JOEL L. MALTER ANCIENT ART LIBRARY SALE OCTOBER 16-17, 2010

John and Nancy Wilson of Ocala, FL write:

Joel Malter's life can be defined in one word, passion. Whether it was teaching 9th grade world history back in the 1960‟s in Los Angeles, running one of the most successful ancient coin companies in the world in the 1970‟s and 80‟s, or assembling one of the finest privately held numismatic and ancient art libraries, my dad did it with gusto! I spent 20 years of my youth growing up in the same house and then rolled that into a career of 30 more years working and traveling the world with my dad, suffice it to say, I knew him very well. Back in June of 2006 my dad made a huge decision and decided that as his 75 birthday was on the horizon, it was time to sell his prized numismatic library.

You see these were not just old coin books that he and the company used to write up our ancient coin auctions, no these were his pride and joy. Family was always first with my dad, but boy how he enjoyed buying and buying books. He wanted the 2006 auction to be something special. Not just another one of our numerous auctions, but this was to be a crown jewel of crown jewels. It took several months back in 2006 to put the coin book auction together and when it was finally finished, no one was happier than my dad.

That hot June day back in 2006, coin dealers and collectors from all parts of the US and several from abroad were all sitting in his home library as the auction began. It was a great auction. Prices for his coin books went sky high! It was a great day! The auction ended with the “buzz” around the room being total amazement at the fierce bidding and ridiculously high prices that his books realized. I know that my dad was pleased with the results but also sad at the same time. I knew that his heart was broken to see his cherished books leave his library.

The next morning I got a call from my mom in the middle of the night. As I picked up the phone and heard her voice I just knew that something horrible had happened. My dad died shortly after the paramedics arrived, unable to restart his broken heart.

My mother Adele and the rest of the Malter family are extremely proud and honored to offer the second and final portion of my dad's beloved library on October 16th and 17th. As was the case with his numismatic books, his ancient art books were carefully collected and purchased with passion! The overall condition of the library is excellent, with many of the books custom bound in museum quality bindings. One on the last things that my dad said to me just after the coin book auction ended in 2006, was “even though the numismatic book as now gone, we still have the better portion of the library”. That being said, I also remember him saying to me on more than one occasion, “no one really owns anything, we just take care of it while we can”. It was a family decision to put his ancient art books on the auction block at this time.

This is a fantastic opportunity to purchase and “take care” of my dad's books which will now become your books. Specialized libraries such as this are seldom offered in this quality and quantity. Over 50 years of buying and searching out for the rarest and the best are offered in this auction. I believe that it would be impossible to start today and assemble the same library that is offered herein. There's a book in this sale for even the most specialized of ancient art lovers. Study this catalogue carefully and good luck with your bidding!

Michael G. Malter

To view the auction catalog, see: maltergalleries.com/jlmartlibrary.pdf

Wayne Homren, Editor

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web