JOHN BURNS AND THE BRAZILIAN COMMEMORATIVE BARS

For years I was building a collection with the goal of mounting what proved to be an award-winning exhibit, entitled "Off the Beaten Numismatic Path." It comprised over 100 items several of which were either one of a kind or unknown to even advanced collectors. Examples included the engraved gold medal awarded to the winner of the very first spelling bee in Pittsburgh in 1908 and an 1898 wooden "made from" of the USS Olympia.

When purchases were made at coin shows where John Burns was set up, I'd have fun showing them to him and musing together over their significance and provenance. Whenever I located a piece of which I had no previous knowledge, it became a ritual to test John on his knowledge of it. And of course he always knew more than either I or the dealer who sold it to me did. But at the 2008 World's Fair of Money in Baltimore "I had him!"

I walked over to his table with my latest prize in hand. Although looking like a silver ingot, it was issued for the International Eucharistic Congress held in Rio De Janeiro in 1955. It is number 16 of a mintage of only 45. I sat down next to him and said, "John, get ready to be stumped…I've got something here that even you can't identify." I pulled it out, stuck it in front of his eyes, and before I could take a breath he snapped, "Brazilian Bar!" in a voice and with a look that added, "Can't you make it tougher than that?"

Beaten by the best!

Wayne Homren, Editor

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web