"I was happy to read that the NBS auction did so well. As a former officer, the NBS is dear to my heart. As I read that the Virgil Brand copy of Elder's James Wilson sale got the top bid, I looked up at a framed picture in my library.

"The night before the Wilson sale, Tom Elder held a banquet for the the sale attendees. Virgil Brand is in this picture. It was one of the few times he ever left Chicago. There are 31 individuals pictured. They really are the whose who of numismatics at that time, 1908. Most in the picture are identified. I was able to identify two or three more. Brand is seated at the table, next to his very good friend, "Uncle Joe" Mitchelson."

"This reminds one of The Nation of Celestial Space, a/k/a/Celestia, founded 1948. It issued a few coins around 1960, which are listed in Colin Bruce's Unusual World Coins. Its founder, James Thomas Mangan of Evergreen Park, Illinois, sought to preserve the benefits of outer space for all mankind by placing all of the universe, Earth excepted, under his own wise rule. Mangan (d.1970) was not particularly nutty, but evidently was not immune to having some fun.

"A decent web entry: http://chiefacoins.com/Database/Micro-Nations/Celestia.htm.

"Another, from the Smithsonian: https://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/celestia-coins.

"There is also the expected Wikipedia page.

"His coins in silver brings a few 10s of dollars, the gold ones (2.2gms) a few hundred.

"While my little note gives few chances to err, I believe it is apostrophically unimpeachable.

"There are also coins for the geographically-challenged nations of Europa and Esperanto."

"I'd like the help of The E-Sylum's readers regarding a topic I am researching.

I have seen or own examples of the Hinton-designed medal honoring Charles Lindbergh used as award medals by adding engraving noting the achievement of the recipient. I am interested in hearing from anybody who has or has seen one of these, or any commemorative medal (as opposed to one specifically designed for it), used for this purpose.

"I note two types so far. The first one pictured is simply engraved with the additional information. The second type is one in which the original design has had part of the information included in the struck version, with only the specific information, such as name and date, added by engraving. I have seen two examples from Bronxville High School, and one that was used for an indoor flying competition. My email address is wudtrnr@gmail.com."