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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 April 30, 2022 KOLBE & FANNING 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 MARCH 20, 2022

No new subscribers this week. We now have 6,6957 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 one new book, an obituary, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, the Civil War Money Showcase, and more.

Other topics this week include ANS members, women at the U.S. Mint, physical bitcoins, Don Everhart, Richard Lobel, the unmasked Tyrant Collection owner, auction previews, clickbait coin headlines, Eid Mar, and zero Euro notes for Ukraine fundraising.

To learn more about Louise Fielder, the NNP Symposium, the SS Central America and General William T. Sherman, loading "Jeff Davis gold & silver to the boat", designs for the dime, Remy and Michael Bourne, the Improved Order of Red Men, Bitcoin seller's remorse, the gold coin collection of Richard and Jean Salisbury, the numismatic gynecologist, wine-swilling kings, bell talers, Ben Franklin's pocket change, Kentucky's "Uncle" Steve Landrum, phrenology, craniometry and respectable ladies of reduced means, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

NEW BOOK: CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF KÜNKER

Celebrating 50 Years of Künker – The Book

In 2021 Künker celebrated its 50th anniversary. To mark the occasion, the auction house commissioned a company chronicle, which reflects the history of the German coin trade since 1971. It's the centerpiece of a heavyweight commemorative publication.

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LOUISE D. FIELDER (1926-2022)

Louise Fielder
December 29, 1926 - March 11, 2022

Louise Dunn Fielder, a fifth-generation Californian, passed away on March 11 in Palo Alto. Her family arrived in Suisun, CA on a 80-wagon train from Missouri in 1850, and then settled in Vacaville, CA. Louise was born in San Francisco in 1926, a third-generation San Franciscan. She completed her primary education in San Francisco before attending the University of Colorado. Two days after her university graduation in 1949, Louise married William Ridge Fielder, who was attending medical school at the University of Colorado in Denver. Two children were born in Denver - Louis Dunn Fielder and Kathleen Louise Fielder. A third child, William Ridge Fielder Jr., was born at Stanford Hospital in San Francisco.

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EARLY ANS MEMBERSHIP RECORDS DIGITIZED

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NEWMAN PORTAL SYMPOSIUM APRIL 8-10, 2022

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VIDEO: 2021 USMEX COIN CONVENTION

Cool Mexican Coins at USMEX Coin Convention 2021.
VIDEO: 13:46.
David Lisot, Interviewer, CoinTelevision.com with Ali & Cory Frampton,
Larry Stendebach, and Pat Stovall. October 21-23, 2021

David Lisot takes you to the floor of the annual US Mexican Numismatic Association Convention where you will see Mexican Hookneck 8 reales, Silver Libertads, and banknotes of Pancho Villa.

David adds:

An excerpt of the video is available for viewing on the Coin Television YouTube Channel at:
https://youtu.be/Rp22h5y4Plg

MAY 2022 PAN SHOW CIVIL WAR MONEY SHOWCASE

The Inaugural Civil War Money & Memorabilia Showcase event will be hosted at the PAN Coin Show in Monroeville, Pennsylvania from May 19th through 21st. The CW Showcase will feature exhibits, displays and talks -- each featuring collectible items from the era – including coins, paper currency, scrip, tokens, and more.

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HAULING JEFF DAVIS GOLD & SILVER

We corresponded (06 September 2020) shortly after I had purchased a silver Mexican 8 Real coin documented as being one of C.S. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's final payrolls to the Confederate Army of Tennessee, following their surrender at Greensboro, North Carolina in May of 1865.

I was intrigued to follow the myriad paths of the much-debated "lost Confederate treasury"...as I had one piece of specie from that original cache. I was later able to track down the soldier's original Parole Pass issued at Charlotte, NC and MUCH later...a photograph of the man showed up on Find A Grave - posted by a descendant.

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MORE ON WOMEN AND THE U.S. MINT

More on women and the Mint in the late 19th Century

It was interesting to read about female U.S. Mint adjusters having to resign when they got married. However, this is not surprising given that the so-called marriage bar for women was common, in both public and private employment, until several decades into the 20th century.

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A NEW DESIGN FOR THE DIME

Born on January 30, 1882, and passing on April 12, 1945, Franklin Delano Roosevelt lived in this life for 63 years.

After his death, he was placed on the dime in 1946.

His unchanged design, still in use in 2022, is now 76 years old. In 1982 on George Washington's 250th anniversary he received a non-circulating commemorative coin.

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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: MARCH 20, 2022

Remy and Michael Bourne

Pete Smith writes:

To read Bourne literature sales on the Newman Portal, see:
Remy Bourne (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/auctioncompanydetail/510371)
Michael & Marlene Bourne (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/auctioncompanydetail/510370)

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STACK'S BOWERS SPRING 2022 PHYSICAL BITCOINS

Stack's Bowers Galleries is proud to present an exciting selection of physical bitcoins and other cryptocurrency in their Spring 2022 Showcase Auction, the Official Auction for the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo. The sale will feature an array of Bitcoin and Litecoin from the popular Lealana and Casascius series, all certified and encapsulated by PCGS. Also included are several unloaded and redeemed coins that remain very popular as keepsakes of this exciting technology.

This is poised to be the largest and most diverse offering of physical cryptocurrency ever by a major auction house, confirming Stack's Bowers Galleries as a market leader among today's expanding community of collectors. The 500% premium realized by a Lealana 0.1 Bitcoin in the firm's November 2021 sale indicated tremendous excitement for this new category, and strong premiums are expected from crypto collectors and traditional numismatists alike in this April offering.

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ANS NAMES ELKINS AS DEPUTY DIRECTOR

ANS Announces Dr. Nathan T. Elkins as Incoming Deputy Director

The American Numismatic Society (ANS) is pleased to announce Dr. Nathan T. Elkins will be joining the ANS full time as Deputy Director, effective on June 1, 2022. Currently Associate Professor of Art History (Greek and Roman) at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, Dr. Elkins has been at the ANS as Visiting Research Scholar since August 2021.

Dr. Elkins brings to the role of ANS Deputy Director a record of organizational, managerial, and policy experience, as well as a long-term commitment to numismatic research and a history of support to the ANS community. Dr. Elkins has directed the Allbritton Art Institute at Baylor University since 2020. He previously directed the university's Undergraduate Research and Scholarly Achievement program from 2018 to 2020. He served on numerous university committees at Baylor, including the Faculty Senate and its Executive Committee, and he has been on a number of other academic boards and committees nationally.

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VOCABULARY TERM: HUMAN FIGURE

Human Figure. The human form – face or figure – is the most used device on coins and medals. Portraits, heads, busts, partial figures, full figures appear on numismatic items more than any other class of objects and this has been so since the time of Alexander the Great – and one of his governors who placed his portrait on a coin, the first living person to do so. The term effigy applies to all views of the human body with the exception of the head, face or portrait.

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HARVEY STACK'S NUMISMATIC FAMILY, PART 117

The year of 1994 provided Stack's with a great selection of auctions, eight public sales, all conducted in New York City. These were made up of two international sales as well as six that featured items from the United States, with specialized collections, most of which had been assembled from the 1950s through the 1980s. The highlight collection was major portions of the renowned James A. Stack Collection of United States Gold, Silver and Copper Coins, as well as an important offering of English gold and silver coins, all in outstanding condition. The James A. Stack, Sr. Collection was started during World War II and then built over several decades with his son and other members of his family. James A. Stack , Jr., took over the management of the collection and sold portions of it in various Stack's sales. While we shared similar Irish heritage, neither James, Sr., nor James Jr. was any relation to our Stack family. But over time they relied on us to help build and enhance the collection and, as with many of our clients, we came to feel like family.

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DON EVERHART'S CAREER IN COINS, PART 8

Presidential Medals
Before I worked at the U.S. Mint, in 1996, I designed and sculpted the Second Administration Inaugural Medal of Bill Clinton and Albert Gore. It was quite an honor for my work to be chosen and I felt it might be one of the only chances I would get to work on such a high-profile commission. When I was freelancing I would occasionally work on what I considered to be important commissions. But after I became a United States Mint Engraver I sincerely thought that everything I worked on was important. My work would become a part of the narrative of our country's history.

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SUBSCRIBER PROFILE: RICHARD LOBEL OF COINCRAFT

I arrived in London, England on the 2nd of October 1968. I came 3rd class by ship from New York to Southampton and then by boat train to London. I was born in Cambridge but grew up in Newton and Boston, Massachusetts.

I went to Boston University, I dropped out once and was asked to leave twice before I got my degree in International Business and Macro Economics. I was going for my MBA when I realised that I would rather go to India and sit at the foot of a guru. London was just a stopover on the way to India. But it would be more than 40 years until I actually made it to India.

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TYRANT COLLECTION OWNER DAN O'DOWD

A tech billionaire known as the Tyrant has finished the first coin collection spanning the entirety of English and British history, with an array of currency more complete than that of the Royal Mint.

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NUMISMAGRAM MEDAL SELECTIONS: MARCH 2022

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KÜNKER AUCTION SALE 365: ANCIENT WORLD

MONEY OF THE CELTS – The Flesche Collection at Künker

The second part of Künker's Spring Auction Sales is completely dedicated to antiquity. In addition to many collections of Greek, Roman Republican, Roman imperial and late Roman coinage, a collection with world-class Celtic coins will be on offer: the Flesche Collection.

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KÜNKER AUCTION SALE 366: MONEY OF THE CELTS

Catalog 366: MONEY OF THE CELTS – The Christian Flesche Collection
This collection is a broadly designed cross-section of Celtic coinage and offers a selection of top-class key pieces of the finest and best of Celtic coin art. The specimens impress due to their select quality, great rarity and extraordinary historical significance. ... The collection covers the entire spectrum of Celtic coinage made from all coin metals, form bronze to silver and gold. ... The large volume of gold coins (more than 25%) is remarkable, just as the quality of perfectly minted bronze coins, which can rarely be found in this quality as they were used as everyday objects throughout history. No, this was not written by an advertising copywriter but by Dr Rainer Cunz, then chairman of the Numismatic Commission of the Federal States of Germany, who has seen a lot of important collections.

The Christian Flesche Collection of Celtic coins truly is a world-class collection. And the collector was able to experience the joy of having one of the best experts in Celtic numismatics, Dr Bernward Ziegaus, review the material for the scholarly world and, what's more, curate an exhibition of these pieces at the Bavarian State Collection of Coins in Munich on the occasion of the completion of the publication.

Those who visited the exhibition in 2010/11 will remember the almost unbelievable quality of the material. One of the pieces shown then is still unique today. Dr Christian Flesche and the coin dealer Alois Wenninger, who assisted him, jointly enjoyed the perfectly preserved coins, whose motifs – as can be read in the exhibition brochure – are characterized by a ‘primitivism' that leans towards ornaments and seems downright modern today, being reminiscent of modern artists such as J Dubuffet or A R Penck.

Make your own judgement. Leaf through the incredible catalog. And if you are interested in the historical background of the coins, you should definitely buy the catalog of the Flesche Collection written by Bernward Ziegaus. His book is one of the best works on Celtic coins written in German.

No. 6049: Britain. Atrebates and Regini. Verica, 10-40. Gold stater, type Vine Leaf Viri. About extremely fine. Estimate: 4,000 euros

No. 6096: Hispania. Emporion. Drachm, 2nd century BC. Very rare. About extremely fine. Estimate: 2,500 euros

No. 6119: Gallia. Gold stater after the model of the staters by Philip II. Type Gamshurst, 3rd century BC. Very rare. About extremely fine. Estimate: 7,500 euros

No. 6199: Gallia. Parisii. Gold stater, around 60 BC. Very rare. Very fine +. 25,000 euros

No. 6236: Gallia. Treveri. Electrum stater, 60-25 BC. Extremely fine. Estimate: 10,000 euros

No. 6270: Helvetia. Gold quarter stater after the model of the staters by Philip II. Type à la rosette, 2nd century BC. Rare. Very fine +. Estimate: 2,500 euros

No. 6326: Germania. Vindelici, rainbow cup – Gold stater 2nd/1st century BC. Very rare. Very fine +. Estimate: 7,500 euros

No. 6379: Germania. Vindelici, rainbow cup – Gold quarter stater, 150-50 BC. Very rare. About extremely fine. Estimate: 6,000 euros

No. 6412: Bohemia. Gold quarter stater, 140-120, Stradonice. Very rare. Worked at the edge. Very fine +. Estimate: 7,500 euros

No. 6495: Bohemia. Boii in the area of Bratislava oppidum. Iantumarus. Tetradrachm, 27/6. Very rare. Very fine to extremely fine. Estimate: 12,500 euros

No. 6496: Bohemia. Boii in the area of Bratislava oppidum. Fapiarix. Tetradrachm, ca. 25 BC. Very rare. Very fine +. Estimate: 25,000 euros

No. 6497: Bohemia. Boii in the area of Bratislava oppidum. Evoiurix. Tetradrachm, ca. 25 BC. Very rare. Very fine +. Estimate: 12,500 euros

No. 6503: Germania Magna. Cotini. Stater, type Dolny Kubin-Vel'ky Bysterec, 1st century BC. Very rare. Very fine to extremely fine. Estimate: 10,000 euros

No. 6519: Noricum. Tetradrachm, type frontal face, 2nd/1st century BC. About extremely fine. Estimate: 7,500 euros

No. 6535: Pannonia. Tetradrachm, type with curl on the cheek, 3rd century BC. Rare. About extremely fine/very fine. Estimate: 10,000 euros

No. 6560: Pannonia. Tetradrachm, type with inverted laurel wreath and arabesque curl, 3rd/2nd century BC. Extremely rare. Extremely fine. Estimate: 20,000 euros

No. 6708: Dacia. Tetradrachm, type double head with head stand, 3rd/2nd century BC. Extremely rare. Very fine +. Estimate: 10,000 euros

No. 6777: Colchis / Iberia. Gold stater, 2nd/1st century BC. Very rare. Extremely fine. Estimate: 15,000 euros

 

KÜNKER AUCTION SALE 367: GREEK COINS

Catalog 367: Greek Coins of Beautiful Quality – The Dr Guy Sylvain Paul Bastin Collection
The Roman Republic – The Dr W R Collection, Part 6
Künker's Spring Auction Sales will end on Wednesday, 6 April 2022 with the sale of two more collections. First are the coins of the Dr Guy Sylvain Paul Bastin Collection. He collected all the favorite pieces of collectors of Greek coinage in outstanding quality.

It's best to use the internet to really appreciate the quality of these pieces by zooming into the pictures. Let's have a look at one example: staters of the archaic coinage system from Sybaris are already rare to begin with. But the collector managed to acquire not a stater but a drachm from Sybaris – these coins are even rarer than staters. The specimen is of wonderful quality and has a good provenance. It's from the Bank Leu auction 36 of 1985. Or the incredible didrachm from Gela that first entered the market in 1987 at Lanz! The piece is not only of perfect quality, it was also made with a fresh die which is why it is one of the few existing didrachms from Gela that depict every detail of the horseman on the obverse.

The third and last example for the exquisite taste of the collector is a coin minted during the Roman siege of Syracuse. The obverse depicts an almost monumental face of Zeus and the reverse a quadriga. The engraver managed to capture the moment in which all four horses start moving from a standing position in a very lifelike manner.

The sixth part of the Dr W R Collection with coins from the Roman Republic rounds off the Spring Auction Sales. It contains about 400 coins from the Roman Republic – not only denarii but also the much rarer bronze coins, especially from the late third century.

Dr W R succeeded in acquiring rare pieces of extraordinary quality. He paid special attention to motifs of historical interest that allude to events that are second nature to any graduate of humanistic grammar schools thanks to extensive Latin lessons. It's incredibly impressive to see how a large M. Aemilius Lepidus puts the diadem of the rule over Egypt on the head of the much smaller Ptolemy V.

For the sake of completeness, it should be mentioned that prices for the specimens of this collection already start in the two-digit range. If you are interested in coins of the Roman Republic, you should not miss taking a close look at this catalog.

No. 7025: Sybaris (Lucania). Drachm, 550-510. From the Dr Guy Sylvain Paul Bastin Collection. Extremely fine. Estimate: 750 euros

No. 7046: Gela (Sicily). Didrachm, 490-475. From the Dr Guy Sylvain Paul Bastin Collection. Extremely fine. Estimate: 2,500 euros

No. 7081: Syracuse (Sicily). 16 litrae, 214-212. From the Dr Guy Sylvain Paul Bastin Collection. Very rare. Extremely fine. Estimate: 10,000 euros

No. 7541: Roman Republic. 60 asses, after 211. From the Dr W R Collection. Extremely fine / Very fine +. Estimate: 5,000 euros

No. 7828: Roman Republic. M. Aemilius Lepidus. Denarius, around 59. From the Dr W R Collection. Very rare. About extremely fine. Estimate: 2,000 euros

No. 7841: Roman Republic. Q. Pomponius Musa. Denarius, 56. From the Dr W R Collection. Rare. Estimate: 1,250 euros

No. 7863: Roman Republic. M. Valerius Messalla. Denarius, 53. From the Dr W R Collection. Very rare. Extremely fine. Estimate: 2,000 euros

To order a catalog contact Künker, Nobbenburger Straße 4a, 49076 Osnabrück; phone: +49 541 962020, fax: +49 541 9620222; or via e-mail: service@kuenker.de. You can access the auction catalogs online at www.kuenker.de. If you want to submit your bid from your computer at home, please remember to register for this service in good time.

NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: MARCH 20, 2022

Parthia Osroes I Drachm

Lot 111. KINGS of PARTHIA. Osroes I (Circa AD 108/9-127/8). AR Drachm. Very Rare.

KINGS of PARTHIA. Osroes I (Circa AD 108/9-127/8). AR Drachm (3.63 gm; 20 mm). Ekbatana mint. Diademed bust left, long pointed beard, earring visible, hair in bunches above head and over ears / Archer (Arsakes I) seated right on throne (depicted as +), holding bow; + below bow. Sellwood 80.1; Shore 422; Sunrise 443. Well struck on a nice flan. Choice Good EF. Very Rare.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Lot 111. KINGS of PARTHIA. Osroes I (Circa AD 108/9-127/8). AR Drachm. Very Rare. (https://www.vauctions.com/APViewItem.asp?id=67060)

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TOM KAYS' NUMISMATIC DIARY MARCH 20, 2022

Wayne Homren sent his regrets, but he could not make the March 2022 Nummis Nova dinner. We crew carried on captain-less, nonetheless. Seeing Saint Patrick's Day looming on the horizon, we chose not the Ides of March but Erin's green as an impromptu theme for festivities in mid-March. See us already listing a wee bit to port at the Captain's Table on the Good Ship Shamrock. Around the galley deck are Jon Radel, Dave Schenkman, Mike Packard, Julian Leidman, Steve Bishop, Tom and Wayne H(erndon).

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HOLED GOLD EID MAR OFFERED

One of the most important gold coins from the ancient world, which is thought to have been worn by a murderer of Julius Caesar, will be auctioned in May 2022, by the leading ancient coin firm, Numismatica Ars Classica. The ‘Eid Mar' coin was minted by Caesar's betrayer, Marcus Junius Brutus, to celebrate the assassination of Caesar on March 15 (the Ides of March), 44 BC; an event widely recognized as one of the great moments in Western European history.

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CELTIC KING VERICA STATER UNCOVERED

A 2,000-year-old coin that depicts a wine-swilling Celtic king who boasted of having a high sex drive has been unearthed by a metal detectorist. The gold stater dates to between 30-40AD and was issued by Verica, whose kingdom was what is now Kent, Sussex and Hampshire.

He aligned himself with the Romans and imported copious amounts of Italian wine and drinking vessels in exchange for British slaves. He also encouraged the Roman invasion of Britain in the 1st century after his own kingdom was threatened by an invading tribe.

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BELL TALERS

On 14 September 1643, the imperial troops withdrew from the fortress and the ducal seat of Brunswick. The imperial army lost this important location as a result of the separate peace concluded between Emperor Ferdinand III and the Welfs. The Brunswick people were the winners of the agreement: the withdrawal freed them from quartering, special taxes and all the annoying side effects that come with a hostile army being present in your city. They owed this freedom to their new ruler, Augustus the Younger. The latter celebrated his efforts in the service of the city with an extensive coin series. Numismatists usually refer to these pieces as glockentaler (bell talers) although – as is to be expected from a series of showpieces – the issue did not only comprise talers but pieces of many different denominations.

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FRANKLIN'S POCKET CHANGE

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UNCLE STEVE LANDRUM'S COINS AND PAPER MONEY

The details of young Stephen's childhood are lost to history. Enslaved blacks accounted for about 20 percent of Kentucky's population by 1860, many of them in larger cities like Louisville and Lexington, and more on the hemp and tobacco farms of the Bluegrass Region and the Jackson Purchase. We might assume that Stephen's parents were house servants, but such specifics are buried in time.

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COVERAGE OF THE DANIEL MORGAN GOLD MEDAL

When numismatist John Kraljevich of Fort Mill opened a box containing a unique solid gold medal that an auction house asked him to authenticate, his jaw dropped.

"My reaction was somewhere along the lines of, holy (expletive)," Kraljevich said. "As soon as I laid my eyes on it, I knew what it was."

Indeed, it was the original and only gold Daniel Morgan at Cowpens Medal struck by the Philadelphia Mint in 1839.

Untraced since 1885, an anonymous owner consigned the medal to be auctioned off at Stack's Bowers Galleries April 4-8 in Costa Mesa, Calif.

The pre-auction sales estimate is $250,000 to $500,000.

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ZERO EURO NOTES RAISE FUNDS FOR UKRAINE

The chairman of the association "We help children" from Salzgitter, Volker Machura, is overjoyed. Not only was the association able to collect donations of 52,000 euros for children and families from the Ukraine within just one week, now a businessman from Salzgitter, who is well known in the world of numismatics, has started a special campaign for the association.

The company Mietens & Partner, wholesaler for coins and banknotes, has issued a 0-euro peace note "PEACE FOR UKRAINE". In view of the already high demand, the total circulation was increased from 5,000 to 10,000 copies. Of course, like all other 0-euro notes, these are also printed on original banknote paper.

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