The E-Sylum:  Volume 10, Number 5, February 4, 2007, Article 37

THE HOLLOW SPY NICKEL'S HIDDEN MESSAGE

Dave Kellogg writes: "With reference to recent discussions of hollow
coins used for spying, the following link may be of interest:
Full Story

"The story goes back to 1953 and describes a nickel that a newspaper
boy received in change.  When he dropped it on the floor, it fell
apart revealing a hollowed compartment.  Inside was a message that
led to the discovery of a Soviet Union spy ring."

To read the complete web page, see:
Full Story

[We did cover this story in 2002, but it's fascinating and high
time we revisited it.

 "The face of the coin was a 1948 Jefferson nickel. In the "R"
 of the word "TRUST", there was a tiny hole -- obviously
 drilled there so that a fine needle or other small instrument
 could be inserted to force the nickel open.

 "An investigation which had started with a newsboy's hollow
 nickel ultimately resulted in the smashing of a Soviet spy ring.
 On February 10, 1962, Rudolf Ivanovich Abel was
 exchanged for the American U-2 pilot, Francis Gary Powers,
 who was a prisoner of the Soviet Union."

The web page Dave referenced is new, and is the first place where
I've seen a transcription of the actual coded message from the spy
nickel.  -Editor]

To read the earlier E-Sylum item, see:
THE CASE OF THE HOLLOW NICKEL
esylum_v05n46a06.html

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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