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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 1/4/2025 - Workman's Books 1/8/2025 - Numismatic Antiquarian Bookshop Lang 1/25/2025 - 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 DECEMBER 15, 2024

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 two numismatic literature sales, four new books, a podcast, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal, and more.

Other topics this week include Tidy House coins, territorial gold, Nehemiah Vreeland, Larry Lee, fixed price and auction previews, and medallic art of the Gilded Age.

To learn more about the coins of Haiti, the paper money of Bermuda, French essays, Korean coins at the U.S. Mint, world banknote denominations, El Dato, 1795 coinage, Fred Mayer, Kerry Wetterstrom, the Thirty Years' War, "First Shipment" 1959 Lincoln Cents, the first European banknotes, and placks, hardheads and nonsunts, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

 

 

WORKMAN'S BOOKS SALE 7 SELECTIONS, PART THREE

Lot 14: Anton, William T. & Bruce Kesse. FORGOTTEN COINS OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COLONIES - A MODERN SURVEY OF EARLY ENGLISH AND IRISH COUNTERFEIT COPPERS CIRCULATING IN THE AMERICAS. Krause Publications, Iola. 1993. 4to. 112 pages. original brown pebbled embossed cloth, gilt. Tables. 10 b&w coin plates. English text.Fine. Lot weight: 1 lbs 11oz. Subject(s): United States Coinage.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Anton: Forgotten Coins of the North American Colonies - A Modern Survey of Early English and Irish C (https://www.icollector.com/Anton-Forgotten-Coins-of-the-North-American-Colonies-A-Modern-Survey-of-Early-English-and-Irish-C_i54896549)

Lot 17: Armstrong, Douglas R. PRACTICAL CONSERVATION OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL OBJECTS - A LAYMAN'S GUIDE TO THE STABILIZATION, PRESERVATION, AND REPAIR OF ANTIQUE ARTIFACTS. Signum Ops, Merritt Island. 2012. 4to. iii, 236, ix, (2) pages. original pictorial card covers. Appendices. Bibliography. B&w photo plates. English text. The David Baker Library. Fine. Master conservator Douglas R. Armstrong imparts his many years of first-hand, practical experience in the field of marine artifact conservation within the pages of 'Practical Conservation of Archaeological Objects'. This newly updated version for 2012 includes his methods of cleaning coins recovered from a number of shipwrecks, in particular the inventory of the Chanduy Reef Capitana, and the Consolacion in Ecuador.

This is a manual of proven methods that all collectors, be they archaeologists or treasure hunters, at land or at sea, will find indispensable when restoring and conserving a wide range of objects, ranging from buttons, cannon, sword handles, or glassware, to pieces of eight. The author was the first craftsman to handle many objects hereto untouched by conservators of the day, not the least of which are delicate pistols, one of the first wrought iron guns, the original Tumbaga bars of the Bahamas, and a bronze saker made for King Henry VIII. The book is richly illustrated with before and after photos of these projects and is fully indexed. The technology and tools used are described in great detail. Truly, this is a manual that every conservator needs at hand. Lot weight: 1 lbs 10oz. Subject(s): Artifact Conservation.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Armstrong: Practical Conservation of Archaeological Objects - A Layman's Guide to the Stabilization, (https://www.icollector.com/Armstrong-Practical-Conservation-of-Archaeological-Objects-A-Layman-s-Guide-to-the-Stabilization_i54896552)

Lot 20: Armstrong, T.L. & Tommy Gore. THE RAINBOW CHASERS TRICENTENNIAL YEARBOOK SECOND EDITION. Signum Ops, Merritt Island. 2015. 4to. 241, (7) pages. original pictorial card covers. Second edition. Maps. Appendices. Bibliography. B&w historical, coin and artifact photos throughout. English text. The David Baker Library. Fine. In 1715, the Spanish treasure fleet, bound for home, was passing through the Bahama Channel when a hurricane destroyed all of the ships, save one. More than a thousand lives were lost, and seventeen million pesos in registered specie and bullion went to the bottom. This tragedy occurred along a stretch of shore now celebrated as the Treasure Coast of Florida, so named for the vast bounty of gold and silver, which continues to be found there.

Three centuries later, The Rainbow Chasers Tricentennial Yearbook is a review of that disaster with emphasis on the fleet's salvage over the last six decades. The book contains many first-hand recollections of people involved in the ongoing adventure, more than twenty maps, and over two hundred photos. An analysis of the coastal venue, the ships involved, the storm track, and previously unpublished narratives round out the story. At least two of the 1715 Fleet ships seemingly disappeared without a trace and somewhere in the wreckage a parcel of jewelry, especially crafted for Queen Isabella, has yet to be found. Where is it? The hunt continues! Lot weight: 1 lbs 9oz. Subject(s): Sunken Treasure.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Armstrong: The Rainbow Chasers Tricentennial Yearbook Second Edition (https://www.icollector.com/Armstrong-The-Rainbow-Chasers-Tricentennial-Yearbook-Second-Edition_i54896555)

Lot 25: Arroyo, Carmen & Dale A. Seppa [editor]. COINS OF HAITI 1803 - 1970. Almanzar's Coins of the World, San Antonio. 1970. 12mo. 52, (4) pages. original pictorial card covers. Appendices. B&w photos throughout. English and Spanish text. Fine. This book is a comprehensive price guide to the coinage of Haiti from 1803 through 1970. Lot weight: 0 lbs 3oz. Subject(s): Haitian Coinage.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Arroyo: Coins of Haiti 1803 - 1970 (https://www.icollector.com/Arroyo-Coins-of-Haiti-1803-1970_i54896560)

Lot 26: Aspen, Nelson Page. A HISTORY OF BERMUDA AND ITS PAPER MONEY - STERLING AND DECIMAL. Wm. T. Cooke Publishing inc., Devon. 1980. 8vo. 119, (1) pages. original red leatherette, gilt, jacket. Mapped endpages. Glossary. Color photos throughout. English text. some minor stains on title page else, Fine. This book is an illustrated and descriptive history and guide to the paper money issued in Bermuda beginning with the reign of George V through the current decimal system. It covers descriptive information for each type of note with color photo where possible. Lot weight: 1 lbs 0oz. Subject(s): Bermudian Paper Money.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Aspen: A History of Bermuda and its Paper Money - Sterling and Decimal (https://www.icollector.com/Aspen-A-History-of-Bermuda-and-its-Paper-Money-Sterling-and-Decimal_i54896561)

Lot 33: Bahn, Paul G. [editor]. 100 GREAT ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES. Barnes & Noble Books, New York. 1995. 4to. 256 pages. original blue cloth, lettered in silver, jacket. Bibliography. Maps. B&w and color photos and illustrations throughout. English text. The David Baker Library. Fine. Amazing discoveries such as the tomb of Tutankhamen, the buried city of Pompeii, the cave of Lascaux, and the Terracotta Army may be the headline grabbers, but archaeology is not just about rich burials and treasure, or pharaohs, emperors, and kings. The real thrill of archaeology is the way in which it has unearthed the everyday lives of our ancestors, ordinary people not unlike ourselves. Any given discovery—from a fragment of fossilized bone to a shard of pottery—has the potential to radically alter our picture of the past.

This beautifully illustrated volume presents 100 of the world's greatest archaeological discoveries—from rock art to tattooed ice maidens, from mammoth bone houses to Assyrian palaces, from fossil hominids to writing systems, and from caves to shipwrecks. And with the growing battery of tools and techniques, who knows what will be revealed about our past in the years ahead? Lot weight: 3 lbs 5oz. Subject(s): Archaeological History.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Bahn: 100 Great Archaeological Discoveries (https://www.icollector.com/Bahn-100-Great-Archaeological-Discoveries_i54896568)

Lot 42: Bancroft, Caroline. COLORFUL COLORADO - ITS DRAMATIC HISTORY. Johnson Books, Boulder. 1993. 12mo. 94, (2) pages. original pictorial card covers. Maps. B&w photos throughout. English text. The David Baker Library. Fine. The whole magnificent sweep of Colorado history is told in a sprightly condensation. Lot weight: 0 lbs 6oz. Subject(s): Colorado History.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Bancroft: Colorful Colorado - Its Dramatic History (https://www.icollector.com/Bancroft-Colorful-Colorado-Its-Dramatic-History_i54896577)

Lot 51: Bateson, Donald. SCOTTISH COINS. Shire Publications, Oxford. 1999. 12mo. 32 pages. original pictorial card covers. b&w coin photos throughout. English text. The David Baker Library. Fine. Few people realize that the thistle on the modern British five pence is a reminder of what was once a separate Scottish coinage. King David I was the first Scottish monarch to issue his own coins, in the twelfth century. For over two hundred years, only silver pennies were minted but from the fourteenth century a succession of new types and values appeared, including gold nobles, unicorns, ducats, unites, silver ryals, merks and dollars. Minor coins include billion placks, hardheads and nonsunts as well as copper turners and bawbees. Superb portraits are to be found on the coins of James VI and Charles I. The Scottish coinage was one of endless change and variety, among the most interesting of medieval Europe, and was only bought to an end following the Act of Union in 1707. Lot weight: 0 lbs 3oz. Subject(s): British Coinage.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Bateson: Scottish Coins (https://www.icollector.com/Bateson-Scottish-Coins_i54896586)

Lot 53: Beater, Jack. PIRATES AND BURIED TREASURES ON FLORIDA ISLANDS. Pineapple Press, Palm Beach. 2021. 12mo. iv, 101 pages. original pictorial card covers. Reprint edition. line illustrations throughout. English text. The David Baker Library. Fine. A timeless collection of pirate stories from Florida originally written in the late 1950s, this book includes stories of well-known and lesser known pirates and buccaneers and the treasure they left behind.

From the tale of Gasparilla, the Pirate of Boca Grande, to the tale of the capture of the Mary Anders, these swashbuckling tales of thrilling adventure on the high seas and treasure hunts on land are a delightful part of the history of the Sunshine State. Lot weight: 0 lbs 5oz. Subject(s): Florida Pirate History, Buried Treasure.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Beater: Pirates and Buried Treasures on Florida Islands (https://www.icollector.com/Beater-Pirates-and-Buried-Treasures-on-Florida-Islands_i54896588)

Lot 63: Bischoff, William L. [editor]. THE COINAGE OF EL PERU. The American Numismatic Society, New York. 1989. 8vo. xv, (1), 250 pages. original red cloth, gilt. Tables. Graphs. References. B&w photos throughout. English text. Fine. This book is an anthology of 14 papers presented at the Coinage of the Americas Conference at The American Numismatic Society, New York October 2-30, 1988. The prime focus of each paper being some aspect of the coinage of Peru from the 16th century to the present. Lot weight: 1 lbs 9oz. Subject(s): Peruvian Coinage.

To read the complete lot description, see:
Bischoff: The Coinage of El Peru (https://www.icollector.com/Bischoff-The-Coinage-of-El-Peru_i54896598)

To visit the firm's website:
https://workmansbooks.square.site/

Sale link: https://www.icollector.com/The-David-Baker-Numismatic-and-Treasure-Library-and-other-Consignments-Sale-7_a68681
PDF sale catalog: https://workmansbooks.com/downloads/WB%20Auction%20007%20catalog.pdf
Print catalog: https://www.lulu.com/shop/alan-workman/sale-7-the-david-baker-numismatic-and-treasure-library-and-other-consignments/paperback/product-v8jre6n.html

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
WORKMAN'S BOOKS SALE 7 SELECTIONS (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n48a02.html)
WORKMAN'S BOOKS SALE 7 SELECTIONS, PART TWO (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a03.html)

LANG NUMISMATIC LITERATURE AUCTION 5

The year 2025 starts with a special event for us: Our 5th auction will take place on January 8th, 2025 at 4 p.m. (CET) and will also mark our first auction of the new year. We cordially invite you to participate in this fascinating online auction, which will feature a wide selection of outstanding numismatic literary treasures and bibliophile rarities.

What can you expect?

Our 5th auction includes a careful selection of literature that will make collectors' hearts beat faster. Particularly noteworthy are an extensive number of bibliophile works that will delight lovers of historical literature. The works include not only classic numismatic literature, but also rare books that reflect the knowledge and history of numismatics in a unique way. In addition, you will once again find numerous books on ancient numismatics as well as on the Middle Ages and modern times. This time, the auction catalogs section is very well represented, including beautiful bindings and sought-after collections.

Participation and bidding information:

The auction will be held online on the Auex platform, so you can participate from anywhere in the world. Details on registration and auction conditions can be found on our website. We recommend that you register early to ensure that you can participate in this unique event.

You will also have the opportunity to place pre-bids via the following platforms:

• Sixbid
• Biddr
• Numisbids

We look forward to welcoming you on January 8th, 2025 and are convinced that this auction will be an unforgettable experience for every collector in the field of numismatics and bibliophilia.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you a magical Christmas season and look forward to welcoming you again as literature lovers in the New Year.

For more information, or to bid, see:
https://auktionen.numismatisches-antiquariat.de/Auktion/Onlinekatalog?intAuktionsId=1563

 

NEW BOOK: LE FRANC - CHARLES X

Laurent writes:

Philippe Théret and Michel Taillard supported by the associations ADF (Friends of the Franc) and ADAN (Friends of Numismatic Authors) have worked to provide collectors and professionals with new tools to approach the fascinating field of French essays of the period 1803 to 1870. That is to say from the creation of the Germinal Franc under Napoleon Bonaparte to the fall of Napoleon III.

The field of essays is wide: coin design contest essays, design trials, splashers, trial strikes, patterns, branch mint trials, political propaganda essay strikes (Napoleon II, Henri V...), presentation strikes for dignitaries, proof strikes, restrikes for collectors, Mint Visit strikes (Paris mint and branch mints)...

A collection of six volumes (one per period) are in preparation since mid 2021.

The most important public institutions have collaborated in the realization of these works:

• The Monnaie de Paris opened the doors of its cabinet (4,500 photos taken) but also those of the redzone of the Pessac mint, where the museum's monetary tools are kept (12,000 photos taken);
• The BnF (Bibliothèque Nationale de France) allowed us to study and photograph their prestigious 19th century period, numismatic collections (5,000 photos taken);
• The Carnavalet Museum and its most precious numismatic collection (2,500 photos taken);
• The cabinet of the Bibliothèque Royale de Belgique.

It is clear that public collections contributed very largely to the census to produce the various works. But it would nevertheless be simplistic to only take these sources into account. These collections, as admirable as they are, do not have all the different essays. The catalogs of the different sales over time have made it possible not only to refine this inventory but also to assess the frequencies of appearance, rarities, prices and their evolution.

In addition to these important contributions, 160,000 pages of archives have been digitized over the past 20 years. This has allowed to better understand the essays and in many cases the manufacturing figures!

For this series of books, the structure of each book will remain the same: the first part will be dedicated to the archives, a second part dedicated to the census catalog (with price quotes) and finally a third part, the Gallery, with full page photo plates.

The first volume covering the period of Napoleon I, from 1803 to 1815 was released in november 2023 (see E-Sylum Volume 26, Number 48, November 26, 2023). The second volume covering the period of Louis XVIII, from 1814 to 1824 was released in june 2024 and the third volume covering the period of Charles X, from 1824 to 1830 in november 2024 (Editor : cgb.fr).

To order the standard versions:

https://www.cgbfr.com/le-franc-les-essais-les-archives-napoleon-ier-1803-1815-theret-philippe-taillard-michel,lf27,a.html

https://www.cgbfr.com/le-franc-les-essais-les-archives-louis-xviii-1814-1824-theret-philippe-taillard-michel,lf28,a.html

https://www.cgbfr.com/le-franc-les-essais-les-archives-charles-x-1824-1830-theret-philippe-taillard-michel,lf29,a.html

For more information about the content of the books or to order the deluxe versions, contact : essais@amisdufranc.org As Laurent Schmitt (President of ADAN) will be present at NYINC, he can bring copies of deluxe versions ordered in advance (before January 10th ) thereby avoiding shipping costs for buyers who will collect the books at the convention.

Philippe Théret adds:

Laurent Schmitt writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
NEW BOOK: LE FRANC - NAPOLEON I (https://www.coinbooks.org/v26/esylum_v26n48a04.html)
NEW BOOK: LE FRANC - CHARLES X (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n29a07.html)

 

NEW BOOK: KOREAN COINS AT THE U.S. MINT

Over this last year I finished an online book —a more comprehensive research effort on South Korea's first circulation coins using primary documents from the U.S. Mint's File on South Korea, now located at the U.S. National Archives at College Park, Maryland. These coins, denominated in South Korea's "Hwan" currency, were produced at the Philadelphia Mint between 1959 and 1962. This book is a much more in-depth and comprehensive exploration of this Korean coining contract with the U.S. Mint than is found in my chapter on these same coins in Chapter 4 of my first book, South Korean Coins in the Era of Development.

This book also features some later proposed coining contracts in the 1960s that South Korea tendered to the U.S. Mint, but later abandoned. These proposed coin projects are the some of the first indications of the direction that South Korea's national coinage was about to take in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This work also reveals the amount of influence that the U.S. Mint's advice (particularly that of Assistant Director Frank Leland Howard) had on the South Korean government's later decisions to produce its own coinage.

The link to this book, free to read online, is here:
https://dokdo-research.com/koreancoinsattheusmint.html

EDWARD VIII RICHARD LOBEL COLLECTION CATALOGUES

Coincraft – Britain's Coin Shop, has hired two PhD's to catalogue the Richard Lobel Collection of Edward VIII material. Dr Lucia Scigliano and Dr Aalia Ahmed have agreed to take on the mammoth task, which they hope will be completed in about a year's time. The project is expected to culminate in a three or four volume set of catalogues of the collection.

The pair previously worked with The Royal Philatelic Society on co-editing the Clash of Empires: The 1879 Anglo-Zulu War Exhibition Catalogue.

Richard Lobel has spent more than 50 years collecting Edward VIII memorabilia and his collection is considered the second finest in the world. The finest is of course, The Royal Family's. Richard has been a secret buyer at auctions and from specialist dealers in ephemera over the years. In an article in The Antique Trade Gazette Richard Falkiner once questioned the strength of Edward VIII material, because most of two large auctions were bought by only one buyer, that buyer was Richard Lobel.

The collection starts with the birth announcement of Prince Edward hand written by his father (George V) and the newspaper where it was published in 1894. It also contains the King's day book for 1936, where his valet wrote ‘Finis' on the day Edward Abdicated. The archives of the chateau in France, where the Duke and Duchess of Windsor were married, was purchased in its entirety. Including 63 handwritten letters from the Duchess of Windsor. The collection contains thousands of pieces, with many of the items unique and never seen before.

The section of medallic portraits and medals is considered to be the finest in the world. Mr. Lobel was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for owning the only partial set of Edward VIII British coins. He and his company have been listed 14 times in the Guinness Book of World Records.

It is hoped that the catalogues will bring more light to an important, yet turbulent period in British history. Even today, Edward is never far from the pages of the National Press. When important pieces are discovered, Mr. Lobel is still adding them to his collection, even while the catalogues are being prepared. It is hoped that the collection will stay together.

For more information contact: info@coincraft.com

To read earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
SUBSCRIBER PROFILE: RICHARD LOBEL OF COINCRAFT (https://www.coinbooks.org/v25/esylum_v25n12a17.html)
RICHARD LOBEL INTERVIEW PART SIX (https://www.coinbooks.org/v26/esylum_v26n24a21.html)

NEW BOOK: DENOMINATIONS OF WORLD BANKNOTES

I have just finished compiling my 'Collection of Different Denominations of World Banknotes'.

The smallest denomination is a 1 Cent i.e. 0.01 Dollar and the largest denomination is of 100 Trillion Dollars i.e. 14 zeros on 1.

Many odd denomination banknotes like 7, 22, 45, 90, etc. have been issued by different countries.

You can view it at https://foxly.link/BanknotesDifferentDenominations

I will appreciate any feedback, comments & information related to any missing denominations.

 

To read the complete book, see:
https://foxly.link/BanknotesDifferentDenominations

 

BANKNOTE BOOK CAPE VERDE CHAPTER PUBLISHED

To read the complete article, see:
Cape Verde chapter now complete (https://banknotenews.com/?p=45524)

GREYSHEET LAUNCHES RED BOOK PODCAST

Greysheet is excited to announce the launch of The Red Book Podcast, a new online series hosted by John Feigenbaum, Publisher and President/CEO of Whitman Brands, and Jeff Garrett, Editor and President of Mid-American Rare Coin Galleries. The podcast delves into the rich history, fascinating stories, and exciting updates surrounding the legendary A Guide Book of United States Coins, affectionately known as the "Red Book" for its distinctive cover.

The 2026 edition of the Red Book, set for release in Spring 2025, will mark the 79th edition of this beloved numismatic classic. The upcoming edition features a complete reimagining with a redesigned cover, larger format, more than 12,000 listings, updated pricing by the Greysheet team, and more.

Publisher John Feigenbaum shared his enthusiasm, saying, "The Red Book has an endless number of stories and angles to explore. This podcast gives us a unique opportunity to share those stories and connect with the hobby in a fresh way."

The first two episodes of The Red Book Podcast are now available on YouTube and have received overwhelmingly positive feedback, boasting 100% approval in the "likes" department. In Episode 1, the hosts introduce the 2026 edition and discuss its enhancements, while Episode 2 goes further into the nuts and bolts, diving deeper into pricing updates and details like designations for full band dimes and full head quarters.

Editor Jeff Garrett added, "The Red Book is the bible of the rare coin industry, and this podcast allows us to bring its legacy to life. Our goal is to explore a virtually limitless range of topics and invite special guests to share their stories and expertise. It's an exciting project that truly celebrates numismatics."

The first two episodes of The Red Book Podcast are available now on the Greysheet YouTube channel. Collectors and enthusiasts are encouraged to listen, comment, and subscribe to stay informed about future episodes and updates.

Red Book Podcast – Episode 1
https://youtu.be/k6RdH5h5N0Y

Red Book Podcast – Episode 2
https://youtu.be/orr8MqAwjA0

The Greysheet and Red Book publications are flagship products of Whitman Brands, serving as essential resources for the numismatic community.

About Whitman Brands™

Formed from the 2023 merger of the numismatic publishing powerhouses of CDN and Whitman, Whitman Brands combines the revered titles of Red Book, Blue Book, 100 Greatest, and Cherrypicker's Guides, plus an expansive line of folders, albums, and supplies that have long dominated the retail landscape, with the pricing and data-rich expertise of Greysheet, Greensheet, CPG, CDN Exchange, and The Banknote Book.

Whitman Brands offers a comprehensive and rich coverage of collectibles, literature, cataloging, and pricing, which embraces the heritage of numismatics and seeks to enrich the lives of all coin and paper-money enthusiasts. As North America's leading producer of coin and currency shows, Whitman Expos and its three industry-leading events in Baltimore further enhance the brand portfolio and expand the company's national reach.

EL DATO CELEBRATES TENTH ANNIVERSARY

I am writing to inform you that this month marks the 10th anniversary of the launch of the website (or blog) "El Dato" ("The Fact," in English), which was established in 2014 and has become the most significant online resource dedicated exclusively to Mexican currency. Furthermore, I would like to present a summary of the website's principal milestones.

• The website features over 50 articles on all historical periods.
• Additionally, there are over 200 bibliographic references.
• Over 100 countries access the site annually, with Mexico, the United States, and Spain representing the top three countries of origin.
• We are pleased to offer over 30 books, essays, and articles free for download.
• The articles published on this site have been acknowledged by numerous numismatic organizations.

I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to the more than one million users who have accessed the website over the past decade.

To visit the website, see:
https://eldatonumismatico.com/

TEICHMAN DEVELOPS TERRITORIAL GOLD CENSES

Saul Teichman Develops Territorial Gold Censes

Saul Teichman recently contributed to Newman Portal a set of 16 monographs detailing significant pieces in the U.S. territorial gold series. Although not 100% comprehensive, these papers serve to provide census and pedigree data for hundreds of noteworthy examples. Saul is a relentless researcher, pulling information from little-known corners of the Internet and surveying important institutional collections. While auction sites doing a great job of accumulating data on pieces sold publicly, Saul's work expands this with considerable detail that is not market-based

Image: Mormon $10, PCGS XF40, private collection.

Saul adds:

Link to U.S. Territorial Gold Photo Files on Newman Portal:
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/archivedetail/554268

VIDEO: ASSEMBLING A 1795 YEAR SET

Collector and EAC member Bill Jones discusses what is involved in collecting the coins of 1795. He explains the background of the economy of the times and that many of the coins from that year were actually struck in other years.

Speaker(s): William Jones.

To watch the complete video, see:
Assembling a 1795 Year Set (https://youtu.be/1jN93foTBBQ)

NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: DECEMBER 15, 2024

Gilt Silver Nobel Nominating Medal
Steve Feller writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
NUMISMAGRAM MEDAL SELECTIONS: DECEMBER 8, 2024 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a17.html)

Gobrecht Dollar Restrike Image

Craig Scholley writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
ANS AT GOBRECHT GRAVESTONE DEDICATION (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a12.html)

Other ANA Headquarters Options?
Justin Perrault writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
THE ANA CONSIDERED OMAHA FOR ITS HOME (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a15.html)

Fred Mayer's Mentorship
Kerry Wetterstrom writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
DR. LAWRENCE LEE INTERVIEW, PART FOUR (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a16.html)

What's Thicker? M&M or Penny Copper Coating?
Wayne Pearson writes:

Brutus Coin Struck, Not Cast
This Smithsonian article passed along by David Gladfelter states:

David asks:

Shanna writes:

To read the complete article, see:
A Rare Coin Depicting Brutus, Caesar's Infamous Assassin, Sells for $2 Million (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-rare-coin-depicting-brutus-caesars-infamous-assassin-sells-for-2-million-180985623/)

On the Chicago Manual of Style, 18th Ed.
David Gladfelter writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
REVIEW: CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE, 18TH ED. (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a25.html)

What Do All Y'All Think?
The new Chicago Manual of Style says

Bill Eckberg writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
REVIEW: CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE, 18TH ED. (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a25.html)

TIDY HOUSE COINS, PART TWO

Indian Head cents were packaged into specially marked boxes of Dexol bleach in January and February 1965, and again in September and October 1966. Two distinct types of packages were used.

This type of package was used in 1965. The cent was adhered to the card and placed in 1 3/4 x 2 3/4 inch plain white envelope before it was packaged in the box of bleach. Enlarged to show detail. Actual size is 1 3/4 X 2 3/8 inches. Courtesy of Ed Bishop.

To read earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
QUERY: TIDY HOUSE PRODUCTS AND PROMOTIONAL COINS INFORMATION SOUGHT (https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v13n37a14.html)
BEWARE THE COIN SWAP TRICK (https://www.coinbooks.org/v21/esylum_v21n07a21.html)
Tidy House coins, Part One (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a11.html)

VOCABULARY TERM: QUANTITY STRUCK

Quantity Struck. Mintage; the number of like specimens struck and available to be issued to the public. This number is important to collectors (to determine value determined by supply). But the quantity struck must be analyzed in many ways: how does it differ from quantity issued and from quantity preserved, both will influence supply, as how many were melted before issuance, were any recalled, were any destroyed in any way. (Destruction ranges from shipwrecks to insurgency, political upheaval to speculation, like the attempted corner of the world's supply of silver in 1980 with vast melting.) Numismatists are at the mercy of mint officials to release quantity struck figures but they must analyze the figures themselves for more meaningful knowledge.

If you know the quantity struck and have an estimate of existing specimens you may determine the survival ratio – quantity struck divided by the quantity that has survived. This is a more meaningful number than quantity struck. See mintage.

To read the complete entry on the Newman Numismatic Portal, see:
Quantity Struck (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/dictionarydetail/516575)

NEHEMIAH VREELAND (1856-1945)

This week I offer another in my series of articles about people who exhibited their coin collection to the public at a local bank. The subject was suggested by Julia Casey.

Nehemiah Vreeland was a lifelong resident of Paterson, New Jersey, and born there on February 7, 1856. He was the son of John Elias Vreeland (1831-1912) and Ann Louisa Post (1832-1919). He had an unusual name, possibly unique, and was known as Jim.

His maternal line was through the Post family and he wrote a history of the Paterson branch. The Vreeland and Post families settled in America in the 1600's. His ancestry was Dutch and Nehemiah was an active member of the Holland Society of New York. He was elected vice president in 1921.

He began collecting coins at the age of twelve.

On June 13, 1883, he married Louisa Franziska Klein (1858-1943). They had one son who became an architect.

His first job was with E & H Clark Hardware Store and he took over that business in 1899. Just past midnight on February 8, 1902, the Great Paterson Fire broke out in the local trolley car sheds. The fire burned all day and destroyed 459 buildings, including City Hall, the Free Public Library, and Clark's Hardware Store on the corner of Main and Ellison Streets.

He moved on to work for the Hamilton Trust Company and represented various local banks. He was also affiliated with the Manhattan Shirt factory.

He joined the ANA in 1904 as member 617. He contributed an article on "Ring Money" to The Numismatist for September 1915 and "Notes on the Coinage of Greenland and Iceland" for February 1916.

In 1909, he presented a paper to the British Numismatic Society on "Wampum: The Native Substitute for Currency in North America," published in The British Numismatic Journal for 1910. This article was reprinted in The Numismatist for September 1914.

In December 1912, Vreeland was elected an associate member of the American Numismatic Society.

Vreeland acted as a bank messenger carrying funds and securities from Paterson to Manhattan. On Monday, January 4, 1915, he was attacked on Thames Street in the New York banking district while he was carrying a parcel with $20,000 in cash in his right hand and securities in his left hand. Two men approached him, and one of them hit him and rubbed red pepper in his face, causing a temporary loss of sight. As the man tugged on the parcel in his right hand, Vreeland kicked at the robber. The commotion drew a small crowd of spectators, and the two assailants fled. He carried a pistol, but both hands were holding the parcels. He also could not see well enough to aim at a target.

Vreeland was not so lucky on March 7, 1925. He and another employee were delivering a leather bag with $17,999 from the First National Bank in Paterson to the Manhattan Shirt factory for their payroll. They were attacked by three men who struck Vreeland on the head and knocked him down. Two of the robbers escaped in a touring car, while a third tripped and fell as the car drove off. He was chased down by a mob of spectators who held him for police. In May, two of the robbers were convicted and sentenced for twelve to eighteen years in prison.

He sold much of his collection to Chapman in 1924. He kept the odd and curious coins and exhibited them locally.

Another hobby was making and accumulating fine old wine and his cellar had thousands of bottles.

Vreeland had a love of music and was an organist for the Market Street, Main Street, and Grace Methodist Churches.

He died at the home of his son in Paterson, New Jersey, on May 23, 1945, and is buried in Cedar Lawn Cemetery in Paterson. There are 125 people named Vreeland buried there.

Vreeland became known as a numismatic expert in Paterson, partially because of his public exhibits of coins. In July of 1901, while still in the hardware business, he had an exhibit in the window of Elliot's jewelry store. Featured was a piece of Swedish plate money of Frederick I dated 1724. This was the four daler denomination weighing 6.75 pounds, ten inches square, and a quarter inch thick. Vreeland had bought it in a New York auction.

On May 4, 1911, there was a major exhibit of coins at the Second National Bank of Paterson with fifteen hundred people attending. This was from the collection of Farran Zerbe. This exhibit was supplemented by an exhibit of gold coins in the director's office, provided by Nehemiah Vreeland.

Coins from Vreeland were shown at the Second National Bank on Market Street for four days September 19-22, 1923. The exhibit was described as "The product of fifty years of study, correspondence to the far corners of the earth, pulling of strings in foreign courts, friendship with diplomats, travelers and missionaries, all ranged within the confines of three cabinets." The collection was valued at more than $50,000, with Vreeland stating that his cost exceeded $25,000.

Vreeland donated a Connecticut lottery ticket, dated 1753, to the Paterson Museum. It was on display there in March of 1927. The lottery was for the benefit of the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University.

It was described as "One of the notable coin collections of the world" when his collection was shown at the Hamilton Trust Company building in Paterson. It was shown for four days, June 7-10, 1927. One coin mentioned was a fifty-tael silver coin of China weighing sixty ounces.

Another exhibit was in the window of the Hamilton Trust Company in 1928. These were coins recently struck in Palestine, Great Britain, Italy, and Chile.

In 1929, he showed a coin of King Nicholas I of Montenegro in a Paterson Savings Bank window. Another exhibit showed coinage of the Irish Free State.

An exhibit was placed at the Hobart Art Gallery in the Paterson Free Public Library in 1930. The owner was described as "nationally known for his rare coins." Along with what would currently be called odd and curious coins was a Lincoln "penny" with the Lord's prayer engraved on the reverse.

In 1931, he showed an exhibit of Papal coins in the window of the Hamilton Trust building.

In 1935, he exhibited the new Texas and Daniel Boone commemorative half dollars in the window of the Hamilton Trust building.

On February 6, 1936, Vreeland presented an exhibit to the Paterson Rotary at the Y.M.C.A. At the time, Nehemiah's son, Frederick K. Vreeland, was president of the Rotary. His remaining collection was sold in 1942.

A description of highlights from the Vreeland collection was included in History and Genealogy of the Vreeland Family by Nicholas Garretson Vreeland (1909).

Nehemiah Vreeland is an example of a collector who was prominent locally, generous in sharing his collection and with a little exposure on the national level. He is largely forgotten because there is no surviving record of his collection through an auction or other catalog.

DR. LAWRENCE LEE INTERVIEW, PART FIVE

GREG BENNICK: You'd mentioned in your answer, of course, being a private curator. I was wondering if you'd talk about - and this is almost more from a philosophical standpoint - tell me about the ethical considerations which arise when combining the roles of collector, dealer, and curator. Could you explain the differences between those three roles?

DR. LAWRENCE LEE: Well, I alluded to it earlier in that I thought genetics causes collectors and all collectors have within them a desire to organize and to care for these objects. So that's what the professional curator does. A collector is someone on the road to becoming a museum curator; he just privately curates his own collection.

A museum curator cares for somebody else's collection. Technically the same ethics that apply to the museum curator, you would want to apply to your own collection. You would want to have a collecting philosophy, for instance. You can't collect every coin out there. You just can't. You have to be focused and you have to decide what do I really want? What am I studying? What is the end goal?

Every single museum in America could potentially have coins in it and also people who give them coins all the time, but they ultimately might not need them. Perhaps they're not specifically a coin museum. It's not their function or in their mission statement. Their function is the history of Washington County or the history of Fort Wayne or whatever.

In that case, it would be more important to have the local trade tokens from your geographic region in there and you should have a much stronger collection of the trade tokens from your city than showcasing random steel pennies simply because somebody thought they were important and gave them to you.

GREG BENNICK: Speaking to different folks for this interview series people have alluded to the conflict which can develop between being a curator, and if you can still be a collector? Or if you're a collector, can you desire to be a dealer if your goal is to sell things, not keep them, like a collector does.

DR. LAWRENCE LEE: It is an interesting thing. And the ethics are a little mushy. I don't consider myself a coin dealer, but I sell coins and I buy coins. In the case of curation though, whosever collection I'm caring for, and this is the difference: I'm ethically bound to that collection. My point is that the individual collector should have the same approaches. Thoughts on deaccession, or how do you get rid of your extras? Organization and a system for that. I always want to organize every single coin.

GREG BENNICK: Well, I had one more question for you. I was wondering if you could tell us about the Henderson Supper Club or if this is a situation where if you tell me, since it's seemingly top secret, that you'd then have to kill me.

DR. LAWRENCE LEE: What you're referring to is the Bill Henderson Supper Club. and Bill Henderson was the mayor of Colorado Springs who was instrumental in getting the ANA to move there. This club meets once a month at a nice restaurant where they have a private room. First there's the libations and then there's the dinner. And then there's show and tell, which alternates each month with a different moderator.

The subjects for show and tell are nothing very specific. It'll be something generic like "wings over America" or something. And as is often true at clubs there's a hundred different interpretations. Everyone gets five minutes to present their pieces. It's semi-secret, by invitation only, with the only rule being, no rules.

Basically, the Henderson Club draws its membership from Front Range, which is the area including Boulder, Denver, and Colorado Springs. They keep the membership at 18 members. If someone drops off or drops dead, they nominate a new member and that person goes through a nominating process. All of the current members are aware of the E-Sylum and the Newman Numismatic Portal. Ed Rochette was a longtime member. He was the longtime director of the ANA, and a prolific author. George Fisher taught the class on Chinese coins for many years at the ANA summer seminar. Bill Spangler, who literally wrote the book on Turkoman coins. Dick Horst and Larry Johnson had Gresham's Law, so they had great tokens and medals.

These people might all be familiar and they all were members of the Henderson Supper Club. I'm honored to be one of their members. It has been one of the highlights of my career.

There's one other thing I want to add if I could would be my plans for future research.

GREG BENNICK: Yes. Please do. Tell us.

DR. LAWRENCE LEE: I have four projects going on. One is to finish the Colorado book as there's so much on Colorado gold coins I haven't yet published and that is new to the field. This would be in conjunction with the Frederick Mayer collection. I'd like to still do that.

My current interest is Indian peace medals and I am working in conjunction with the Denver Museum. We think we have the earliest Indian peace medal issued in the northern hemisphere. It is dated 1655. That is way, way, way, way, way early.

Then we also have a third project I'm doing. There's an "al merito" Indian peace medal that is ascribed to an archaeological dig in Nebraska. This single site in Nebraska was the source of seven different Indian peace medals, which to my knowledge is the highest number of Indian peace medals from any single site. But one medal that's traditionally ascribed to this site, a Spanish "for merit" or "al merito" medal, didn't come from that site at all, despite all the literature. It's more likely, like the Walton nickel, sitting in a home in a small town in Nebraska waiting to be discovered. That's a good story.

My last project is that I am writing my third book, this on Numismatic Theology. What is numismatic theology, pray tell? You'll have to read the book to find out, but it is basically an extension of the idea of "Biblical coins."

GREG BENNICK: This interview has been great. We covered so many ideas and aspects of collecting and curation which don't often make it to the forefront. I'm really happy with it. If readers are interested in this interview, please check out my others. What makes this interview series really fascinating to me is that each of the people I've talked to comes to numismatics with a different perspective, a different philosophy, a different idea, and certainly a different background. There's really something here for everyone to discover.

As more of these interviews go up, be sure to check the Newman Numismatic Portal and the page they have specified for the interview series. You're going to find a breadth of information and different perspectives on numismatics and truly fascinating stories of the people involved in it all. I really appreciate your time today, Larry. This has been fun.

DR. LAWRENCE LEE: Thank you, Greg. I really appreciate you doing this series. It's another benefit of Eric's long-term thinking and I am sure he too would appreciate what you're doing.

INTERVIEWERS NOTE: I highly recommend, for anyone interested in the concept of numismatic archeology or how coins can inform us about the past, Dr. Lee's most excellent and award-winning book, The Coins of Fort Atkinson: A Study in Numismatic Archeology. The 2nd edition, published in 2015, is very interesting and will certainly offer a new perspective as you explore its ideas and analysis of history. You can read more about the book through the E-Sylum review here: https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v18n10a04.html.

About the Interviewer
Greg Bennick (www.gregbennick.com) is a keynote speaker and long time coin collector with a focus on major mint error coins and US counterstamps. He is on the board of both CONECA and TAMS and enjoys having in-depth conversations with prominent numismatists from all areas of the hobby. Have ideas for other interviewees? Contact him anytime on the web or via instagram @minterrors.

NOTE: The interview was conducted in parts via phone, so no video exists, and editing together audio would have been choppy sounding at best. This transcript is an accurate representation of the whole interview experience. Thank you for reading! -GB

To read the full transcript on the Newman Numismatic Portal, see:
Lawrence Lee Interview (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/642577)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
DR. LAWRENCE LEE INTERVIEW, PART ONE (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n46a14.html)
DR. LAWRENCE LEE INTERVIEW, PART TWO (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n47a13.html)
DR. LAWRENCE LEE INTERVIEW, PART THREE (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n48a17.html)
DR. LAWRENCE LEE INTERVIEW, PART FOUR (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a16.html)

ATLAS NUMISMATICS SELECTIONS: DECEMBER 15, 2024

1080945 | BOLIVIA. 1837-PTS LM AV 8 Scudos. NGC MS62+. Potosi. Mountains with llama at left, sheaf at right, sun above and stars below / Uniformed bust right. KM 99; Fr.-21.

$9,500

To read the complete item description, see:
Lustrous Bolivia 8 Scudos (https://atlasnumismatics.com/1080945/)

1081154 | FRANCE. Napoleon I. 1812-Dated AV Medal of 20 Ducats Weight. NGC MS61. By Andrieu. 40mm. 69.42gm. NAPOLEON - EMP. ET ROI. Laureate bust, right; signed on truncation / EXPOSITION/ AU/ SALON DE 1812 / Mr GEORGES HIRN/ DE COLMAR/ PEINTRE. Engraved inscription within wreath. Prize medal for the Paris Salon of 1812 awarded to the still life painter from Colmar, Jean-Georges Hirn (1777-1839).

$33,500

To read the complete item description, see:
Paris Art Salon of 1812 (https://atlasnumismatics.com/1081154/)

1079889 | GERMAN STATES. Eichstatt. Joseph von Stubenberg. (Bishop, 1790-1802). 1796 CD AR Thaler. NGC MS65+. 28gm. Bust right / Date in chronogram. KM 96; Dav.-2213; Cahn 149.

$5,950

To read the complete item description, see:
Superb Eichstatt Thaler (https://atlasnumismatics.com/1079889/)

1080561 | GERMAN STATES. Saxony-Anhalt, Harz. 1718 H.H AR Baptismal Taler. NGC AU53. By Heinrich Horst. Zellerfeld mint. St. John baptizing Christ in the river Jordan /Ten-line biblical inscription. Dav.-2935; Goppel 1131; Katsouros-9. Beautifully toned.

$985

To read the complete item description, see:
Beautifully Toned Baptismal Thaler (https://atlasnumismatics.com/1080561/)

1080622 | GREAT BRITAIN. George III. (King, 1760-1820). 1790 AR Pattern Sixpence. NGC MS66. By Jean-Pierre Droz. Edge: Straight grained. 2.63gm. Crowned GR cypher in wreath / Britannia seated facing left. cf. ESC-2219 (Prev. cf ESC-1645); Unlisted in Spink (SCBC).

$2,695

To read the complete item description, see:
Lovely Pattern Sixpence (https://atlasnumismatics.com/1080622/)

1080756 | NETHERLANDS. Utrecht. 1764 AR 6 Stuivers, Scheepjesschelling. PCGS MS65. By Joh. E. Novisadi(Mintmaster) and Willem Marmé (Engraver). 4.93gm. MO : NO : ARG : ORDIN : TRAIECT ·. Crowned arms of Utrecht divides value, date above /CONCORDIA RESPARVÆ CRESCUNT ·. Sailing ship. KM 101.1; Purmer/van der Wiel Ut 84; CNM 2.43.137.

$2,695

To read the complete item description, see:
Gem Utrecht 6 Stuivers (https://atlasnumismatics.com/1080756/)

KUENKER AUCTION SALE 418, PART ONE

Künker, Osnabrück
Auction 418
Berlin, 29 January 2025

Künker to Kick Off the Numismatic Year with a Bang

701 lots with a total estimate of 10 million euros: anyone who can do the math knows what that means. Künker presents its flagship sale, which – as always – will be held in the context of the World Money Fair. The highlights of several collections will be sold at this auction. Look forward to rarities from the time of the Thirty Years' War and from the world of medals. The spectrum ranges from a portrait denarius of Charlemagne to gold multiples and gnadenpfennigs. No matter what you collect, the catalog is well worth a look – even if you cannot afford to purchase all these treasures. Of course, the estimates reflect the importance of these pieces and are therefore mostly in the four-figure range. Other estimates are in the three-, five-, and six-figure range.

But no matter your budget, if you love coins, you will surely be delighted to see such rare pieces in such perfect quality!

Minted History of the Thirty Years' War and the Peace of Westphalia

The auction begins with the second part of the collection of a German manufacturer and history enthusiast comprising coins and medals from the time of the Thirty Years' War. The first part of this collection was successfully auctioned by Künker on 23 September 2024 as part of auction 410. The 436 lots had an estimate of 4.25 million euros and sold for 7.5 million euros. This did not come as a surprise to connoisseurs: gold coins and multiple talers of perfect quality are currently fetching record prices. It would therefore not be surprising, if the top pieces of this collection, which will now be offered in the second part, generated considerably more than their estimate of 3.3 million euros. Experts will appreciate the many rarities, the multiple talers and multiple ducats! Any writer tasked with selecting individual pieces to highlight in an auction preview will be spoilt for choice! But allow me to make things easier and let a few images speak for themselves.

Please note that, unlike previous years, the auction will not take place on the Thursday before the World Money Fair, but on the Wednesday, 29 January 2025!

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.

THE BENDING WILLOW TREE

The Bending Willow Tree

In 1627, Landgrave William V took over the rule of Hesse-Kassel. His father Moritz had cared for books more than for the economy and ended up ruining the country. The new landgrave was faced with a mountain of debt and that at a time when large parts of his territories were occupied by enemy troops. William saw himself confronted with a sheer abundance of problems, which he intended to solve one by one, not with violence but with reason and diplomacy.

And it is precisely this situation that the emblem on the coin's reverse describes, a willow tree bending with the wind in a storm. This illustration was very important to the landgrave of Hesse. It represents his take on the situation. We are dealing with an emblem here, a popular means of pictorially representing a personal mind-set in the early modern period.

William V wanted to spread his message among as many people as possible. That is why willow tree issues were produced in many different denominations: as talers, multiple talers, fractional pieces, as ducats, multiple ducats and guldens. The 10-ducat piece offered on 29 January 2025 by Künker in auction 418 had been unpublished until it was first cataloged for Künker's auction 279 on 23 June 2016. By now this gold coin has been added to the "Friedberg", but it is still the only known specimen in private hands.

What Is an Emblem?

In the early modern period, an emblem was a sort of picture puzzle that could only be solved with the necessary educational background. While motto and image always belonged with interpretive verses, in most cases there was no room for the verses so that the observer needed all of his knowledge to interpret the depiction.

An educated contemporary of William would have been immediately reminded of an emblem entitled "Better bend than break" that had been published in a book by Adrian de Jonge in 1565. The illustration shows a broken tree while the slight reed next to it successfully resists the wind by bending with it. The accompanying explanation in Latin reads, in translation: "The mighty Boreas in a terrible storm overthrows the oaks trying to withstand him; but the reed stands unmoved and unbroken, despising him. He who is patient wins by evading him who is angry."

William had not simply copied the emblem but adapted it to his purposes. After all, he did not want to be associated with reed because, in the Old and New Testaments, this plant symbolized apostasy. For a devout Calvinist, this was an absolute no-no. So William needed another plant with positive connotations that could bend with the wind. In the 17th century, the willow tree was the obvious choice.

At the beginning of the early modern period, the willow was a common crop tree whose trunk produced new rods every year. In a world without plastic and affordable rope, these rods played an important role. Willow rods were used to weave baskets, built fences and tie plants to poles. Wickerwork was even used as scaffolding in timber frame constructions. The fertile and versatile willow was therefore a plant with which the Calvinist was happy to associate himself.

William V not only replaced the tree, but also enriched the image with a reference to God, whose name appears in the sun. He thus placed himself under God's protection and emphasized this with the new (Latin) motto: God willing, my humble self will be elevated by him. William V thus presented himself as a believing Calvinist, hoping that by God's grace he would be given the strength to bend and thus overcome adversity.

It has sometimes been claimed that the die cutter did not know much about palms and created a willow instead of a palm tree. Nothing could be further from the truth. Every artist had his lexicons and his pattern books that were consulted when designing a new coin motif. And that was only if the educated client had not already done the work for him. Coin motifs were a matter for the top authority. For the sovereign, they were a means of displaying education. And William V was highly educated. He was a member of the Fruitbearing Society, the first German society of scholars, modelled on the Italian example and counting numerous aristocrats among its ranks.

If we needed to prove that early modern artists were well capable of depicting palm trees, it would be enough to take a look at the escutcheon of the Fruitbearing Society. By the way, it is yet another emblem. Its motto is: "Alles zu Nutzen" (to use everything). The depicted coconut palm is still known today for the fact that you can use all of its parts. The accompanying verses, which can be found in other sources, read (in translation): "The name fruitbearing so that each and every one, who joins our ranks or intends to do so, try his very best, … to bear fruit."

When studying early modern coins, we have to re-learn a language that we are no longer familiar with. We have to rediscover the artful language of emblems. Fortunately the dictionaries of this language have been preserved for us and are easily accessible in new editions with comprehensive indices. It is worth browsing them to understand and interpret pictures that an educated person in the early modern period could easily decipher.

STACK'S BOWERS NOVEMBER 2024 SELECTIONS

1839 Pattern Half Dollar. Judd-96 Restrike, Pollock-104. Rarity-8. Copper. Reeded Edge. Proof-64 BN (PCGS). CMQ. The Backward Head obverse of Judd-96 was originally used to strike the Judd-93 (silver) and Judd-94 (copper) patterns with the Small Letters reverse. The Judd-95 (silver) and Judd-96 (copper) impressions with the Medium Letters reverse are restrikes prepared expressly for sale to contemporary collectors. The Medium Letters reverse was also used with other 1838- and 1839-dated obverse dies for this purpose. With 152 edge reeds, these restrikes match the count seen on regular issue Liberty Seated half dollars of 1861 to 1871, the uspatterns.com website stating, "We suspect the actual date [of production for the restrikes] is closer to the latter." Significantly, both dies show areas of considerable rust, more so on the reverse.

The Backward Head, Medium Letters restrike half dollar is a landmark numismatic rarity. The uspatterns.com website traces only three examples of Judd-96 in copper.

Its restrike counterpart in silver, Judd-95, is even rarer with only two known: the Garrett-Simpson specimen (PCGS Proof-66) and the 1995 ANA coin (PCGS Proof-65).

This sale represents our first offering for this die pairing since we (Bowers and Merena) sold this same Judd-96 Restrike copper specimen in May 1999 as part of the fabulous Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection. The style of Liberty's portrait and the Medium Letters reverse link it to the regular issue 1838 and 1839/8 Liberty Head $10 gold eagle and 1839 Reeded Edge, "Small Letters" half dollar issues, respectively, guaranteeing that advance pattern enthusiasts will see strong competition for this piece from other groups of specialized collectors. Bidding will surely be intense before this famous rarity finds its next home in a world class cabinet.

Provenance: Ex Douglas Weaver, January 21, 1974; Harry W. Bass, Jr.; our (Bowers and Merena's) sale of the Harry W. Bass, Jr. Collection, Part I, May 1999, lot 1154.

To read the complete item description, see:
1839 Pattern Half Dollar. Judd-96 Restrike, Pollock-104. Rarity-8. Copper. Reeded Edge. Proof-64 BN (PCGS). CMQ. (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1DU69R/1839-pattern-half-dollar-judd-96-restrike-pollock-104-rarity-8-copper-reeded-edge-proof-64-bn-pcgs-cmq)

SOUTH CAROLINA. Charleston. Undated (1800) First Presbyterian Church of Charleston, South Carolina Communion Token. Breen-1181, Rulau-E SC 8, Bason SC-392. Silver. Extremely Fine. These were created in a curious fashion, with silver planchets struck by blank dies to create the substantial raised rims, then hand engraved on both sides and the edge. Each of these is handcrafted and a bit different. Church records reflect that 300 of these were ordered from England in 1800.

Autence Bason counted 14 known specimens in 1989; Breen termed this token "extremely rare." This one and one other that we offered in our (Stack's) Ford II Sale appear to be the only two that Mr. Ford encountered (this one in 1975, the other in 1977). We have sold only one other, the PCGS AU-55 Sydney F. Martin specimen that realized $3,360 in our Spring 2023 Auction. A later version of this type, struck in pewter to be used by African-American parishioners, is rarer still. While these silver pieces were taken as souvenirs from invading Union troops during the Civil War, thus preserving them, the pewter ones were not valuable enough to steal - and save - at the time.

Few objects are of such great interest to early American silver collectors and numismatists. These Charleston communion tokens occupy a very special place in the material culture of the Antebellum South.

Provenance: From the Ross Family Collection. Earlier ex F.S. Werner, November 17, 1975, obtained in Great Britain; John J. Ford, Jr.; our (Stack's) sale of the John J. Ford, Jr. Collection, Part II, May 2004, lot 258.

To read the complete item description, see:
SOUTH CAROLINA. Charleston. Undated (1800) First Presbyterian Church of Charleston, South Carolina Communion Token. Breen-1181, Rulau-E SC 8, Bason SC-392. Silver. Extremely Fine. (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1E2WS4/south-carolina-charleston-undated-1800-first-presbyterian-church-of-charleston-south-carolina-communion-token-breen-1181-rulau-e-)

Two-Piece Set of "First Shipment" 1959 Lincoln Cents from Congressman Fred Schwengel, Iowa. Mint State. The first offering of this kind that we can recall, the centerpiece of this lot is a typed letter on the letterhead of Congressman Fred Schwengel. At upper left and right are the Congressman's addresses, assistant, and committee assignments. The rest of the letterhead reads FRED SCHWENGEL / 1ST DISTRICT, IOWA / CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES / HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES / WASHINGTON, D.C.

There are two 1959 Lincoln cents in this set, and they were both originally taped to a plain index card. One example is no longer attached to the card, the other is lightly held to it by the aged and torn piece of tape. Both coins are Mint State, nearly full Red, but with light tape residue. The letter has been folded twice horizontally, but is otherwise generally crisp with only minor edge/corner folds, no foxing or other discoloration of note. The materials on the Lincoln bust referred to in the letter are not included.

To read the complete item description, see:
Two-Piece Set of "First Shipment" 1959 Lincoln Cents from Congressman Fred Schwengel, Iowa. Mint State. (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1DX7NE/two-piece-set-of-first-shipment-1959-lincoln-cents-from-congressman-fred-schwengel-iowa-mint-state)

1861 Brigadier General G.T. Beauregard or Confederate "Dime." Breen p.666. Silver-Plated. Extremely Fine, Holed. Michael Hodder offered the following in his cataloging for Ford I Sale:

The first specimen known is said to have been sold by a Confederate soldier to New York collector Dr. Thomas Addis Emmet. That piece was still looped and was suspended from a red ribbon. The soldier is said to have told Emmet that the medal was presented by the city of New Orleans following the Battle of First Manassas. This story may or may not be true. The Beauregard dime may be datable through its obverse inscription, however. Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard resigned from the Federal army on February 20, 1861. On March 1, 1861 he was appointed brigadier general in the army of the Confederacy and given command of the Army of the Potomac. On July 21, 1861 his command was restricted to the 1st Corps when Joseph Johnston was given overall command of the Army of the Potomac. Johnston wisely left tactical command to Beauregard, however, and it was the latter who fought and won the Battle of First Manassas (Bull Run) on July 21, 1861. Beauregard fought the battle as a brigadier. He was promoted to general on August 21, 1861 (with rank effective as of the start of First Manassas). The engraver of the Beauregard dime named his southern hero a brigadier and not a general, although he got the date of First Manassas right for his reverse. It is unlikely that the engraver would have demoted Beauregard had he known of his general's rank. It is always possible that he was recording Beauregard's historical rank at the time of the battle, however. Unless this is the case, it seems possible that the Beauregard dime was made between July 21 and the beginning of September 1861 (allowing time for the news of Beauregard's promotion to become widely known)....

Whatever the exact date of manufacture, this type was certainly in existence by 1868, as it was specifically mentioned that year in the American Journal of Numismatics. Historic, interesting, and very rare.

To read the complete item description, see:
1861 Brigadier General G.T. Beauregard or Confederate "Dime." Breen p.666. Silver-Plated. Extremely Fine, Holed. (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1DXHOW/1861-brigadier-general-gt-beauregard-or-confederate-dime-breen-p666-silver-plated-extremely-fine-holed)

2023 Polymerbit 0.005 Bitcoin Banknote. Loaded. Christmas Edition. Serial No. X041. Gem Uncirculated 65 PPQ (PCGS). Loaded with 0.005 BTC. Funded on Christmas Day 2023 (12/25/23). A significant funded example of this rare note with only 76 printed. It was announced last year on November 24, 2023 and we are excited to be presenting it once again to collectors heading into the holiday season. The front is printed with a particularly jolly portrait of Santa Clause while the back features a bold Christmas tree motif. The right third of the note also showcases their "in-house clear window technology" with snowflakes scattered through out. The perfect gift for the passionate collector of physical crypto or world banknotes. Public Address: bc1qtnh5433hnxeuzzplekpxc0yk2ad067rq40w9an

To read the complete item description, see:
2023 Polymerbit 0.005 Bitcoin Banknote. Loaded. Christmas Edition. Serial No. X041. Gem Uncirculated 65 PPQ (PCGS). (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1E31H9/2023-polymerbit-0005-bitcoin-banknote-loaded-christmas-edition-serial-no-x041-gem-uncirculated-65-ppq-pcgs)

 

2024 ADVENT COIN CALENDAR, PART THREE

13. Crown

Coin collectors like gifts. This is a Silver Wreath Type Crown, 1928. The Wreath Crown design by Kruger Gray was much admired and the type design continued in succeeding years at the request of the Bank of England who liked to stock them at Christmas time to present to good clients, hence why the mintages were always quite small for the normal currency pieces.

14. Herod

Coin of Herod the Great from Judea. Anchor design/ corucopias

There are several Kings called Herod in the bible and all got a bad press.

15. Hens

According to the song "On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me three French hens" 1928 Irish penny with hen and chicks, designed by Percy Metcalfe

16. Shepherds and sheep

Medallion commemorating the death of Charles I. Obverse: Bust of Charles I (right). Legend: 'CAROL . D . G . M . B . F . ET . H . REX & GLOR . MEM.' Reverse: From a cloud (left) a hand holding a celestial crown over a landscape with sheep feeding without a shepherd. Legend: 'VIRTVT. EX . ME . FORTVNAM . EX . ALIJS' (seek virtue from me, fortune from others).

© The Trustees of the British Museum. The first visitors to the baby were shepherds. In bible times shepherds were considered untrustworthy and it was a job nobody wanted as it was dangerous, hard work and unpleasant.

17. Wise men

DANZIG, New Year, 1635, a cast silver-gilt medal by S. Dadler, Jesus holding orb, surrounded by clouds, IESVS SEIN WORT, etc, legend in two lines, rev. EIN REINER GLAVB, etc, the Three Wise Men bearing gifts attend Jesus. A lot of virtual ink has been spilt on the web about who the wise men or magi were.

18. Drink and Temperance

Numismatists need to drink plenty during the holiday. The Temperance Movement was popular in the Nineteenth century to combat the problems caused by alcoholism. Cheers!

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
2024 ADVENT COIN CALENDAR, PART ONE (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n48a22.html)
2024 ADVENT COIN CALENDAR, PART TWO (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n49a22.html)

MEDALLIC ART OF THE GILDED AGE

How did America's Gilded Age leave its most enduring mark? Through its architecture? Its institutions? By the numbers, the age's most lasting currency has been its coins and medals. Consider the penny. The sculptor Victor David Brenner designed the Lincoln cent in 1909. Since then, the U.S. Mint has produced nearly five hundred billion pennies featuring Brenner's obverse design. On August 6, 2012, one such coin minted in 1909, a rare variety featuring Brenner's initials, touched down on the planet Mars as a passenger on the Curiosity mission. Since the lander used the penny as a calibration target, what is surely mankind's most remote work of bas-relief sculpture became covered in Martian dust. Closer to home, but equally remote and dust-covered, there is probably a Lincoln cent in the pocket or couch cushion of every American. The New York Times Magazine recently saw fit to publish a cover story slamming the penny's obsolescence, but no consideration was given to the astonishing success of its design. In the history of the world, no other work of sculpture has been as ubiquitous.

The Lincoln cent is one of the last circulating examples of President Theodore Roosevelt's direct efforts to extend his era's aesthetic aspirations to the art of American coinage. Brenner's penny, with its crisply articulated profile of the sixteenth president, based on an 1864 photograph by Mathew Brady, was the first American coin to depict a historical figure. It replaced James Barton Longacre's comparatively primitive Indian Head design of 1859—of which the numismatist Cornelius Vermeule (the father of the legal scholar Adrian Vermeule) said, "Great art the coin was not."

The penny became the most widespread example of the transformation of American numismatics in the early twentieth century. "I think the state of our coinage is artistically of atrocious hideousness," Roosevelt wrote in 1904 to his treasury secretary, Leslie Mortier Shaw. "Would it be possible, without asking permission of Congress, to employ a man like Saint-Gaudens to give us a coinage that would have some beauty?" A year later, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the Dublin-born pioneer of the American Beaux-Arts, working with Adolph A. Weinman, designed the medal for Roosevelt's second inauguration and established a unique working relationship with the president. "I am very, very proud at having Saint-Gaudens connected in any way with my administration," the president wrote to the cosmopolitan artist Francis D. Millet, who had suggested the commission and was pushing for an overhaul of American coinage. Roosevelt called the medal "the most satisfactory thing imaginable." Now in his first full term, the president set his sights on the one-cent piece and gold coinage, to which changes could be made with less legislative oversight compared to other denominations. "I suppose I shall be impeached for it in Congress," he wrote to Saint-Gaudens, who had been running up against the mint's uninspiring designs for decades, "but I shall regard that as a very cheap payment."

Roosevelt pitted Saint-Gaudens against Charles E. Barber, the U.S. Mint's chief engraver, who had designed much of the "atrocious hideousness" then in circulation. Dying of cancer at his studio in Cornish, New Hampshire, Saint-Gaudens completed his Indian Head gold eagle (pulled together from other designs) and his double eagle in 1907, in the last year of his life. With a walking Liberty based on both the Nike of Samothrace and his own William Tecumseh Sherman monument in New York's Grand Army Plaza on the obverse, and an eagle flying above a radiating sun on the reverse, Saint-Gaudens's luminous double eagle in particular reflected the luster of its material and became one of the country's most revered coins. Roosevelt's beautification of America's gold coinage not only set a new standard for numismatics. It also reinvigorated the gold standard. The novel design, striding forward, stood in direct opposition to the bimetallism advocated by William Jennings Bryan bearing his populist "cross of gold."

Sculptors close to Saint-Gaudens, along with others who like him studied and exhibited in Paris, such as Brenner, soon set upon redesigning America's other coinage: in addition to the Lincoln cent, there was Bela Lyon Pratt with his Indian Head quarter eagle and half eagle in 1908; James Earle Fraser with his Buffalo nickel in 1913; Adolph A. Weinman with his Mercury dime (which in fact depicted a winged Liberty) and walking Liberty half dollar in 1916; Hermon Atkins MacNeil with his standing Liberty quarter dollar that same year; and Anthony de Francisci with his Peace dollar in 1921. The historian Roger W. Burdette covers these developments in Renaissance of American Coinage, his three-volume series on early twentieth-century numismatics. Thayer Tolles writes about the Barber–Saint-Gaudens rivalry in Augustus Saint-Gaudens in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, while Michael F. Moran focuses on the Roosevelt–Saint-Gaudens collaboration in his book Striking Change.

All of these sculptors applied the lessons of the Beaux-Arts to American coinage, with stylized forms and deep reliefs modeled through classical training. At the same time, but in efforts far less appreciated today, these sculptors also turned their attention to the design of American medals. As larger, non-circulating, non-stackable objects that can be treated more like sculpture, medals can often display even more artistic innovation than coins due to their wider expressive range.

To read the complete article, see:
Tokens of culture (https://newcriterion.com/article/tokens-of-culture/)

EYE MUSEUM EXHIBIT BRINGS IMAGES TO LIFE

The Truhlsen-Marmor Museum of the Eye® today introduced a first for San Francisco, a tactile exhibit to improve accessibility and inclusion for those who are blind and visually impaired. The exhibit features four new displays that use 3D, tactile renderings of images, braille, and sound to deliver visual information. Open now and free to the public, the exhibit honors the legacy of Jay M. Galst, MD, a noted ophthalmologist, ophthalmic historian and avid collector of coins, tokens and medals related to the eye.

"Museums are places where art and objects are mainly experienced by sight. That doesn't leave a lot of opportunity for those with low vision or blindness to enjoy museums on their own," said Jenny Benjamin, director of the Truhlsen-Marmor Museum of the Eye. "We were looking for ways to bring more sensory stimulation to our museum, so we partnered with Tactile Images, a company that specializes in creating accessible art and photography for the blind. This is also the first time we've introduced braille to our museum, something many visitors have said they would be interested in experiencing."

In addition to using braille, the displays incorporate hand-activated sensors that play audio descriptions of the corresponding 3-D visual. Two of the tactile displays allow you to explore the anatomy of the eye and color vision in animals.

The other displays feature enlarged 3-D renderings of coins from Dr. Galst's collection. After Dr. Galst died of the coronavirus in 2020, his family donated his extensive historical eye-related coin collection to the museum. In 2013, Dr. Galst and Peter van Alfen, chief curator of the American Numismatic Society, wrote a book about his collection, "Ophthalmologia, Optica et Visio in Nummis," which translates as Ophthalmology, Optics and Vision in Numismatics.

The exhibit was made possible by Dr. Galst's wife, Joann Paley Galst, PhD, and son, David Paley Galst.

The Museum of the Eye is located on the ground floor of the American Academy of Ophthalmology in San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf neighborhood. For more information about the museum, visit: www.aao.org/museum-media-kit.

About Tactile Images

Tactile Images, a subsidiary of 3DPhotoWorks LLC, is dedicated to breaking down barriers for blind and low-vision individuals in a predominantly sighted world. The company provides transformative experiences through innovative tactile printing techniques, offering tactile exploration of visual and graphic materials accompanied by braille text, audio narratives, and scents. With a focus on accessibility, empowerment, and inclusivity, Tactile Images is committed to making knowledge and experiences accessible to all. www.tactileimages.com.

To read the complete article, see:
New Museum of the Eye Exhibit Brings Images to Life for the Visually Impaired and Blind (https://www.aao.org/newsroom/news-releases/detail/new-museum-of-eye-exhibit-brings-images-to-life)

To read earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
NEW BOOK: OPHTHALMOLOGIA OPTICA ET VISIO IN NUMMIS (https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n40a04.html)
BOOK REVIEW: OPHTHALMOLOGIA OPTICA ET VISIO IN NUMMIS (https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v16n39a04.html)
JAY M. GALST (1950-2020) (https://www.coinbooks.org/v23/esylum_v23n15a12.html)

LOOSE CHANGE: DECEMBER 15, 2024

Nigeria's Fines for Selling New Banknotes

Nigeria's Central Bank (CBN) has imposed a ?150 million fine on deposit money banks and financial institutions caught selling newly minted banknotes to currency hawkers. The details of the fine, contained in a Friday circular seen by TechCabal, come as Nigeria grapples with a prolonged cash shortage that has left customers struggling to access cash at ATMs and over-the-counter.

The cash crisis began in late 2022 with the CBN's controversial currency redesign policy, aimed at curbing counterfeit currency and "reducing cash outside of banks." The unintended effect was a cash shortage that led to widespread frustration among citizens who could not access cash in banks and ATMs.

The shortage continued long after the currency redesign was shelved and has led to a surge in demand for cash via alternative channels...

Kavan writes:

To read the complete article and circular, see:
CBN imposes ?150 million fine on banks found selling mint banknotes to currency hawkers (https://techcabal.com/2024/12/13/cbn-imposes-n150m-fine/)
https://www.cbn.gov.ng/Out/2024/CCD/Circular13Dec2024_B.pdf

The First European Banknotes: Swedish Kreditivsedlar

Swedish Kreditivsedlar (also Credityf-Zedel, Latin creditivus = trustworthy, i.e. "trust certificates" or freely translated "Kreditivzettel" or "Kreditivscheine") were the first European banknotes, issued from 1661 by Stockholms Banco - the first Swedish central bank - founded and managed by Johan Palmstruch.

To read the complete article, see:
Lexicon: Kreditivsedlar (https://www.geldscheine-online.com/post/lexikon-kreditivsedlar)

Subtle Resistance in Paper Money Design

When Japan invaded China in 1937 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, it installed puppet governments to control local populations. Many of these puppet regimes issued their own paper money. Amid the brutal Japanese occupation, hidden messages appeared on some banknotes issued by these governments as a form of subtle resistance. For example, on several denominations of the 1938 issue by the Federal Reserve Bank of China, Confucius's hands were depicted making an inappropriate gesture considered offensive in both Japanese and Chinese cultures. Additionally, on later issues, engravers are believed to have deliberately embedded individual letters into the designs, which, when deciphered, spelled out messages like ‘United States Army Coming' and ‘Central Government Will Return Soon.' These hidden symbols reflected the defiant spirit of the Chinese people during this difficult period.

To read the complete article, see:
Banknotes as Diplomatic Tools: Soft Power in Currency Design (https://stacksbowers.com/banknotes-as-diplomatic-tools-soft-power-in-currency-design/)

ABOUT THIS ISSUE: DECEMBER 15, 2024

Wayne Homren
Wayne Homren is the founding editor of The E-Sylum and a consultant for the Newman Numismatic Portal. His collecting interests at various times included U.S. Encased Postage Stamps, merchant counterstamps, Pittsburgh Obsolete paper money, Civil War tokens and scrip, Carnegie Hero Medals, charge coins and numismatic literature. He also collects and has given presentations on the work of Money Artist J.S.G. Boggs. In the non-numismatic world he's worked in artificial intelligence, data science, and as a Program Manager for the U.S. Department of Defense.

Garrett Ziss
Garrett Ziss is a numismatic collector and researcher, with a focus on American paper money and early U.S. silver and copper coins. He is also a part-time U.S. coin cataloger for Heritage Auctions. Garrett assists Editor Wayne Homren by editing and formatting a selection of articles and images each week. When he's not engaged in numismatics, Garrett is a Senior Honors student at the University of Pittsburgh.

Pete Smith
Numismatic researcher and author Pete Smith of Minnesota has written about early American coppers, Vermont coinage, numismatic literature, tokens and medals, the history of the U.S. Mint and much more. Author of American Numismatic Biographies, he contributes original articles to The E-Sylum often highlighting interesting figures in American numismatic history.

Greg Bennick
Greg Bennick (www.gregbennick.com) is a keynote speaker and long time coin collector with a focus on major mint error coins and US counterstamps. He is on the board of both CONECA and TAMS and enjoys having in-depth conversations with prominent numismatists from all areas of the hobby. Have ideas for other interviewees? Contact him anytime on the web or via instagram @minterrors.

John Nebel
Numismatist, photographer, and ANS Board member and Fellow John Nebel of Boulder, CO helped the ANA and other clubs like NBS get online in the early days of the internet, hosting websites gratis through his Computer Systems Design Co. To this day he hosts some 50 ANA member club sites along with our coinbooks.org site, making the club and our E-Sylum archive available to collectors and researchers worldwide.

Bruce Perdue
Encased coinage collector (encasedcoins.info) Bruce Perdue of Aurora, Illinois has been the volunteer NBS webmaster from its early days and works each week to add the latest E-Sylum issue to our archive and send out the email announcement.