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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: Jeff Dickerson, Treasurer Numismatic Bibliomania Society P. O. Box 578, Weatherford, TX 76086 Asylum For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership questions, contact Jeff 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 February 17, 2024 Kolbe & Fanning

 

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 FEBRUARY 11, 2024

New subscribers this week include: Greg Billman of the Northwest Coin Club, courtesy Pete Smith. Welcome aboard! We now have 7,452 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 final group of highlights from the Kolbe & Fanning BCD numismatic literature sale, two new books, two new periodical issues, a retirement, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, notes from readers, and more.

Other topics this week include coinage of Telangana, the coin hobby in the 1950s, MacNeil's models, the Appleton collection, publisher Dennis Tucker, author Frank Grove, artist Morgan Asoyuf, auction previews, Alaska tokens, the 2024 Paris Olympics medals, and the Bank of England Museum.

To learn more about engraved gems from the collection of the Vatican, auctioneer Robert Brunk, author Daniel W. Valentine, the 1969 Portland Coin-A-Rama, Scottish coins, Nicholson's Half Dime, the Victoria Cross, a large cent found in a privy, and the GOINTOEM STRONG sale, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

 

MORE KOLBE & FANNING BCD LIBRARY HIGHLIGHTS

BCD Library Sale Highlights

Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers are looking forward to our first sale of highlights from the magnificent BCD Library on the coinage of antiquity on Saturday, February 17. The result of half a century of careful collecting, the BCD Library is known for the remarkable breadth and depth of its holdings, which focus most particularly on ancient Greek coinage. Our initial auction, which can be accessed at bid.numislit.com, includes an extraordinary offering of rare and desirable material.

Some highlights include:

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NEW BOOK: A QUESTION OF VALUE

In the late 1970s, Robert Brunk discovered the world of auctioneering. Drawn to the unique mountain culture and the history of fine art in and around Asheville, North Carolina, Bob started a business, Brunk Auctions, that became part of a bustling network of commerce. America’s passion for collecting, buying, and selling reached remarkable heights in the following decades. Auction houses and antiques stores thrived; people paid hundreds of dollars for a humble country basket and thousands for a rare piece of folk art.

In this collection of compelling, compassionate essays, Bob considers specific items and remarkable situations he encountered in his long and successful work as an auctioneer and appraiser. He presents objects as invitations to consider personal and collective histories often related to unresolved social inequities. Bob also describes how, as his business grew to offer the finest examples of American and European art, his career often conflicted with his Mennonite background and the complexities of ownership and value. The result is a portrait that reflects the best and worst of us as we search for ways to live with objects—and then decide what to do when it’s time to let them go.

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NEW BOOK: COINAGE OF TELANGANA

Post Mauryan and Pre Satavahana Coinage and History of Telangana
Deme Raja Reddy (Author)

Though Telangana now happens to be the youngest and 29th state in India, it had been a distinct entity from ancient times.There were Greek references to AsmakaJanapada and Telangana by Megasthenese, Arrian, Pliny the Elder and Ptolemy. Ptolemy’s Triglyphon and Trilinga corresponded to Telangana. First major family to rule this region was Asmakajanapada and it was succeeded successively by Nanda and Maurya dynasties. Most illustrious dynasty to rule this region next was Satavahana and their rule commenced in the later part of first century B.C.

Post-Mauryan and Pre-Satavahana history of the Deccan which lasted about two hundred years is shrouded in darkness. Inscriptions and coins of that period reveal certain facts. After the disintegration of the Mauryan Empire some petty kings or local chieftains seemed to have assumed power in this region.

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PERIODICAL: TEC NEWS, JANUARY-MARCH 2024

Pennsylvania Penny Pressers meet and greet a success
by Tracy Treibly

Yerxa’s now serves Hoffman House coffee
by Alex Mruk

Finding rolling machines in surprising places in London England,
by Richard Jozefiak

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PERIODICAL: NUMISMATIQUE ASIATIQUE NO. 48

EDITORIAL
Les sapèques du Grand Nord
The sapeques of the Far North

CENTRAL ASIA
Offical seals of Western Liao inscribed in the Khitan Large Script
by V. A. Belyaev, S. V. Sidorovich

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WHITMAN PUBLISHER DENNIS TUCKER RETIRING

Following a nineteen-year career as publisher at Whitman Publishing, Dennis Tucker will retire at the end of February 2024. He plans to spend time with family in the United States and the Philippines while pursuing creative and philanthropic projects.

Tucker has served Whitman as its publisher from December 2004, when the company was owned by Atlanta-based Anderson Press, through its recent acquisition by CDN Publishing. During that time, he has overseen the publication of more than 300 titles ranging from 64-page monographs to 1,504-page references in the fields of numismatics, banking and financial history, the American presidency, U.S. military history, and other nonfiction topics.

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A NUMISMATIC VALENTINE

A Numismatic Valentine

Daniel W. Valentine, 1863-1932, is most remembered for his work on the United States half dime series, which culminated in the publication of The United States Half Dimes by the American Numismatic Society in 1931. This work represented the first substantive analysis of Liberty Seated half dime die varieties. Thomas Elder sold Valentine’s collection in 1927, with the exception of the half dimes, which Valentine apparently retained at this point in preparation for publication. Valentine was honored by the New York Numismatic Club with a medal, commemorating his two terms as present of that organization beginning in 1918. Examples are scarce and this piece is among the keys in a set of New York Numismatic Club medals.

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VIDEO: EARLY DAYS IN THE COIN HOBBY

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MORE ON HAMILTON AND SILVER FINENESS

In the E-Sylum of February 4 Craig Sholley and Harry Salyards (S&S) reported that they were working on an article to refute one that appeared in the ANS Magazine of January 2024. The ANS article claimed that Alexander Hamilton, in his 1791 report on the coinage, had badly misjudged the situation and even the 15 to 1 ratio for silver to gold was wrong.

I also saw the ANS article and sent a note to the editor several weeks ago pointing out serious flaws.

S&S correctly note, using figures published by the 1878 monetary conference, that Hamilton did get the ratio right. The U.S. Mint Reports of later years, on the other hand, used the figures compiled by Dr. Adolph Soetbeer and these generally agree with the S&S report. (Soetbeer: 1789: 14.75 to 1, 1790: 15.04 to 1, 1791: 15.05 to 1, 1792: 15.17 to 1, 1793: 15 to 1, and 1794: 15.37 to 1. After 1794 the ratios were well above 15 to 1.)

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MORE ON MACNEIL'S MODELS

MacNeil was indeed a gifted sculptor, producing over 200 works in a career spanning fifty-plus years. But he was also a very competent designer of not only the Quarter, his sole award, but let us not forget he was one of eight sculptors invited to submit models for the Peace Dollar in 1921. Anthony de Francisci was awarded the commission earning him $1,500; the other seven participants $100 for their entries. Bankers complained that the coin would not stack, while others thought the coin to be unartistic. Relatively unknown until a decade prior, MacNeil had also submitted a design for the ten-cent coin, the plaster of its reverse discovered by the family that purchased their College Point home from his widow. This writer directed its owner to Stack’s Bowers resulting in its eventual sale.

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MORE ON THE APPLETON COLLECTION AT MHS

In his initial article Pete wrote:

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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: FEBRUARY 11, 2024

More on Custom Dansco Albums
Regarding custom Dansco albums, Ken Barr writes:

Ken adds:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: FEBRUARY 4, 2024 : Dansco CSNA Medal Album (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n05a14.html)

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VOCABULARY TERM: PATTERN

Pattern. A model from which something is made, usually in hard form. A pattern is required for modern die cutting operations, particularly for the die-engraving pantograph.

The purpose of the pattern is to convey the configuration of the surface, the design and lettering – it's modulated relief – to be cut into a die or formed into a mold. Die patterns used in a pantograph must be in a hard surface to sustain the tracking by the tracing stylus.

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WHO HAD THE LARGEST COLLECTION IN THE U.S.?

I want to open a topic for discussion. Who had the largest American coin collection? I don’t know the answer. Perhaps E-Sylum readers can reach a consensus over time.

Start with an obvious distinction, the difference between a collection and a hoard. A collection is a systematic grouping of different items with some common theme. A hoard includes multiple examples of the same things. An accumulation is just a bunch of stuff.

Along the way we should consider that different themes may include ancient coins, colonial coins, American coins, world coins, currency, medals and tokens. Within each of those may be legitimate subsets assembled as important collections worthy of mention.

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FRANCIS WAYNE GROVE (1909-1993)

Frank Grove was born on April 8, 1909 in Carthage, Missouri. The family moved to California in 1920 where he attended school in the town of Ontario. In 1926 he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, serving for 30 years, including in the Korean War. Although the Navy based him in San Diego, he retired in 1957 to spend most of his time in Guadalajara, Mexico with his wife Josephine.

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CELESTIAL CIRCLE COIN ARTIST MORGAN ASOYUF

Ts’msyen artist Morgan Asoyuf’s 2023 Celestial Circle Royal Mint coin is all about the sun and the moon.

Containing both matte black and gold, Asoyuf said the coin represents diverse life cycles and their importance to traditions in the Northwest.

Asoyuf is an acclaimed artist who grew up on the North Coast and now lives in North Vancouver. She won a Mint design contest to put her art on the 2023 “puzzle piece” collectible coin, which is 10 ounces and gold plated.

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KEVIN FLYNN VARIETY AND ERROR COLLECTION

CONECA, the international error coin and variety club, announces that noted die variety and error specialist Kevin Flynn is selling the majority of his certified die varieties through Heritage Auctions. Included are nearly 580 lots including doubled dies, repunched mint marks, over mint marks, overdates, clashes, off-denomination clashes, repunched dates, misplaced dates, and other rarities.

Many of the coins for auction were used as plate coins for books that Mr. Flynn wrote. The auction listings include complete cross references, description, and where applicable, links to the die variety section of the book in which the variety was listed.

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DAVISSONS AUCTION 43 ANNOUNCED

Auction 43, closing Wednesday, March 20th 2024, is online now! Print copies will be mailed later this month, if you are not on our mailing list and would like a copy please let us know.

The first high quality, substantially pedigreed collection of Scottish coins to come to the market since the LaRiviere sale in 2006 begins in this, our major annual sale of some of the best coins we have come across in the past year. A beautiful and historic series with a fascinating array of designs typically reflecting the frequently changing winds of Scottish history are chronicled in a series that is a major departure in style and beauty from both the English and Irish coinage series.

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NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: FEBRUARY 11, 2024

Aburius Geminus Denarius

C. Aburius Geminus AR Denarius. Rome, 134 BC. Helmeted head of Roma to right; GEM behind, mark of value below chin / Mars driving quadriga to right holding sceptre, shield, reins and trophy; C•ABVRI (partially ligate) below, ROMA in exergue. Crawford 244/1; BMCRR Rome 999; RSC Aburia 1. 3.93g, 18mm, 2h.

To read the complete lot description, see:
C. Aburius Geminus AR Denarius. (https://romanumismatics.com/284-lot-775-c-aburius-geminus-ar-denarius?auction_id=185&view=lot_detail)

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NEW SOUTH WALES FIFTEEN PENCE DUMP FOUND

Oxfam Volunteer and coin enthusiast John Turner was looking through a bag of coins that had been donated to Oxfam’s shop in Orpington when he spotted what he thought could be a rare coin. It was taken to Noonans Mayfair for a second opinion where it was confirmed that it was an Australian New South Wales Fifteen Pence or Dump dating from 1813. It is estimated to fetched £5,000-7,000 and will be offered in a two-day sale of Coins and Historical Medals on Tuesday and Wednesday, February 6 and 7, 2024.

John who is in his mid 70s, has volunteered for Oxfam for the past 10 years since he retired from banking. He lives in Bromley area and is based at his local Bromley shop in South East London, however there are 8-9 shops in South London that he visits regularly.

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KLAWOCK, ALASKA TOKEN DISCOVERY

Alaska Sentinel, Wrangell, November 26, 1908.
NOTICE

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AN ‘IRISH’ VICTORIA CROSS

A Victoria Cross awarded to Edmond (Edward) Jennings of Ballinrobe, Co Mayo, is going under the hammer at Noonan’s in London on February 14.

The British military medal is awarded “for acts of the greatest heroism or of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme danger”.

Jennings was a Rough Rider (mounted soldier) in the Bengal Horse Artillery during the Relief of Lucknow, 1857.

The medal is estimated to fetch £20,000 to £30,000 (€23,368 to €35,052).

In recent years, Irish Victoria Crosses have done extraordinarily well at auction.

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2024 PARIS OLYMPICS EIFFEL TOWER MEDALS

An Olympic medal inlaid with a piece of the Eiffel Tower. How's that for a monumental prize?

A hexagonal, polished chunk of iron taken from the iconic landmark is being embedded in each gold, silver and bronze medal that will be hung around athletes' necks at the July 26-Aug. 11 Paris Games and Paralympics that follow.

Games organizers revealed their revolutionary design on Thursday.

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LOOSE CHANGE: FEBRUARY 11, 2024

British Museum to Display Recovered Items

The British Museum will put 10 items stolen from its collection on show later this month.

The Roman gems, to be featured in an exhibition Rediscovering Gems, include a cameo with a bust of Cupid from the 1st or 2nd Century AD.

In August, the museum announced up to 2,000 objects from its storerooms were missing, stolen or damaged.

It has recovered about 350 items to date.

The exhibition will explore the significance of classical gems through history.

The museum has released pictures of two of those gems that have been chosen for display.

Both were returned by Dr Ittai Gradel, the dealer and collector who alerted the British museum to the thefts, and was originally brushed off.

Dr Gradel told the BBC he had been "delighted" to work with the museum on the recovery process.

To read the complete article, see:
British Museum to put stolen items from its collection on show (https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-68165171)

To read earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
BRITISH MUSEUM SEEKS RECOVERY OF STOLEN ITEMS (https://www.coinbooks.org/v26/esylum_v26n41a29.html)
DEALER WHO EXPOSED BRITISH MUSEUM THEFTS (https://www.coinbooks.org/v26/esylum_v26n46a26.html)

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BANK OF ENGLAND MUSEUM REVAMP ON HOLD

The Bank of England has shelved a £250,000 plan to revamp its museum, adding at least a year to more than five years of debate about how to provide a focal point for financial education in England and Wales.

In the time since officials at the Bank began considering a revamp of the only money museum in England and Wales, a string of museums have opened or been overhauled at a cost of more than £100m.

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