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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 Kolbe & Fanning sale on May 16, 2023

 

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 MAY 7, 2023

New subscribers this week include: Dan Duncan. Welcome aboard!

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.

Random opening joke: I auditioned for the role of Hamlet, but it was not to be.

This week we open with a numismatic literature sale, two new books, two obits, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, notes from readers, and more.

Other topics this week include the Bar Coppers, gold, digital images, Rinaldo Wilson, Harry Einstein, John Dannreuther, Annie Oakley, money and bookkeeping, fixed price and auction offerings, coin hoards, Trade Dollars, Coronation coins, and special serial numbers.

To learn more about the Rebel Emperors of Britannia, Indian banknotes, National Bank Notes, Winslow Howard, withdrawing coins from circulation, coal company scrip, molecular memory, the Serbian Assassin medal, the revolutionary "Bolita" peso, and reverse ATMs, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

KOLBE & FANNING BUY OR BID SALE NUMBER 21

Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers have announced our latest Buy or Bid Sale, which begins now and will close on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. With hundreds of new additions, the sale focuses on modestly priced books, giving collectors an opportunity to add to their libraries at minimal cost.

The sale includes over 1400 works on ancient, medieval and modern coins, as well as general works, periodicals and sale catalogues. Buy prices have been kept low to promote sales. To further encourage participation, the firm is offering free domestic shipping to bidders spending at least $300; there is also no packing and processing fee for this sale. Again, please read the Terms of Sale before participating.

As the name of the sale suggests, customers may bid on items they wish to acquire or buy them outright at the published price. The Terms of Sale will give full instructions on how to participate: please read it carefully.

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NEW BOOK: REBEL EMPERORS OF BRITANNIA

The Rebel Emperors of Britannia, Carausius and Allectus
Sam Moorhead and Graham Barker

One of the most exciting periods of Britain's history under the Romans remains largely unknown today. Yet, at the end of third century AD, two men successively ruled the island, together with parts of the Continental coast, as emperors of Britannia for a period of ten years. They minted their own coins, initiated Britain's first truly integrated defence system and successfully repelled an invasion from the mighty Roman empire. This is the story of Carausius and Allectus – the rebel emperors of Britannia.

They were major thorns in the side of Rome and posed a huge threat to the authority of Diocletian and Maximian. It took ten years, after Carausius first rebelled, for the Roman empire to mount a second invasion and this time it was successful. Britain rejoined the ‘Eternal Light of Rome' and the victory was accompanied by tremendous celebrations.

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NEW BOOK: INDIAN BANKNOTES 2023

Indian Banknotes 2023
British India Portuguese India French India Republic India 1861-2022
By Sainath Reddappa

FIRST EDITION
Hard Back
650 Pages
Full Color Illustrations

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NATIONAL BANK NOTE SUMMARY DATA PUBLISHED

Southern California volcano layout, a layout unique to the first title used by this bank, from an issue of 2.670 sheets of 10-10-10-20s of which this is the first reported.

The Society of Paper Money Collectors has just posted four huge EXCEL data sets that you can download and manipulate. They provide a big picture overview of the note-issuing national banks and the national bank notes that those banks issued

The data presented is primarily transcribed from Comptroller of the Currency annual reports and contemporary records maintained by the Comptroller of the Currency's staff that are now housed in Record Group 101 at the National Archives in College Park, Maryland. The accuracy and completeness of these data, particularly such things as the summary corporate histories in spreadsheet 1, is dependent upon reports having been received by the Comptroller's office and the fidelity with which the information was recorded. This information is known to be incomplete, especially information pertaining to predecessor and successor territory/state banks and mergers involving territory/state banks. Consequently, the information provided here should be viewed as a starting point as you research a particular bank.

In cases where specific data such as organization or opening dates are missing, the compilers of these spreadsheets were unable to recover that information from the available records. The reason is that critical records such as organization reports are missing or in the case of opening dates, the information wasn't recorded.

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WILLIAM H. MCALLISTER IV (1941-2023)

Bill McAllister, a Washington Post national reporter in the 1980s and 1990s who wrote a long-running column on coins and stamps, died May 1 at a hospital in Fairfax County. He was 81 and a resident of Fairfax City.

The cause was pneumonia and complications from covid, said his son William H. Billy McAllister IV.

Mr. McAllister, widely known as Buddy, joined The Post in 1975 with an assignment to rove Virginia for stories. He later served eight years overseeing statewide news coverage before moving to the national staff as a general-assignment reporter.

Besides writing about political and policy developments across many federal agencies, he cultivated a journalistic specialty focused on the Postal Service and had a column about stamps and coins published in the Weekend section.

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TIM H. LAPOINTE (1947-2023)

Jeff Garrett writes:

Tim H. LaPointe
Chicago 1947 - Chicago 2023

Timothy Harold LaPointe passed away on April 27, 2023. No, the H is not for Hustle, as fitting as it may have been! A wise man: he knew how to maneuver among his comrades. "Know the rules so you can play the game," he taught. An athlete, a soldier, a leader, and a provider, Tim is himself a rarity. As intense as he was at times, Tim was the first to make light of a bad situation when he saw that those he cared for were truly worried. Though an abundance of power was displayed when fighting for what he believed was right, Tim's loyalty and love were the truest displays of his strength. Tim is not to be missed, but appreciated, because he made sure to leave a lasting impression all over this world.

Tim's friends and family have been honored to know this extraordinary man. His legacy lives on through his wife, Beth; two sons, Jason (Erica) and Kyle; and granddaughter, Payten.

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NEWMAN NOTES ON THE BAR COPPERS

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VIDEO: ANCIENT & MODERN MONEY & GOLD

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BUSHNELL'S COMPENDIUM CATALOG, PART THREE

WINSLOW HOWARD SALE
The article provides information on the life of Winslow J. Howard, a prominent numismatist. He was born in New Hampshire and began his career with Tiffany & Co. in New York City. Howard became interested in collecting coins about 1850 and lobbied for the regular production of proof coinage in the U.S. in 1855. He was an active collector and bidder in auctions in the 1850s, including the 1855 Pierre Flandin sale and the John W. Kline auction. In 1857, Howard corrected a mistake in a newspaper article about the "old red cent."

ECSTASY OF EARLY 1858
The text provides a historical account of Winslow J. Howard, an American numismatist, who was among the first people to print a "wanted to buy" list for old coppers. In 1858, Howard made significant intellectual contributions to John Hickox's research-based monograph on American coinage and was visited by Dr. Montroville Wilson Dickeson, who examined his collection to write his landmark American Numismatical Manual. Howard sold some of his coins to George N. Dana of Boston, including the Non Dependens Status engraved copper, which he believed to be unique and one of the pattern pieces engraved and designed by Paul Revere. The other featured coin was the Washington half dollar of 1792, which Howard found even more fascinating. Charles B. Norton published a feature on these two coins, along with engravings and descriptions of the coins, in his Norton's Literary Letter No. 2 in 1857.

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ON THE FADING OF DIGITAL IMAGES

I have tens of thousands of moderate (300 dpi) to high-resolution (1600 dpi) digital images of U.S. currency, Bureau of Engraving and Printing certified proofs, scanned National Archives documents, scanned historic photos, even family photos, both black and white and color. The vast majority of these are saved as JPEG images but in other popular formats as well. They are stored on the hard drives of my high-end HP Envy laptops and towers, in Western Digital external mass storage devices, on removable disks, etc. Many of these images are embedded in PowerPoint presentations, in WORD documents, etc.

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TOKEN AND MEDAL POTENTIAL ANSWERS

Last week Paul Horner asked:

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ON WITHDRAWING COINS FROM CIRCULATION

In the last E-Sylum, David Pickup, under the heading "New King, New Coins?" stated: "The cost of removing vast quantities of coins from circulation and minting their replacements would be staggering. The only example I can think of in modern times was the recall of Commonwealth coins after the Restoration. I suppose you can understand it as those coins would not have been thought quite nice!"

Here are a few updates:

The recall of the pre-Euro coins from many countries that joined the European Union was done out of necessity. The coins were waffled and then sold to smelters for melting and repurposing.

In June 2003, the U.S. began waffling coins that were quietly being removed from the distribution system. This included Eisenhower dollars, Susan B. Anthony Dollars, the new series of Presidential dollars, Sacagawea dollars, State quarters, Kennedy half dollars, 5-cent Jefferson and 10-cent Roosevelt pieces. They all have one thing in common - the melt value exceeded the face value.

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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: MAY 7, 2023

On the the George I ‘Dump' Farthing

Regarding the George I ‘Dump' Farthing, Erik Goldstein writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
THE GEORGE I ‘DUMP' FARTHING (https://www.coinbooks.org/v26/esylum_v26n18a29.html)

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IMPRIMATUR: A SPECIAL KIND OF APPROVAL

Numismatic books come with all kinds of endorsements and recommendations.

Some are printed on a What Readers Are Saying page in the front. For example, the Cherrypickers' Guide to Rare Die Varieties has endorsements from Mark Borckardt, Jeff Garrett, Dr. Richard Doty, and other well-known numismatists. Len Augsburger, president of the Liberty Seated Collectors Club, says, With this single volume, the eagle-eyed collector will be prepared to identify valuable coins that many others have missed.

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VOCABULARY TERM: MOLECULAR MEMORY

Molecular Memory. The surface metal of a struck piece has a tendency to return minutely to its original configuration before it was struck; also called creep or drift. It is imperceptible to the human eye, but can be observed under magnification. This striking problem is cured, somewhat, by a longer extrusion dwell in the press cycle to prevent the metal from springing back while the die is still in the most extended position. Also, of course, it is eliminated by repeated impressions as in multiple striking.

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WHO WAS R. A. WILSON?

I received an email from Dennis Tucker on Tuesday, May 2, asking about R. A. Wilson. Tucker inquired about a book with a red cover that has similarities to other books with red covers. Tucker wrote:

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HARRY PARKYAKARKUS EINSTEIN

Recently I was leafing through an old Numismatist from the 1940s, looking for something or other, when a name leapt off the page at me: Parkyakarkus. It appeared in an advertisement of numismatic wants placed by American Numismatic Association member 7174, who was looking for some rare $5 and $10 gold pieces. I knew this name. It was the moniker used by old-time comedian and character actor Harry Einstein (1904–1958), father of actor and filmmaker Albert Brooks—known for movies like Taxi Driver, Broadcast News, and Drive—and Bob Einstein—remembered for his Super Dave Osbourne character and for playing Marty Funkhouser on the show Curb Your Enthusiasm. Could this possibly be the same guy? Well, considering the likelihood of there being two Parkyakarkuses, and given the Beverly Hills address in the advertisement, the answer, inevitably, was yes.

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CSNS HONORS JOHN DANNREUTHER

The Central States Numismatic Society (www.CSNS.org) presented its annual Q. David Bowers Award this year to prolific numismatic researcher, acclaimed author, and well-known dealer John Dannreuther. The prestigious award was presented at the CSNS annual convention in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg, Illinois on April 29, 2023.

Born in Mississippi, Dannreuther is President of John Dannreuther Rare Coins (JDRC) in North Hollywood, California and was a co-founder of the Professional Coin Grading Service.

Important reference books he authored or co-authored include The Official Guide to Coin Grading and Counterfeit Detection; Proof Gold Coinage of the United States; Early U. S. Gold Coin Varieties, a Study of Die States, 1795-1834; and United States Proof Coins, Volume IV: Gold.

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MONEY AND BOOKKEEPING

The expansion of money was made easier as it became more virtual with the arrival of the concept of negative numbers and double-entry bookkeeping:

"The fall of the Roman Empire saw a drastic reduction in trading activities, markets, and even the size of cities, with the population of Rome declining from as many as a million in the 2nd century AD, to about 30,000 by AD 550. The power vacuum was filled by the Christian and Islamic religious authorities who, instead of stamping out coins to pay soldiers, preferred to hoard precious metals in churches and monasteries, often melting it down as decoration for sacred symbols.

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NUMISMAGRAM MEDAL SELECTIONS: MAY 7, 2023

102405 | UNITED STATES. Lincoln/Grant/McKinley gilt copper Medal. Issued 1900 for the Republican convention (44mm, 25.38 g, 6h). LINCOLN GRANT McKINLEY, jugate busts left of Lincoln, Grant, and McKinley / PHILADELPHIA / NATIONAL / REPUBLICAN / CONVENTION / JUNE 19th 1900 in five lines; scrolled border with each Republican presidential nominee since the party's founding in 1856 (Frémont) through its most recent in 1896 (McKinley); the noted inverted doubling gives an enticing and most unusual ghosting effect. Edge: Plain. King 446. Choice Mint State. Extremely brilliant and vibrant, with evidence of nearly 180º double striking on the reverse. A very rare offering in gilt, and even that much more so in such an elevated state of preservation and with such a dramatic striking error upon the reverse. $865.

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DAVISSONS E-AUCTION 46 HIGHLIGHTS

E-Auction 46 closes in just under two weeks, on May 17th!

It opens with an interesting array of collectible gold (Lots 1-39), then a nice variety of Ancient Greek coinage (Lots 40-74).

A select Roman Provincial group (Lots 75-81) is followed by an interesting offering of beautifully toned Roman Republican denarii (Lots 82-93).

The Roman Imperatorial (Lots 94-99) and Imperial (Lots 100-144) sections include many rare, historic coins with a broad representation of the twelve caesars, then extends into the fourth century and late Empire.

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TCNC EXTRAVAGANZA SALE SELECTIONS

1921 50¢ PCGS Superb Gem Mint State-66. The King of Canadian coins. Ex Parrino & Ex Norweb example. Tied with only 1 other example for Finest known! An Absolute supreme example with mild pink and purple like tones over extensive and strong lustre. PCGS has certified only 2 examples of this extremely rare piece in Mint State-66, the population report shows 3 but only 2 pieces remain in PCGS MS-66 holders. A highly attractive and beautiful example to add to the best of collections! The auctioneer believes that it is extremely unlikely that any similar or better example will ever be found this nice or offered for sale, making this an unique opportunity to acquire this amazing Canadian classic rarity. Basically, this could possibly be your unique chance to purchase this elusive treasure. Worth a premium bid. This coin presents an important opportunity for Registry Set collectors. From the Tangen Collection.

To read the complete lot description, see:
1921 50¢ PCGS Superb Gem Mint State-66. The King of Canadian coins. Ex Parrino & Ex Norweb example. Tied with only 1 other exam (https://auctions.canadiancoinsandpapermoney.com/auction/217/the-extravaganza-sale-major-sale/session/418/lot/259)

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NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: MAY 7, 2023

Henri IV le Grand Medal

France - Henri IV le Grand (the Great), with Marie de Medici by Guillaume Dupre. Bronze medal, 1605 (later restrike)

(signed: G. Dupre.F.1605 // G.Dupre.F.).

Obverse: Henric IIII r chris maria augvsta Busts of Henri, facing slightly right, and Marie, facing right, both in full regalia.

Reverse: PROPAGO IMPERII Henri facing right to Marie, joining hands with child allegory between them, a dove coming down from the heavens with crown in beak.

Bronze, 100 mm, weight 469 gram,

UNC, Attractive toning.

To read the complete lot description, see:
France. Henri IV (1589-1610). Medal 1605 (later restrike) (https://www.catawiki.com/en/l/69843407)

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ROMAN COIN TREASURE FOUND IN ITALY

Archaeologists in Livorno, Italy, are putting together the pieces of a great mystery that began with a stunning find.

While hiking in a cleared area of a Tuscan forest northeast of Livorno, a member of the Livorno Paleontological Archaeological Group spotted a few glimmering coins in the dirt in November 2021. Upon closer inspection and excavation, researchers determined that the find included 175 silver Roman denarii coins. Nearly all were in good condition, making this one of the few hoards of ancient coins found intact, according to the group.

But the discovery prompted a number of questions: Whose treasure was it? Who were they hiding it from? And why didn't they come back for it?

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ROMAN COIN FIND IN ROMANIA

Perhaps in a hurry or perhaps planning ahead, someone buried a treasure trove but never returned. A metal detectorist in Romania just found it 1,700 years later.

The metal detectorist stumbled upon the buried treasure while searching in Dolj county, according to an April 25 news release from Cosmin Vasile, president of the Dolj County Council.

The hidden stash contained 1,168 silver coins from ancient Roman times, the release said. Photos show the piles of tarnished, blue-green discs. One cleaned coin, silvery and shiny, gleams against the surrounding pile. The coin has a central figure holding something in each hand and a ring of text around the edge.

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VIKING COIN HOARD SELLERS SENTENCED

Several years ago, police in England conducted a dramatic sting operation to recover 44 missing ninth-century coins. Now, two men, Roger Pilling and Craig Best, have been sentenced to more than five years in prison for conspiring to sell them.

Two of these coins are particularly unusual: Each depicts both Alfred the Great, the king of Wessex, and Ceolwulf II, the king of Mercia. While Ceolwulf is usually considered a minor historical figure, the coins suggest that his role could have been far more significant.

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1854 PENNY SHOT BY ANNIE OAKLEY

A Rare 'Oakley' 1854 Penny Coin

Annie Oakley's act included the shooting of coins thrown into the air which were then stamped 'OAKLEY' and handed out to members of the audience. For a related half-penny see Christie's London, Fine Modern Sporting Guns and Vintage Firearms including Annie Oakley's Winchester, 24 March 1993, lot 128

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CIVIL WAR HISTORY THROUGH COINS

1861-O $20 Liberty Head Gold Piece

Could this be "Confederate Money"?

All of the 1861 coins minted in Charlotte, Dahlonega and New Orleans are of keen and intense interest by Civil War and Confederate collectors.

Louisiana joined the Confederacy on Feb. 4, 1861. Five days earlier, the State had seized the US Mint in New Orleans.

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UNITED STATES TRADE DOLLARS

One of the most important developments to come out of the Coinage Act of 1873 was the creation of a United States Trade Dollar silver coin. John Jay Knox, who was the Deputy Comptroller of the Currency, had proposed the idea of a new silver coin for use in Asia. He held discussions with Louis Garnett, who had been both the San Francisco Mint's Assayer and Treasurer. Garnett did not actually want a new legal tender silver coin. What he originally suggested was a disk made of silver or a stamped silver ingot, at a uniform weight and fineness. He wanted to call it a silver union, as opposed to it becoming yet another silver coin. These disks or ingots would be standardized and without any change or modification. The idea was to initially compete with the Mexican 8 Reales silver coin, which was the current preferred coin by Chinese merchants, and to later supplant it as the preferred medium of exchange in China and Japan.

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AMERICAN WOMEN QUARTER HONOREE EDITH KANAKA?OLE

The life and legacy of the late cultural icon Edith Ke'kuhikuhiipu'uoneonaali'iokohala Kenao Kanaka?ole was celebrated Saturday on the Big Island with a mural, a U.S. quarter and lots of shared memories of dancing, culture, relationships and connections.

The celebration was held at the University of Hawai'i at Hilo, where the Honomu native, known lovingly as Aunty Edith, taught from 1974 to 1979. She created courses and seminars on Hawaiian language, ethnobotany, Polynesian history geneology and Hawaiian chant and mythology.

Kanaka?ole died nearly 44 years ago, at age 65 on Oct. 3, 1979, but she is still beloved for bringing Hawaiian culture, not only as an educator but also as a kumu hula and composer, to the masses.

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KING CHARLES III CORONATION COINS

On 6 May 2023, the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III will take place at Westminster Abbey. In honour of this significant celebration, we are delighted to announce that we will be releasing a coronation coin collection that bears The King's first official crowned coinage portrait. Featuring curated historic sets and beautifully crafted coins available across a number of denominations, including a UK 50p coin, £5 coin, The Sovereign, and a limited number of fine gold and silver coins struck in a variety of sizes, the collection features one of three exclusive reverse designs.

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TAIWAN SELLS SPECIAL SERIAL NUMBERS

Bank of Taiwan is to auction banknotes with special serial numbers starting on May 18, the central bank said on Thursday.

People tend to favor banknotes with certain serial numbers, particularly those with numbers that are homophones of Mandarin words related to prosperity or wealth. Some people are willing to pay large sums for them, as has been seen at 21 similar auctions held by the central bank over the past 10 years.

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REVERSE ATMS ARE COMING FOR OUR CASH

Traditionally, ATMs spit out cash to bank customers who insert their debit or credit card. But in a twist, a reverse concept — receiving a prepaid card from an ATM in exchange for cash — is rapidly growing in popularity.

Cash has been in decline for a while. In 2019, currency was used in 26% of consumer payments, a sharp decline from 40% in 2012, according to the Atlanta Fed. And the COVID-19 pandemic further encouraged a nationwide push away from physical currency, in part because of sanitary concerns and convenience.

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LOOSE CHANGE: MAY 7, 2023

Charles III on Canadian Coins

Canada's $20 banknote and coins will be getting a new look featuring King Charles III, the federal government announced amid celebrations marking the King's coronation.

Following the historic coronation on Saturday, the Bank of Canada said its next design process will replace Queen Elizabeth II's portrait with King Charles' on the $20 bill. Additionally, the Royal Canadian Mint will redesign Canadian coins to feature an effigy of the King, keeping up with the century-old tradition of having the reigning monarch appear on Canadian coins.

No details were given regarding when the redesign process would take place, but the federal government says Canadians should expect to see the design of the new coin effigy in the coming months. Meanwhile, updates to the $20 bill will likely take a few years.

To read the complete article, see:
King Charles III will be the new face of Canada's $20 bill, coins (https://www.ctvnews.ca/mobile/canada/king-charles-iii-will-be-the-new-face-of-canada-s-20-bill-coins-1.6388071)

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BEDFORDSHIRE COLLECTOR'S FAMILY UNCOVERS COINS

The family of an interested coin collector was stunned to discover more than 1,000 valuable coins hidden around the house after his death.

The secret collection is made up of over 1000 pieces of history and is expected to fetch close to £18,000 at auction.

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