THE MISSING BOOK

One measure of a true numismatist is a serious research library, for by our very nature we collectors like to gather, classify, and arrange our holdings. Since the middle of the nineteenth century, American collectors have relied on books. Nor did the internet replace books about coins; rather it made older reference volumes easier to source. Even if we do not always pay strict attention to Aaron Feldman's admonition Buy the book before you buy the coin, intuitively we know that we might get more enjoyment out of the hobby if only we knew more about what we were collecting.

Consider the experience of early collectors of U.S. copper. Until the 1859 release of Montroville Wilson Dickeson's The American Numismatical Manual, scant reference material existed. A second seminal work, Sylvester Crosby's Early Coins of America, debuted in 1875. State-specific guides came a little later. Is there a specialist in New Jersey copper without a copy of Dr. Edward Maris's 1881 A Historic Sketch of the Coins of New Jersey on the bookshelf? How does one even speak New Jersey with dealers or other collectors without Maris?

Flash forward to the present day. The reliance on printed reference material is as strong as ever. Searchers looking for recently announced Lincoln cent double-die obverses want and need to refer to Bill Fivaz and J.T. Stanton's Cherrypicker's Guide on a recurring basis. Without this reference, how would coin scouts know what to look for when flipping through a dealer's worn 2x2 box at a firehouse coin show? Or how would one validate a discovery coin?

Over time, as the collection grows, the library grows. New editions replace older ones. New scholarship floods the niche (see Quarters, Bust). And then the inevitable occurs. A book goes missing from one's coin library. Often this loss is discovered only after a new variety is publicized or a new bargain is contemplated (but one which requires verification). One can study the coin but not the book! Collectors lament I need to look at the book while I look at the coin.

The example set by dealer Rick Tomaska is illustrative. As the godfather of FBL (full bell line) Franklins and cameo proof coinage, he writes books about coins and also sells coins on television. Books are often prominent background props in his broadcasts. His message is very clear: You will enjoy the coin much more if you have the book in front of you.

As a collector, I have been influenced by many dealers, including Aaron Feldman and Dave Bowers, the pre-eminent dealer/author of the last 60 years. Both imparted the necessity of taking advantage of the best information. Fellow collectors Randy Wiley and Bill Bugert released The Complete Guide to Liberty Seated Half Dollars in 1993, the first serious reference on the series since Martin Luther Beistle's A Register of Half Dollar Die Varieties and Sub-Varieties, published in 1929. The Beistle work might inform collectors; but Wiley-Bugert inspires collectors. Just as Bust half collectors speak in O numbers (thanks, Al Overton), Seated half collectors speak in WB numbers. I was hooked.

For more than a decade, this thin hardbound book with gold flyleaf was always nearby as I built my Seated half collection. The book was a godsend. The authors had a great track record, having proved definitively that 1840 Medium Letter halves had been coined in New Orleans, not Philadelphia, thereby correcting almost 150 years of misattribution. Their method of reed counting for establishing die marriages and detecting counterfeits/alterations is the gold standard in the field.

Life events caused me to turn away from Seated halves for a while. And then when I got back into the hunt, I couldn't find the book. I looked everywhere – bookcases all over the house, home office, basement, off-site storage locker. I opened dozens and dozens of packed boxes, to no avail. The appearance of the book is as familiar to me as my own signature. I feel like I have lost a friend.

Yes, I could buy a replacement copy, but not on eBay; there are none to be had at the moment. The book for which I paid about $20 in 1993 has since appreciated significantly. Used editions sell for $300+ on the internet. Beyond the financial penalty, however, is the diminution of my enjoyment. I could also replace the data. 2 But what I can't replace is the pleasure and enjoyment I received from the hobby while perusing my original copy. I know my volume is soiled and smudgy and shopworn. But I still love it. One fine day it will turn up and beckon me to open its pages and get to work again.

There is a backstory to the missing book. During the 1990's, Bill, Randy, and I all lived in the Washington, DC area. On occasion I would run into them at local coins shows. I can't remember whether I was speaking with Bill or Randy but I do know that one of them offered to sell me his remaining basement inventory of The Complete Guide to Seated Liberty Halves, perhaps several hundred copies, at a very favorable price and in shrink-wrapped condition. I was tempted until I contemplated the chore of dribbling out 5-10 copies a year on eBay for the next two decades. I blinked. Oh well.

Charles adds:

For more information on LSCC, see:
http://www.lsccweb.org/
http://www.lsccweb.org/Links.shtml

For more information on the Numismatic Bibliomania Society, see:
https://www.coinbooks.org/

	NBS (coinbooks.org) Web