The E-Sylum:  Volume 6, Number 7, February 16, 2003, Article 6

TAMS TOKEN & MEDAL ARTICLES INDEX

  Dick Johnson writes: "With the arrival of the February 2003
  issue of TAMS Journal came a delightful surprise:  "Exonumia
  Journal Articles."  Compiled by Gregory G. Brunk, the 71-
  page bibliography lists articles only  -- over 2,700 articles, no
  books -- from world journals that touch on, or illustrate tokens
  and medals.

  Obviously most of the journal sources are numismatic. For
  some of these journals compiler Brunk make a page-by-page
  inspection. For others we assume he captured these from
  citations in the literature. He also included a few citations from
  journals outside our field as well. He has performed a
  herculean task for the benefit of collectors and writers in the
  field. We always welcome Finding Aids, both on the internet
  and hardcopy.

  The arrangement is essentially geographical among 101
  token-and-medal-issuing countries.  His methodology of
  indexing -- and this has been discussed in E-Sylum before
  -- was a folder within a folder within a folder, somewhat like
  the arrangement in Elvira Clain-Stefanelli's massive
  "Numismatic Bibliography." As the number of entries grow
  under a country when compiling, how can they be broken
  out?

  By bringing related items together and giving them a new
  headline, a group subject title.  Boy, the computer sure helps
  when doing this arranging. But assigning each headline its
  position in the hierarchy becomes important. (Elvira's
  differing headline type styles was somewhat annoying,
  Gregory's isn't.)

  For each entry the author's last name is listed in full, but
  only the initials for any given names. There is a subject index
  but no author index.  Also, no item is repeated.  And that is
  somewhat of a problem in using the directory when an article
  cuts across two or more subjects.  You have to search
  extensively for a specific interest of your choice, and you
  have to rely on the article title alone.

  Assigning proper subject heads is critical.  I found only two
  of my articles listed, both are under an incorrect heading. An
  article on the medals of the American Numismatic SOCIETY
  is listed under American Numismatic ASSOCIATION. (The
  proper head should have been: American Numismatic
  Organizations.)  Also an article of mine, and one by G.
  Sanfilippo, on half-dollar size medals, both titled "So-Called
  Half Dollars" is listed under So-Called Dollars, which has a
  very specific meaning in the numismatic field and incorrect for
  our two articles.

  A point I have made previously in E-Sylum:  Before anyone
  starts indexing journal articles, check out the 2-volume
  reference work "Index to 19th Century American Art
  Periodicals" by Mary Morris Schmidt. It was published by
  my publisher, Sound View Press, in 1999.  It is an expensive
  set ($200), but study the methodology of her indexing. Here
  any number of citations can be made to a single article, its all
  in one alphabet and it contains authors and all possible subjects
  in that single alphabet.   Plus it gives detail on content of the
  article! (She could, and did!, pinpoint a single fact among a
  200-page article.)

  Having said all that, do get Gregory Brunk's useful work for
  your library. It's available from TAMS, Box 76192, Ocala,
  FL 34481 (that's David Sklow's address).  Or, better yet,
  join TAMS for twenty-five bucks.

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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