The E-Sylum:  Volume 10, Number 3, January 21, 2007, Article 5

WURTZBACH MASSACHUSETTS SILVER PLATE REPRINT IN THE WORKS

An exchange this week on the Yahoo Colonial Coin newsgroup concerned
a scarce booklet on Massachusetts silver coinage.  With permission
I've complied and edited parts of the discussion for The E-Sylum.

Roger Sibioni writes: "Back in 1937, Carl Wurtzbach, a fairly
well-heeled collector, put together a set of photographic plates
on Massachusetts Silver coins based on Crosby numbers. He purchased
most of his coins from Charles E. Clapp. At the time he thought it
to be one of the most comprehensive collections ever assembled
(and it still is)."

Mike Packard writes: "Carl A. Wurtzbach was a fellow Massachusetts
resident from the western part of the state who was president of the
Lee National Bank. He was a cousin of Virgil Brand, collected large
cents and colonials and perhaps other series. He donated his
Massachusetts coppers to the American Numismatic Society. He died
in 1947 and many of his coins, including the large cents, were sold
in the Barney Bluestone sale of 1948. Wurtzbach was president of the
ANA from 1917 to 1919. In 1937 he published a pamphlet "Massachusetts
Colonial Silver Money" that is available to American Numismatic
Association members from the ANA Library."

Dan Freidus writes: "I'd be a bit surprised if the ANA library lets
Wurtzbach on Massachusetts silver circulate. I sold my copy back when
I was raising money to buy my first house. But I made copies of the
plates (4x5 negatives) and text for a reprint edition that Ken Lowe
and I were going to publish. The project has been sitting on the
shelf since Ken died but the sale of the Wurtzbach/Ford collection
probably makes this a good time for me to see about printing up new
plates and working with my binder so I can put them out."

"It would be a deluxe edition (25 or 50 copies) with real photo
plates (not halftones, but I haven't decided if they'd be digital
prints or classic silver prints on real photographic paper. Which
one I choose probably depends on pricing since with real photos, book
would probably have to cost $250-300, while with digital prints I
might be able to hold the cost down to $150-200. Either way, these
would be high quality prints, text on acid-free paper, all bound in
a handmade cloth binding."

[The original Wurtzbach is scarce; I believe I paid over $500 for my
copy in a long-ago Money Tree literature sale.   Ken Lowe catalogued
the Money Tree numismatic literature sales until his death, when David
Sklow took over for a time.  The U.S. numismatic literature scene just
hasn't been the same without Ken.  His enthusiasm for the topic was
profuse and infectious. The E-Sylum came along after he was gone.  If
you think the issues are big now, imagine how much bigger they would
be with Ken as a regular contributor!  -Editor]

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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