000 – an appropriate achievement for its 50th anniversary.

For fifty years the Celtic Coin Index at Oxford has quietly rendered a remarkable public service to British archaeology, British numismatics, British museums, British education, British scholarship and British metal detecting. It's worth noting here that over 80 per cent of the coins recorded by the CCI – that's four out of every five coins – have been found by metal detectorists since the 1970s. The growth of the CCI testifies to a commensurate increase in co-operation between professional archaeologists and amateur metal detectorists.

To read the complete article, see: 50 Years of Celtic Coin Index (www.coinsweekly.com/en/Article-of-the-week/5)

To access the Celtic Coin Index, see: www.finds.org.uk/CCI/

THE JOURNAL OF ANCIENT NUMISMATICS, VOLUME 4

Livia - The First Augusta of Rome
By: Marvin Tameanko

When Augustus died in AD 14, he willed the title of ‘Augusta', the feminine form of Augustus, to his wife Livia Drusilla, his partner for 53 years. This is an excellent biography of Livia, the first Augusta of Rome.

Britain's First Coins
By: Chris Rudd

They are cheaper than Greek, rarer than Roman, more bizarre than Byzantine, sexier than Anglo-Saxon, more British than English hammered, and more fun than foreign banknotes. That's the magic of Celtic coins, the first coins made in Britain.

A fantastic introduction to British Celtic coins.

The World of Coin Forgery
By: Ilya Prokopov

A small group of enthusiasts from different countries are trying to draw the attention of the ministries of culture, the national and international institutions of justice, and police groups to the painful subject of the production and sale of ancient coin fakes. This problem stays in the shadows and there is no trend towards enlightenment. The real reasons for this secrecy are known to few. Although public, the secrecy itself remains a secret.

A Strange Fantasy Caracalla Overstruck on Menander
By: David MacDonald

The inherent improbability of such an overstrike provokes immediate suspicion. Menander's drachms are the most common Indo-Greek silver coins and are known to have remained long in circulation, but it is unlikely a well-preserved example made its way to Rome after some three and half centuries and even less likely that such a coin would have been overstruck by the Roman mint.

Vilonius Strabo
By: Mark Passehl

There is a problem with the abbreviated clan name, and therefore basic identity, of the Roman mint magistrate responsible for Crawford's type 377: a small issue of denarii serrati, struck around 80 B.C. with an unusually spectacular reverse design of Zeus' taurus conveying Europa from Tyre to Crete. Crawford presents the legend as L. VOL L.F STRAB (RRC, 391), apparently following a scholarly consensus.

Black Sea Hoard Controversy Dies with a Whimper
By: Wayne G. Sayles

It is only fitting that an issue that has a strong emphasis on forgeries of ancient coins should include an article which discusses the conclusion to one of the most controversial events concerning forgeries.

The Birth of Islamic Coinage - The Orthodox and Umayyad Caliphate
By: Sameer Kazmi

An excellent introduction to Islamic Coinage. At the advent of Islam, Arabia for the most part had a very limited numismatic history of its own. The past local coinage seems to be limited to that of the Sabaeans, the Himyarites, the Nabataens, and Rome's Provencia Arabia. However, by Muhammad's birth, these were already centuries old.

Images of Africa on Roman Imperatorial Coinage as Propaganda at the End of the Republic
By: Gabriella Vlahovici Jones

In the second century A.D., Appian of Alexandria embarks on the monumental undertaking of writing a Roman History. Only the Civil Wars survive today – a testimony to the Greek intellectual's attempt at unraveling the series of events that brought about the fall of the Republic.

To read the complete issue, see: Journal of Ancient Numismatics, Volume 4 (imperialcoins.com/newsletters/volume4/index.html)

MORE ON ENGRAVER PHILIP RANDALL

Regarding the 1872 Boston International Peace Jubilee Medal, Kay Olson Freeman writes:

Ron Abler writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: 1872 INTERNATIONAL PEACE JUBILEE MEDAL ENGRAVER: PHILIP RANDALL (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a06.html)

STAMPS ON PAPER MONEY

Web site visitor Adamandia Kapsalis writes:

I replied:

As it turns out, Adamandia has an album of her photos on Facebook. Here are a few.

Adamandia adds:

"Chopmarks" like these are made by private merchants and individuals, so I guess Hello Kitty is as likely as any other stamp. But not all stamps are chopmarks to indicate authenticity. Some stamps are just there for the fun of it.

To view the complete set of images, see: Found Stamp Marks on US Currency
By Adamandia Kapsalis

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: STAR STAMPS ON PAPER MONEY: MODERN CHOP MARKS (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v11n36a10.html)

NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: OCTOBER 16, 2011

BROWSER'S DELIGHT
From Europe Dave Hirt writes:

George W. Rode, ANA Pioneer
Pete Smith writes:

Dan Tague's Money Art
Dick Johnson commented (in terms not entirely suitable for family consumption) about Dan Tague's Money Art. He writes (in part):

"Live Free or Die"

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: THE ORIGAMI-STYLE MONEY SCULPTURES OF ARTIST DAN TAGUE (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a21.html)

Joe Boling writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see: CITY OF LAKEWOOD CHALLENGE COIN (www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v14n42a17.html)

Buy Paul Bosco's Inventory For One Low Price
Alan V. Weinberg pointed out this amusing eBay lot posted by dealer Paul Bosco:

To read the complete auction description, see: 1400s-2000s, About 50,000 pcs, all kinds, many gold. US/World. BOSCO INVENTORY (www.ebay.com/itm/300609501784#ht_861wt_1139)

ROYAL MINT ISSUES DIAMOND JUBILEE FIVE POUND COMMEMORATIVE

A commemorative £5 coin with two heads celebrating the Queen's Diamond Jubilee has been launched by the Royal Mint.

The collectors' piece features two new portraits of the Queen by celebrated sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley.

The first of the images shows the Royal as she appears today, dressed in formal Garter robes.

On the reverse the artwork is inspired by the first portrait of the Queen to appear on coins from 1953, and features a youthful Elizabeth classically depicted wearing a laurel crown.

Kevin Clancy, director of the Royal Mint museum, said: "Working with some of the finest artists in Britain, the Royal Mint has captured the Queen's likeness on the coinage for almost 60 years and in her Diamond Jubilee year we wanted to honour her remarkable achievements with a remarkable coin. 'Ian's new portraits tell the story of the Queen's long reign with beauty and elegance, dignity and character, evoking the spirit of the Queen as only a truly gifted artist can."

Following normal practice, the design for the coin was approved by Buckingham Palace.

The first circulating coin featuring the Queen's portrait was designed in 1953 by Mary Gillick when the monarch was 27.

The image appeared on pre-decimalisation coins including the farthing, shilling and florin.

A second portrait appeared in 1968 designed by Arnold Machin, Raphael Maklouf designed the third portrait in 1985, depicting the Queen in her late fifties, and Mr Rank-Broadley created the fourth in 1998.

The Queen celebrates her Diamond Jubilee next year when the focus of the celebrations will be an extended four-day bank holiday weekend in June.

To read the complete article, see: I'll call heads: Royal mint's £5 jubilee coin features portrait of the Queen on both sides (www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2048129/Queen-Elizabeth
-Diamond-Jubilee-Royal-mints-5-commemorative-coin.html)

DAILY MAIL ARTICLE ON ELIMINATING THE U.S. DOLLAR BILL

Many aspects of the debates that Washington politicians grumble over have little immediate effect on people's day to day lives.

The newest issue will be felt in the wallets of every resident. Literally.

A number of congressmen are hoping to replace the dollar bill with a dollar coin, suggesting that the move would help bring down the national deficit and increase the efficiency of U.S. currency.

Republican Representative David Schweikert from Arizona introduced legislation that he says will transition the standard U.S. dollar out of circulation in the next four years.

The motivations behind the bill are economic, he said.

'At a time when we are staring down a record-breaking $1.3trillion deficit, any common-sense measure that cuts billions needs to be given serious consideration,' Mr Schweikert said.

The bill that was introduced to the House of Representatives is named the Currency Optimization, Innovation and National Savings Act, which comes out with the handy acronym COINS.

'That is exactly what the COINS Act will do and why I am introducing it,' Mr Schweikert said.

There is currently a dollar coin in circulation that people can use, but it has not caught on in any significant way because dollar bills are still more widely used. If the new legislation is adopted, dollar bills will be entirely eliminated, making the dollar coin the only option.

To read the complete article, see: Will $1 bill be ditched? Congressmen plan to replace them forever with a coin (www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2048555/Will-1-
ditched-Congressmen-plan-replace-forever-coin.html)

HOW NOT TO STORE A COIN COLLECTION

Bob Merchant writes:

To view the complete eBay lot description, see: Collection de 78 Monnaies XIXe Europe Haiti Caraibes Ameriques Coll Hubert Comte (www.ebay.com/itm/330624939652#ht_7351wt_1037)

FEATURED WEB PAGE: ATTINELLI'S NUMISGRAPHICS

wiki.coinbooks.org/index.php/NUMISGRAPHICS