JEFF BURKE'S 2017 NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL DIARY

"The Wonders of Ancient & World Coin Catalogs and the 2017 New York International Numismatic Convention"

Pete LaConte's Catalog Gift
The adventure started in the cover of night. Pete LaConte, fellow member of the New Jersey Numismatic Society (NJNS), gave me an armful of ancient and world coin catalogs after our NJNS meeting on the night of June 15, 2015. The wide array of recent (2013 to 2016) catalogs included iNumis (Paris), Kunker (Osnabruck), Dix Noonan Webb (London) and a number of other companies.

As I read through these documents, I found myself drawn to certain Swiss, Belgian and French coin listings from the 18th to the 20th centuries. There is something magical about the smell, color and tactile sensation of holding a catalog in your hands and carefully examining each page of vividly illustrated coins! My favorite catalog references were in the world medals, orders and decorations section pertaining to the centennial of Ireland’s Easter Rebellion of 1916 in a Spink 2016 catalog which I keep on my bookshelf.

Pete LaConte grew up in northern New Jersey and started collecting coins at the age of 10. His first project was to plug the holes in a Whitman cent album. Today, LaConte concentrates more on world and medieval coins in our cherished hobby, with a secondary interest in Bust and Seated U.S. coinage. LaConte is an engineer in the telecom industry. (E-mail exchanges with LaConte, 10. 9 & 11.16).

Pete also gave me a shopping bag full of U.S., ancient and world coin catalogues prior to the start of our November NJNS meeting at the Chatham Public Library. Catalog selections included Jean Elsen & ses Fils s.a. (Brussels), Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. (London), Ibercoin (Madrid), Spinx (London), Monnaies (Paris), and H.D. Rauch (Vienna). LaConte gave me another heavy bag of catalogs after our January 2016 NJNS meeting. The catalogs included Aureo & Calico (Barcelona), Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles, Inc. (Los Angeles), Nomos (Zurich), and the New York Sale Auction XXXVII of Ancient and World Coins, January 5-6, 2016, in conjunction with the New York International Numismatic Convention (NYINC). I received a copy of Numisma (Lisbon) from Pete in March, Schulman b.v. (Amsterdam) in September, and cgb.fr (Paris) in November. A house cleaning by Pete resulted in a box of catalogs for me in December, some of which date to 30 years ago. What fun!

I had only owned two ancient coins in my life: a Roman coin that I bought for my wife Beth, and a high grade widow’s mite (in VF-EF) that I purchased at a local coin show near Worcester, MA, in 2008. At the time, I was a Visiting Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester. Professor Rick (Frederick J.) Murphy, one of my Holy Cross colleagues, was teaching a course entitled "Jesus and His Contemporaries," so I bought the widow’s mite for him to share with his class. His students passed the piece around the classroom and were thrilled to hold this actual piece of history in their hands!

The New York International
Despite having had limited experience with ancient and foreign coins, I was curious and eager to learn more about them. The late Dave Ginsburg suggested that I attend the NYINC, which I did for the first time on January 14, 2017. I bumped into our own Wayne Homren, founder and editor of The E-Sylum, in the Park Avenue lobby of the Waldorf Astoria. I was honored and thrilled to meet him! Wayne had just done some sightseeing in New York with his family and was headed back to Virginia. Next, Beth and I paused to look at several exhibits on the history of the hotel before taking the elevator to the 18th floor to explore the bourse.

We were in awe of the ancient and world coin offerings from around the world, nestled within the elegant Waldorf Astoria, reflective of the coin catalogs I’ve been studying for the past several years. I happened upon the cove of Charlie Davis and felt the pure joy of admiring his stunning array of numismatic works for sale. It was exciting to meet Charlie for the first time! We had a delightful conversation as Charlie showed me some of his leather-bound tomes and other selections he had at the show.

Most Beautiful Coin of the 20th Century?

Beth was entranced by a silver coin bearing the image of a lone figure gazing out over the sea, which she declared to be perhaps the most artistically designed coin she had ever encountered. Later she identified it online as the Norwegian 1914 2 Kroner. She also discovered she was not alone in admiring the coin, finding Kevin Goldberg’s article, "Is This the Most Beautiful Coin of the 20th Century?" in Coin World (Sep. 1, 2015)!

1794 Cork Halfpence Conder Token

As for me, my attention lingered on an extensive display of Irish coins and tokens. After careful consideration, I ended up buying a Cork DH. 2 1794 Halfpence Conder token. The provenance of this choice uncirculated piece includes Jerry Bobbe; Robinson Brown; and Del Parker, who purchased the token through a Dix Noonan Webb of London auction in 2013. I was captivated by the luster and design of the piece along with its pedigree, since I am an early copper enthusiast.

Alas, it was time to leave the show. Beth and I headed out into a snowy Manhattan evening, looking forward to further numismatic adventures down the road.

Wayne Homren, Editor

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