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About Us The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit association devoted to the study and enjoyment of numismatic literature. For more information please see our web site at coinbooks.org Subscriptions Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers (or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page link Membership There is a membership application available on the web site Membership Application To join, print the application and return it with your check to the address printed on the application. Print/Digital membership is $40 to addresses in the U.S., and $60 elsewhere. A digital-only membership is available for $25. For those without web access, write to: Charles Heck, Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society P. O. Box 2058, Bluffton, SC 29910-2058 Asylum For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact Chuck at this email address: treasurer@coinbooks.org Submissions To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, write to the Editor at this address: whomren@gmail.com BUY THE BOOK BEFORE THE COIN Sale Calendar October, 2021 WORKMAN BOOKS Watch here for updates!

Content presented in The E-Sylum is not necessarily researched or independently fact-checked, and views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.

WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM OCTOBER 3, 2021

New subscribers this week include: Amanda Hale, Geoff Hobson, James Jameson, and Tristan Tang. Welcome aboard! We now have 6,730 subscribers.

Thank you for reading The E-Sylum. If you enjoy it, please send me the email addresses of friends you think may enjoy it as well and I'll send them a subscription. Contact me at whomren@gmail.com anytime regarding your subscription, or questions, comments or suggestions about our content.

This week we open with a new NBS podcast, numismatic literature sales, two new books, a new resource on heraldry, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, and more.

Other topics this week include Half Cents, Napoleonic medals, the Atocha treasure, Glenda Koppenhaver, Jerry Schimmel, Pat McBride, an auction preview, the Queen's platinum Jubilee, colonial banknotes, counterfeiting around the world, and the Grove Minting Company.

To learn more about the U.S. Mint and Coinage, Britain's "Decimal Day", why we have a $20 bill and a 25-cent coin, the Amos newsstand magazines, the perpetual calendar coin, counseling for numismatist's spouses, flexible molds, a Treaty of Paris medal, Sage's Numismatic Books Raffle, and the wacky trillion-dollar coin idea, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

NBS BIBLIOTALK PODCAST WITH MARC RICARD

NBS Podcast Napoleonic Medals, with Marc Charles Ricard

The latest episode of the NBS Bibliotalk podcast, Napoleonic Medals, with Marc Charles Ricard, is now available on the NBS website and other popular podcasting platforms such as Buzzsprout. In this installment, Lianna Spurrier, Bibliotalk producer, interviews Marc Ricard, longtime NBS member and former president. Marc has a broad numismatic library, with one specialty being literature related to Napoleonic medals.

Ricard has a special relationship with these medallic tributes as a descendant of the French engraver Benjamin Duvivier (1730-1819). Duvivier is best known in the American series for the Washington Before Boston medal, while on the other side of the pond he commemorated Napoleon in 1797 with the Treaty of Campoformio medal.

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ANS EBAY LITERATURE SALE OCTOBER 3, 2021

 

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BRYCE BROWN CATALOG INVENTORY UPDATED

 

Bryce Brown writes:

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NEW BOOK: THE HALF CENT HANDBOOK, VOL. 2

I am delighted to announce the launch of my second book "The Half Cent Handbook - Classic Head and Braided Hair Varieties." It is the second in a series of four planned books on U.S. Half Cents. (My first book "Draped Bust Varieties 1800-1808" was released in January).

The book contains updated and valuable information on Classic Head & Braided Hair die varieties, die states, grading, attribution, rarity, prices, cherry picking tips, and a whole lot more. Everything is laid out in a clear and concise manner with full color photos. The book is 157 pages, hard cover, full color, smyth sewn binding, and top quality in every way.

This book is a must have for novice and advanced collectors alike. Copies are $100 (shipping included) and are only available directly from the author.

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NEW BOOK: WHEN BRITAIN WENT DECIMAL

When Britain Went Decimal: The Coinage of 1971

£30.00
Tax included. Shipping calculated at checkout.

ISBN: 81912667567
RRP: £30.00
284mm X 215mm
240pp

Fifty years have now passed since D-Day – the bloodless decimalisation of British currency in 1971. Pounds, shillings and pence, operative for over a millennium, finally yielded to a far simpler system.

The United Kingdom was the last major nation-state in the world to adopt decimal currency, but why was it so slow to do so? What changed politicians' and peoples' minds about it in the 1960s? Were Britain's plans to join the EEC influential? What was the impact of India, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand going decimal several years earlier? Or did it simply happen because of common sense, with a decimal system so much easier to learn?

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PERIODICAL: SCRIPOPHILY AUGUST 2021 ISSUE

Sony Stock Explained

Prodigal Stock Returns

Standard Oil Discovery: £33,750

Bob Greenawalt

Tickers on Stocks

Scripophily Anonymity

Worldwide Auctions

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RESOURCE: HERALDRY IN THE SCHER COLLECTION

 

The Frick Collection has a new online resource for those who are curious about the symbolism of heraldry, illustrated with medals from the Stephen K. and Janie Woo Scher collection of medals.

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JERRY FRANCIS SCHIMMEL (1933-2021)

Jerry Francis Schimmel
(May 10, 1933 - August 20, 2021, Pacifica, CA)

Jerry passed away in his sleep after being hospitalized with septicemia following surgeries for which his sister had been caring for him. Jerry was a broadly recognized authority on tokens relating to his city of residence, San Francisco, and wrote a number of award-winning articles on such, some published in the Pacific Coast Numismatic Society's Annual Papers Contest as well as elsewhere.

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NNP: BRAMSEN SERIES ON NAPOLEONIC MEDALS

 

Bramsen Series on Napoleonic Medals

Collectors of Napoleonic medals immediately recognize Bramsen as referring to Ludvig Ernst Bramsen's multi-volume series (Médaillier Napoléon le Grand) on Napoleonic medals published from 1904 to 1913. Bramsen divided the work into three parts, with the first (1799-1809) providing coverage up to the end of the Napoleonic Wars, which represented the peak of the French empire. The second period (1810-1815) covers its subsequent decline, from the ill-fated Russian invasion to the battle of Waterloo. The final installment (1815-1869) includes the Napoleonic exile period and posthumous medallic tributes.

Although not illustrated, the text describes over 2,300 Napoleonic medals and remains the foundational guide for the series. Illustrated here is Bramsen-952, featuring jugate busts of Napoleon and Marie-Louise of Austria, on the occasion of their marriage in 1810 (image courtesy of Marc Ricard), along with a medal-ruled adaptation that appeared in Atkinson's Casket, February 1834.

Link to Bramsen volumes on Napoleonic medals on NNP:
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/booksbyauthor/544024

VIDEO: ATOCHA TREASURE DIVER CURTIS WHITE

Captain Curtis White Recounts Atocha Treasure Find.
VIDEO: 2:59.

July 9, 2021. Curtis White, Treasure Diver, David Lisot, Interviewer, CoinTelevision.com.

When Mel Fisher discovered the Atocha shipwreck Curtis White was one of his divers. Curtis continued a long career in treasure salvaging many wrecks. He shares the story of the day the Atoche was found and talks about how to be part of the treasure diving experience.

An excerpt of the video is available for viewing on the Coin Television YouTube Channel at:
https://youtu.be/XmSfIPNUNTo

WHY DO WE HAVE A $20 BILL AND A 25 CENT COIN?

 

You asked the question Why do we have a $20 bill and a 25-cent piece, anyway? That is a question I have heard many times and only got the answer because of the pandemic! Like many, with in-person activities cancelled, I turned to online opportunities.

I learned the answer in a Zoom meeting presented by the Hobby Club in New Delhi, India. The simple answer is our culture. Explaining it is much more complicated. The culture that I am referring to is not high culture like old paintings, the symphony or opera. This culture is created by a blend of tradition, politics, convenience, superstition, religion, science, mathematics, anatomy, language, humor and many more factors. I think of culture as those things that everybody knows but nobody is taught. One example is the expression Women and children first. We all know it and we all believe it, but it is not taught in school.

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AMOS NEWSSTAND MAGAZINES

WorldWide Coins was one of four newsstand magazines published by Amos Press Inc. during the first decade of the 21st century.

The first of the newsstand magazines was Coin Values. Beth Deisher was founding editor and Eric Martin later served as editor. Published monthly, it was launched in December 2003. Coin World subscribers received an edition with a cover different from the newsstand edition, but the interior contents were identical. The magazine featured values of U.S. coins and included feature articles as well as the popular column, Making the Grade, later published in book form. Coin Values was published monthly as a stand-alone magazine through February 2011 and was then incorporated into the monthly Coin World magazine.

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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: OCTOBER 3, 2021

Chocolate 1932 Olympic Medal
Larry Korchnak writes:

 

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COUNSELING FOR NUMISMATIC SPOUSES

Dr. John Brown, a Notre Dame history professor, is in the process of moving into a new office. After removing stacks of papers from his closet, he spied a penny lodged in a floor crack. He plucked the Lincoln penny up and his eyes popped out – it was dated 1909. Being a numismatist – a coin collector – his heart thundered when he saw the lettering VDB, S. He had found a very rare coin.

Like a puppy with a new chew toy, he dashed off to tell his wife, Mary, who is an attorney. Mary, reading a complex legal brief, heard her husband enter the office. Mary, I found a 1909 VDB, S Lincoln penny!

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VOCABULARY TERM: FLEXIBLE MOLD

Flexible Mold. A special mold for casting a replica of sculpture in-the-round or bas-relief with undercuts. More than 100 years ago flexible molds were only made of gelatin; in the 20th century they were made of rubber or air-curing latex, but more recently of pvc, silicone or polyurethane rubber. Their versatility in metalcasting is to form casts that cannot be made in any other kinds of molds, as casts can be made with extensive undercuts and full dimensional sculpture. After the cast has hardened the flexible mold is peeled off like a second skin. In the medallic field highly detailed and intricate plaques are made by this method containing undercuts and high relief, as casts can be made from flexible molds that create objects that cannot be diestruck.

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PAT MCBRIDE AKA BEN FRANKLIN

In the August 15 issue of The E-Sylum, we posed the question, What living numismatist makes his living as a paperhanger. There was no answer and we moved on to other subjects. This week we circle back with the answer. The numismatic paper hanger is Pat McBride. We sat down to interview Pat during the 2021 World's Fair of Money in Rosemont.

 

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HEIDELBERGER MÜNZHANDLUNG GRÜN AUCTION 83

 

((1 - No. 2188. Teutonic Order. Maximilian I, 1590-1618. Taler 1603, Hall. Extremely fine to FDC. Estimate: 1,000 euros.))

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NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: OCTOBER 3, 2021

Alexander III the Great Drachm

Lot 007. Macedonian Kingdom. Alexander III the Great. 336-323 B.C. AR drachm. Struck by Philip III in the name of Alexander III. Magnesia ad Maendrum mint, struck ca. 323-317 B.C. From the Don Hays Collection; Ex Bradley Bowlin.

Macedonian Kingdom. Alexander III the Great. 336-323 B.C. AR drachm (17.2 mm, 4.07 g, 11 h). Struck by Philip III in the name of Alexander III. Magnesia ad Maendrum mint, struck ca. 323-317 B.C. Head of Alexander as Herakles right, wearing lionskin headdress, paws tied at throat / ??????????, Zeus Aetophoros seated left, right leg drawn back, holding eagle and scepter; A beneath throne. Price 2968; Muller 1665. Superb EF, toned

To read the complete lot description, see:
Lot 007. Macedonian Kingdom. Alexander III the Great. (https://agoraauctions.com/listing/viewdetail/52387)

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THE ELUSIVE ELIASBERG 1858-S DIME

 

Collectors have long regarded the 1858-S Dime as a scarce date and one of the most difficult to locate in Mint State. When Bowers and Merena sold the Dime portion of the Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. collection in 1996, they offered a single 1858-S Dime graded MS64 (raw) described by them as Believed to be the finest known example, and quite possibly by a long distance. Presumably, the cataloger based this conclusion on the fact that, by the time of the sale, neither PCGS nor NGC had ever graded a Mint State 1858-S Dime.

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THE QUEEN'S PLATINUM JUBILEE MEDAL

 

The design of a special medal marking The Queen's Platinum Jubilee has been revealed.

The medal will be presented to frontline emergency workers and members of the military who have been in post for five years or longer in 2022 as a token of gratitude from the nation as part of celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of The Queen's reign. It will also be given to all living recipients of the Victoria Cross and George Cross.

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COLLECTING COLONIAL NOTES BY SIGNERS

Another favorite way to collect Colonial/Continental paper is by the names on the notes, such notables as (from Number1MoneyMan listings on ebay)....

 

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THE ELM CITY BANK OF NEW HAVEN

Steamship, Elm City: A Workhorse for the Union.
By: C. John Ferreri

 

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TRILLION-DOLLAR COIN SILLY SEASON AGAIN

Regarding the recurring theme of a billion or trillion dollar coin, Len Augsburger writes:

Due to a technicality in the law, the Treasury Department can print a platinum coin and assign a huge value to it -- say, $1 trillion -- and sell it to the Federal Reserve Board. This would get around the need to borrow.

Such a move would be ridiculous, of course, but the whole standoff on the debt is ridiculous. If Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and the Republicans insist on pushing it, Biden could well decide to get out the platinum coin.

To read the complete article, see:
Joe Biden could be tempted to reach for the platinum coin (https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/opinions/debt-ceiling-platinum-coin-biden-baker/index.html)

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HOW THE RARE COIN BUSINESS HAS CHANGED

I started setting up at regional and major coin shows. Life was good—coin shows were well attended and were very active. I never regretted my decision.

At the shows, most dealers had a certain area(s) of the U.S. rare coin market that they liked and understood very well. They knew the tough dates, the better struck issues, the coins that typically had great luster. They knew which coins were the most undervalued and they knew how to grade those coins well. And that is exactly where their inventory was centered. Dealers specialized in Colonials, early Copper and maybe early Type coins. Other dealers specialized in different denominations and their cases might be full of Barber coinage, Standing Liberty Quarters, or Classic Commemoratives. They had lots of the coins in which they specialized.

You would rarely see dealers that had all types of United States coins and, in addition, had all types of Foreign or Ancient coins as well as U.S. or World Currency in their stock. Coin shows had special areas exclusively for dealers selling Foreign or Ancient coins or Currency.

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FANATICS SHAKES THE SPORTS CARD INDUSTRY

The new trading card venture launched by Fanatics Inc., which just last month upended the industry with a series of surprise deals, has received $350 million in Series A funding that values the firm at $10.4 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.

The investments, which account for approximately 3.4% of the entity called Fanatics Trading Cards, come from a trio of investors: private-equity firm Silver Lake, entertainment giant Endeavor Group Holdings Inc., and Insight Partners, a private-equity and venture-capital firm.

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LOOSE CHANGE: OCTOBER 3, 2021

Bank of New York Hoard of Fugio Coppers
 

The Bank of New York, founded in 1784, came into possession of a keg of original 1787 Fugio copper cents sometime around the time they were manufactured. Over many years, beginning at least by 1859, bank officials passed these out to favored clients and employees and made some available to numismatists. Included were some of the scarce type with UNITED above and STATES below on the label across the reverse (in contrast, most other varieties have these words to the left and right sides).

The keg of coins deposited at the Bank of New York, 44 Wall Street, remained unopened until 1856. After this time the hoard became widely known and, among other citations, was mentioned as follows by W.C. Prime in his book, Coins, Medals, and Seals (copyright 1860, published in 1861): "Within the past year a keg of these [Fugio] coppers was found in the vault of a New York City bank, in fresh proof condition. This statement has been doubted; but we are indebted to the cashier for fine specimens of the contents of the keg, which abundantly prove the truth of the story. A recent discovery of the old dies, and possibly a manufacture of new dies, or repairing and retouching the old, has made these coins very common in various metals."

By about 1948 some 1,641 pieces remained in possession of the bank and were numismatically analyzed by Damon G. Douglas. It was learned that the pieces were made from two batches of planchets weighing on average 143 grains and 155 grains respectively.

To read the complete article, see:
The Bank of New York Hoard of Fugio Coppers (https://www.stacksbowers.com/News/Pages/Blogs.aspx?ArticleID=bank-of-new-york-hoard-of-fugio-coppers)

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MOTION PICTURE MONEY SEIZED IN PHILADELPHIA

 

Millions of dollars worth of fake currency in U.S. dollars and euros were intercepted in Philadelphia by customs officials who say the counterfeit money arrived in the country via international air cargo from Russia.

The currency was seized on Tuesday and was destined for Chicago before Customs & Border Protection officers in Philadelphia found the money in a series of five parcels over a period of several weeks, officials said.

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BUYS FAKE BOOZE WITH FAKE MONEY AND DIES

C. D. would be chalked off to the death toll from fake booze if it were not for his background. D., who passed away earlier this month in Istanbul, was identified by the police as one of the leaders of a gang churning out counterfeit money. Sabah newspaper reported that the man bought fake alcohol with the money his gang manufactured and ended up dead. Members of his gang were nabbed by Turkish security forces last week in Operation Benjamin, which was held in the capital Ankara and other cities.

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FEATURED WEB SITE: GROVE MINTING COMPANY

This week's Featured Web Site is the Grove Minting Company of Ardmore, PA.

https://groveminting.com/