Visit our NBS Sponsors

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 Watch here for upcoming auctions

 

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 JUNE 8, 2025

New subscribers this week include: Clark Davis. Welcome aboard! We now have 7,231 subscribers.

Thank you for reading The E-Sylum. If you enjoy it, please send me the email addresses of friends you think may enjoy it as well and I'll send them a subscription. Contact me at whomren@gmail.com anytime regarding your subscription, or questions, comments or suggestions about our content.

This week we open with three new books, updates from the Newman Numismatic Portal and the American Numismatic Society, notes from readers, and more.

Other topics this week include trade dollar varieties, Hundis used in India, the FUN and PAN shows, the Cherrypickers' Guide, Alfred S. Robinson, Fred Holabird, Seth Huntington, the Sundman lectures, fixed price and auction selections, the SS Central America, the Panic of 1837, and physical cryptocurrency.

To learn more about varieties of Polish banknotes, the Art Directors Club medal, the 1860 Fireman's Medal, the Coin Collecting Podcast, the Gold Bar Mine, the Art of American Coinage, "coin fossils", the Dorrien Magens shilling, the Peh Family Collection, whale oil, and spending eight bitcoins on a pizza, read on. Have a great week, everyone!

Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum

 

NEW BOOK: U.S. TRADE DOLLAR

Joe Kirchgessner Publishes U.S. Trade Dollar: Rarity, Collection Types and Top 37 Varieties

Among Liberty Seated denominations, the Trade dollar has heretofore lacked a comprehensive guide to the die varieties in that series. With the publication of Joe Kirchgessner's U.S. Trade Dollar, that problem has been solved, and collectors looking to explore the world of Trade dollar die marriages now have a well-defined starting point.

This 522-page compendium contains just about everything collectors need to know, with the strengths of the book being the Top 37 varieties (I'm not sure why it wasn't the "Top 25" or "Top 50" – perhaps Kirchgessner likes the fact that the number 37 has some interesting mathematical properties) and the lengthy enumeration of obverse and reverse dies for each issue.

For these chapters, Kirchgessner has adapted the variety attribution template from Bill Bugert's "Register" volumes on Liberty Seated halves, making the layout appear immediately familiar and straightforward to use. The large format (8.5x11) and photographic enlargements make attribution a snap, with ample arrows highlighting the pickup points.

Kirchgessner is quick to note that the hunt continues for new obverse and reverse dies, and continued discoveries are expected. Some authors insist on "perfection" before publication, and as a result never publish anything. The author has found a sweet spot here – the present work is substantial but will still motivate others to join the chase. Joe writes of the 1877-S issue, for example, "this was a ‘best effort' attempt and many other dies and die marriages exist." With a mintage of nearly ten million pieces, I do not doubt it.

Apart from the die variety analysis, there is plenty here for those who collect only by date and mintmark. Counterfeits, chop marks, exonumia, proof v. business strike attribution, and a host of other related topics all appear within these pages. Kirchgessner's inclusion of Trade dollar lore is a welcome addition and will appeal to those who are not specifically interested in die varieties. In terms of historical treatment, Kirchgessner provides a concise overview of the evolution of the coin, but defers to previous authors (Willem, Bowers) for more in-depth analysis.

I expect that dealers, auction houses, and grading services will adopt the Kirchgessner attributions, with the "Top-37" attributions (TDV-1 through TDV-37) being the most likely to first appear in commercial use. These coins can be readily identified and most carry scores of 2 or 3 on Kirchgessner's three-point "cool factor" scale.

U.S. Trade Dollar is priced at $75 and can be ordered online at https://www.lulu.com/shop/joe-kirchgessner/us-trade-dollar-rarity-collection-types-and-top-37-varieties/hardcover/product-gjqjgg5.html .

This is a hardcover, print-on-demand publication. While the cover price will defray much of the printing cost, we should recognize that such books are a "labor of love" and that the cost of the book will never compensate Kirchgessner for the thousands of hours involved in its preparation. For that, let us offer profound thanks to Joe for his important contribution to the study of Liberty Seated coinage!

This book was written with the objective of filling a void in numismatic literature related to collecting United States Trade Dollars. The primary objectives of this book are to; 1) Assist novice and advanced collectors with information regarding types of collections that are possible within the Trade Dollar series, 2) To quantify and assess the rarity of US Trade Dollar dates, mintmarks and Type I/II obverse and reverse combinations beyond what is available in current reference materials, and 3) To document a subset of rare but collectable die varieties and types. Estimated rarity, unique attributes and characteristics are provided to assist in identification.

• Publication Date: Mar 3, 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN: 9798218618940
• Pages: 530
• Binding Type: Hardcover Case Wrap
• Interior Color: Black & White
• Dimensions: US Letter (8.5 x 11 in / 216 x 279 mm)

For more information on the Liberty Seated Collectors Club, see:
https://lsccweb.org/

NEW BOOK: HISTORY OF HUNDIS USED IN INDIA

This book provides a detailed history and usage of Hundis, which were a form of scrip used in India for quite a long time.

One early seventeenth-century French traveler to India, Mr. J. B. Tavernier, writes:

While collecting and researching Hundis, it becomes very clear that Indian bankers were using a variety of innovative financial and credit instruments to facilitate trade and the movement of large sums of money across the subcontinent in a most secure and efficient manner, hundreds of years before the Western banking system.

Because of their flexibility, their extensive use, and the variety of Indian languages that were used to draft these Hundis, they have been little understood and always very confusing to the outside world.

I have already published 2 books related to Hundis—the first book, "Catalog of Hundis Used in India," lists with photos of all the different types of Hundis that were used and details about the printing and usages of different types of Hundis that were used in British India and the Republic of India. The second book, "Catalog of Hundis Used in Princely States of India," lists all the different types of Hundis that were used in the Princely States of India with photos. Both the books document some of the Hundis for the first time.

In this book, I have provided an overview of what the Hundis were and have compiled the history and usage of Hundis in India in one place for the general readers. This was quite a challenge, as more than a century has gone by without producing much written information about Hundis.

Hundis are perhaps the oldest surviving credit instrument in human history.

Kautilya makes a mention of an Adesha Patra in his Arthashastra, an ancient Indian treatise written in Sanskrit around the second century BCE about statecraft, economic policy, and military strategy. An Adesha Patra is an order on a banker asking them to pay the money of the note to a third person—which conforms to the definition of the Hundi.

Hundis were a financial instrument invented by Indian bankers and extensively used by all participants in the largest economy of the world at that time—large business houses, traders, local lenders, farmers, and even small shopkeepers in the local bazaars across the Indian subcontinent.

Hundis were used

• as remittance instruments (to transfer funds from one place to another),
• as credit instruments (to borrow money: IOUs),
• for trade transactions (as bills of exchange).

Hundis were issued by banks and financial institutions, but more importantly, by thousands and thousands of sahukars and shroffs and sarrafs who acted as local Indigenous Bankers, providing facilities for money transfer between cities, bill discounting, and lending, using their well-established and trusted networks- before the Western banking companies were established in British India and Burma.

To read the complete book, see:
History of Hundis Used in India (https://foxly.link/HundisUsedInIndia)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
NEW BOOK: CATALOG OF HUNDIS USED IN INDIA (https://www.coinbooks.org/v26/esylum_v26n15a07.html)
NEW BOOK: HUNDIS IN PRINCELY STATES OF INDIA (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n11a08.html)

NEW BOOK: TABLES OF POLISH BANKNOTES

Janusz Parchimowicz:
TABLE SERII BANKNOTÓW POLSKICH OD 1944
Tables of Poland's banknote series from 1944

• 60 pages, each note shown in color,
• Format 10 x 15 cm, staple binding,
• 1st edition, Stettin 2025,
• Price 30 zloty (approx. 7 €)
• ISBN No. 978-83-87355-10-4

For several years now, the JEFRYT publishing house has occasionally published miniature editions of coin catalogs in addition to the main catalog, measuring 9 x 12 cm and featuring varying content. A similar booklet for banknotes has now been published by the publisher. However, this book, which costs 40 zloty, is not a miniature of the complete catalog, but rather a table of Polish banknotes in circulation from 1944 onwards. It is divided into three parts: the People's Republic of Poland from 1944 to 1965, banknotes from 1974 to 1994, and the most recent banknotes from 1994 onwards.

We find small colored images of all banknotes and the Parchimowicz number. The catalogue does not begin with No. 163 - 50 Groszy 1944, because these notes have no control numbers and serial letters, but with No. 164: 1 Zloty.

The main catalog lists prices for two letter (groups), namely AA and AB - XT, to give just one example. However, there are 44 other letter combinations after AA up to XT. Some notes have only a few series letters, others have significantly more. These are not valued, however; the main catalog is available for this. For notes still in use today, one begins with 10-zloty note no. 216, which has two pages with letter pairs from AA to ZA. You'll need to invest quite a lot of money if you want to collect all the 200-zloty notes based on their face value alone. There are even completely empty fields where new combinations can be entered.

To put it bluntly: These serial letters have always been collected in Poland. In addition to the best quality, collectors in Poland also always wanted to have the lowest possible control number and the initial letter A or AA in their collection, and they paid considerably more for these than for other banknotes. Today, people spend a lot of money on notes with strange number combinations like 234567 or 000012345, but that's no longer relevant to this book review.

When younger collectors compare these booklets of crosses after many years, they may discover which combinations are common, which are difficult or almost impossible to obtain, and set prices for them in future catalogs.

German collectors are also interested in serial letters and special control numbers; it is only a question of priority and money in which direction one expands a collection.

For 40 zloty, you get an almost equally complete booklet with black-and-white illustrations, but without prices, in addition to the 2025 banknote catalog. This work is an ideal "pocketbook" for stock exchanges and trade fairs. The slim booklet, with only 60 pages, is intended as a "wallet book" for banknote collectors, as it is also very handy and practical when "hunting" for sought-after paper money. It contains the banknotes cataloged in the banknote catalogs, arranged by series. They are arranged in alphabetical tables, each with a "blank box" where you can check off what you already have; prices can also be noted here.

Of course, there are also collectors in Poland who only collect banknote types and, at best, seek out variants such as single- or double-digit serial letters. A good 50 years ago, people began to select such banknotes from the mass of available material. Even some museums were interested in such collections.

In the foreword to this book, the editor, Mr. Parchimowicz, wishes all collectors much satisfaction and success. The booklet is also available for 30 PLN from the publisher at the following email address: Parchimowicz.janusz@gmail.com

To read the complete article, see:
Janusz Parchimowicz: Tabellen der Banknotenenserien Polens ab 1944 (https://www.geldscheine-online.com/post/janusz-parchimowicz-neue-19-auflage-des-katalogs-zu-polnischen-banknoten-von-2025)

 

NEWMAN PORTAL ADDS FUN CONVENTION VIDEO

Newman Portal Adds FUN Convention Video

The Florida United Numismatists (FUN) winter and summer conventions are two of the most prominent events on the annual coin calendar, with the winter edition being especially attractive to collectors seeking warmer climes. Indeed, FUN describes itself as a "snow-free coin show." With the assistance of FUN board member Steve Martin, Newman Portal has added 12 videos representing educational presentations from the January 2025 convention. Included are David Harper, former Numismatic News editor, presenting his "Ten Numismatic Predictions for 2025." Harper reviews his performance on last year's predictions (a rare bit of accountability in today's world!) and issues a new set of prognostications for 2025. Among other sessions are Tom Walker speaking on the detection of cleaned coins, Bill Jones holding forth on early Lincoln cents, and John Zampedro presenting on "Errors 101." Many thanks to Randy Campbell for continuing to organize the FUN convention educational forums.

Image: David Harper speaking at the Winter 2025 FUN convention

Link to FUN home page:
http://funtopics.com/

Link to FUN videos on Newman Portal:
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/multimediadetail/549321

 

VIDEO: PEOPLE, COINS AND CATALOGUES

The presenter has been involved in numismatics for over 50 years: hear him talk about the interesting people he has encountered, coins he has been involved with, and catalogues written to sell collections. P. Scott Rubin has written for the American Numismatic Association, the American Numismatic Society, the Numismatic Bibliomania Society, and "Coin World." He is a top numismatic researcher.

Speaker(s): P. Scott Rubin.

To watch the complete video, see:
People, Coins and Catalogues (https://youtu.be/pWNsdQdwTEs)
People, Coins and Catalogues (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/557334)

 

MORE ON THE PIONEER BASE BALL CLUB

The more common metal for the token is "white metal." Here is an example:

Hampden Park in Springfield is easy to locate online. Here are a few images of it:

From the website "Lost New England" we learn: The park was used as a neutral site for college football. One can see the baseball field as well! This game involved ivy league teams.

It was here that in 1869, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, baseball's first openly professional team, played against the Springfield Mutuals. Cincinnati won 80-5 en route to a perfect 65-0 season. A few years later, several National Association (the precursor to modern Major League Baseball) games were played here – first the short-lived Middletown Mansfields for a game in 1872, and later, for one game each year in 1873 and 1875, the Boston Red Stockings, now known as the Atlanta Braves, played at Hampden Park.

Later on, the park became home to a series of minor league baseball teams, with the location of the field changing several times. Most recently, it was located in the northwest corner of the lot, closest to the North End Bridge. Built in 1922 as the creatively-named League Park, it was renovated and renamed Pynchon Park in 1940. This field was home to minor league affiliates for the Cubs and later for the Giants; from 1950 through 1953, they were the Springfield Cubs, Chicago's AAA affiliate. The last season of Springfield minor league baseball was in 1965, when the AA Springfield Giants played here; the next year, the team moved, and the park burned down.

Here's the park around 2014:

Isn't history wonderful!

To read the complete article, see:
Hampden Park, Springfield, Mass (https://lostnewengland.com/2014/03/hampden-park-springfield-mass/)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
STACK'S BOWERS: JOHN ADAMS BOLEN MEDALS (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a16.html)

NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: JUNE 8, 2025

Pittsburgh Travel Guide
Larry Dziubek writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART ONE (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a17.html)
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART TWO (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a18.html)

More Chit Chat: Another Ireland's Old Star Hotel Denomination
David Gladfelter writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
CHIT CHAT: IRELAND'S OLD STAR HOTEL (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a19.html)

The Art Directors Club Medal
Mark Turpin writes:

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
NUMISMATIC NUGGETS: APRIL 28, 2024 : Art Directors Club Medal (https://www.coinbooks.org/v27/esylum_v27n17a19.html)

Catalog Sought: Printer's Proofs from Perkins Bacon Archive

Kavan Ratnatunga writes:

See:
Search results: "Perkins Bacon Archive " (https://auctioncatalogs.com/?s=Perkins+Bacon+Archive+&post_type=product)

The Coin Collecting Podcast

Chris Sutter writes:

Jeff Starck adds:

To listen to the podcast, see:
The Coin Collecting Podcast (https://www.numismaticnews.net/the-coin-collecting-podcast)

 

ANS ALFRED S. ROBINSON DIE GROUP

With many thanks, a recent archival donation given by Roman Golebiowski helped answer several questions regarding a long-held donation of medallic dies from the 1860s in the ANS collection. A two-sided handwritten letter dated May 23, 1896 from Frank DeWette Andrews to Bauman L. Belden—at the time, the ANS librarian who later became the secretary, council member, and director—provides insight into how the ANS acquired the dies and even into the finished pieces themselves.

According to the accession books in the ANS Archives, the 12 dies were officially accepted into the collection on June 11, 1896, and given the accession group number of 1896.29. This is significant because the dies have long since been divorced from one another. The obverse and reverses were not only separated, but all of the dies were scattered in the die cabinet unattributed. Once digitization of the ANS collection began in the early 1980s, the dies were given numbers from the 0000.999 accession group—indicating that their accession history was unknown by that point—and they were not given consecutive numbers—indicating that their relation to one another was also lost. The recently donated letter allows us to reattribute them to the same donation from June 1896. The medals have now been reassigned with their proper numbers.

Additionally, the letter discusses various compositions and mintage figures for two of the medals—the 1733 Rosa Americana copy and the 1860 Fireman's Medal. Outside of official U.S. Mint records, such information is often lost to history, or never known to begin with. Metallic compositions are often only known through extant pieces, and mintage figures for privately issued pieces are rarely recorded. Now knowing the actual compositions and mintage figures for two of the medals represented in this group of dies is significant.

The dies are of low preservation quality, and this was intentional. The faces of the dies have been "destroyed by being well battered," as the letter states, showing that this had already occurred prior to 1896 and, in all likelihood, not long after the medals were struck in the 1860s. This was done to prevent restrikes from being made. In his advertisements, Robinson would sometimes note how many medals were produced while also indicating that the dies were destroyed in order to preserve their rarity. Despite the intentions to destroy the design, some elements are still identifiable, allowing for positive identification to be made for all 12 dies from the 1896 donation. The ANS accession book noted that the dies were "defaced."

Alfred S. Robinson (1836–78) was a banker at the Banking House of George P. Bissell & Company in Hartford, Connecticut, and later under his own name, as well as a coin dealer and auction cataloger. It is not known exactly when he became interested in numismatics, but by 1860 he had acquired a famed 1737 Higley copper for his collection for $50—a price that made it into the local newspapers. That same year, he began issuing a series of medals, known as the Alfred S. Robinson Historical Series, that included a total of six medals issued through 1863. Three of the dies from the 1896 donation—those for the Clay, Washington, and "Old Hickory" medals come from the Historical Series. In total, Robinson issued several dozen different medals throughout his numismatic career.

To read the complete article, see:
Recent Archival Donation Answers Questions About 1896 Donation of Dies (https://numismatics.org/pocketchange/recent-archival-donation-answers-questions-about-1896-donation-of-dies/)

FRED HOLABIRD ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT

I was talking with my buddies yesterday and reminiscing about our running days. The hundreds (or more) long, unforgettable runs through the Sierra Nevada trails, the races – Western States 100, Silver State 50-miler, and all those marathons, including Boston 5 times. Now we're all much older, but still out there in our 70s and 80s doing our stuff together. It was a helluva run. Age and injuries caught up to us… but it was, truly, a helluva run.

Today, another "helluva run" is coming to an end.

It is time for me to retire while I still have some gas in the tank and hopefully the wheels can stay on.

Time takes its toll, and my body has paid the price. I simply can't do what I used to do. The back is shot, the feet won't go where they are supposed to go, and all my reconstructed and reassembled parts from years of "being the guy" make me – force me – to back off.

Yes, it's been a helluva run.

I finished my geology degree in 1975 at Humboldt State University, determined, since I was a little kid, to go into mining. I got lucky before I had any answers from applications for a master's degree ever came and got a job with Cities Service Minerals, who had several producing mines worldwide. Frank Kilmer, an industry guy turned Geology professor at Humboldt, told me to take the job no matter what. "They are simply too hard to get," he said, and he was right.

Back then, there were no scholarships like today. We all had to find a way to pay our way through school. It was never an argument – it was a simple, accepted fact of life. Classes did not allow time for a scheduled job, so I (we) had to get creative. I searched for and found beautiful rocks and sliced and sold them at flea markets. I rebuilt refrigerators and stoves. I cleaned fossils. I helped at rock shows. I sold doughnuts in the hallways. Entrepreneurial 101? You bet!

I had to continue this entrepreneurial trend working as a beginning geologist, who only made $800/month. I had discovered old bottles while on the Humboldt summer field class in the White Mountains of Inyo County. They soon became part of the weekend sales excursions, as did refereeing for city league and small college basketball games.

With great bosses to learn from, and an unforgettable group of advanced geologists I met during Society of Economic Geology meetings in the 1970s who all became my mentors through life, I advanced in an abnormal, quick manner from mining research to exploration to mine development to production. A special "shout-out" here is in order – John Livermore, Neil Prenn, Gene McClelland, John Schilling, Dick Thomssen, Peter Vickre, Neil Upchurch, among many others played prominent, yet perhaps unknown parts in the development of my career.

My mining career blossomed over the years. I had unknown talents in field work that led to many "discoveries," both in mine production and in mine cleanup methodology. The Gold Bar Mine was my first, with more to come – arguably at least five. One of those, the Flowery, led to new advanced work and methods of mine cleanups that led me to work closely with various state and federal environmental agencies in Nevada and Colorado, including two branches of the EPA. I cherish my memories of those cleanups and the unsung professionals involved. We all made history doing the right thing.

Back in the 1970s, the AIME (American Institute of Mining Engineers) held fantastic international Mining Economics seminars. These were an incredible, advanced, world-class education like no other. I attended several on my own nickel, and hit the jackpot. With speakers like John Macnamara, World Bank Chairman, and a field of mining industry icons, some of whom took special interest in this young, nearly 6'5" Nevada geologist, I became immersed into the inner workings of the "business side" of mining.

A key element of those seminars, held just as then-President Nixon had repealed the Gold Reserve Act of 1933, was that it was strongly suggested to have a second business because of the unpredictable nature of metal commodity markets at the time.

So began a separate business in Americana. It had its start during those years at Humboldt, I just didn't know it at the time. As I became immersed in mining history, and by osmosis because of my family history and my geology jobs, I dove into Nevada and California history. As a kid, I had been reading all the wonderful history books left behind by my grandfather. It became addictive, and that addiction has never left me. So, this "second business" was a natural outflow of my life and career.

"Two careers, you say?" Heck no – there have been four! I was a die-hard athlete and never stopped. I briefly mentioned this in the opening paragraph. And I met Robin at Humboldt – another "Type A" personality, exceptionally smart, a real go-getter, and fun as all get-out. I call this another career because together, we have forged two great careers. Hers in movies, and me in my stuff. You can still listen to her movie reviews every Friday at 9am on KUNR, like you have for about 45 years if you live in Nevada, and on subscribing NPR stations around the country, or read them on KUNR's website, or read them on Rotten Tomatoes, an international movie review website.

The Americana biz got a natural slow start. I found, discovered, and sold lots of stuff no one had ever thought about collecting, or even knew existed. These things led to discovering great stories about elements of history that few had thought of. That led to catalogs… then books… then more catalogs… then auctions.

There was a need to tell stories through the eyes of these items. They became my window to the past, unleashing hundreds of stories that I never dreamed I'd write. The discovery of documents, items, and archives proved to be a remarkable teaching tool, one that has helped uncover various yet-unknown aspects of history.

In some cases, we needed to bring science to the table, and I enlisted the help of many friends deep within the scientific communities. The stories that resulted have helped teach readers about various elements of science, and in some cases helped collectors understand the "real" from "fantasy." This world is not without controversy, and if time in life allows, I hope to write about much of this.

All of this quite varied work led to being asked to work on many world-class projects. Some you know about. Others, you don't – but maybe so in the future. The SS Central America and the SS Republic treasures stand at or near the top of the list of these projects. And even for these, my story has never been fully told.

The sum of all this? I was asked by an attorney on a consulting case to present all of my articles, papers, and published works of over 1,000 words. He thought it might be a page or two. It took a week to unravel a list (which is still not complete), fully more than 250 titles long. I'll leave out his comments…

Our big auctions started in the late 1990s. We held many mail-bid auctions prior to that, but the development of the Internet changed everything. Overall, we may have held close to a thousand auctions if you include daily sections. We've sold hundreds of thousands of lots of Americana – many millions of pieces - probably far more than anyone – yet this still will never approach the massive demand for numismatics, which overshadows all other collecting categories. Separately, we've sold hundreds of collections benefiting elderly Americans in their twilight years who needed extra income to "get by" in today's world. These are the "average Joe" collections – not the ones you read about in the press – yet they are equally important. This is an element of our business that we are all proud of.

There is also a ton of "stuff" that we invented, but that discussion remains for another day.

We built a great company. We've had a great team over the years. I don't call them employees, because we really are a true team – one part doesn't work without the other.

Now it's time for the next generation.

We intend to have several more sales of varying nature. Our last consignment call is September 1, 2025. We will be paying consignors 30 days after the sales, and likewise cancelling all sales not paid for in 20 days after a sale. Starting on November 1, we will be offering the internal fixtures of the business at cheap (I'm not supposed to use that word!) prices.

It's Time. Thank You to all for everything.

For the remaining sales, see:
https://www.holabirdamericana.com/

 

NOAL WHITE NAMED CHERRYPICKERS CO-EDITOR

Whitman Publishing is excited to announce the appointment of respected numismatist Noal White as co-editor of the acclaimed Cherrypickers' Guide to Rare Die Varieties of United States Coins. Development of the highly anticipated 7th edition is underway, with a refreshed editorial vision for the beloved series.

In a significant shift from past editions—traditionally split into multiple volumes—the new 7th edition will be published as a single, comprehensive volume. This all-in-one reference will cover U.S. coinage from half cents through double eagles, along with classic commemoratives, bullion coinage, and U.S.-Philippine coins, bringing unprecedented breadth to the numismatic classic.

With more than 20 years of numismatic experience, Noal is well known for his sharp eye and is frequently consulted by collectors and dealers alike for his insight into the diagnostics and significance of U.S. coin varieties and mint errors. He currently serves as Attributor for Combined Organization of Numismatic Error Collectors of America (CONECA), a national numismatic organization devoted to the education of error and variety coin collectors.

"I am both honored and humbled to be selected to build upon the exceptional work started by Bill Fivaz and J.T. Stanton," said White. "With over 2 decades of experience, I'm committed to making this the most compelling edition yet. My role at CONECA uniquely positions me to assist the team at Whitman in evaluating and curating the varieties included in the guide, ensuring the content is both authoritative and practical for collectors."

White's role will involve serving as a clearinghouse for proposed varieties, working closely with John Feigenbaum, President, CEO, and Publisher of Whitman Brands, and Patrick Ian Perez, Chief Publishing Officer of Whitman Brands, to help shape the content and maintain the Guide's trusted standards.

"I truly believe we can transform the Cherrypickers' Guide into something even more special than it already is," said Feigenbaum. "Varieties have a very strong following—this addition is the first step in streamlining the identification and selection process to bring the best, most comprehensive, and accurate product to the collectors."

The Cherrypickers' Guide is not only a foundational tool for collectors of die varieties—it's one of Whitman's top 5 bestsellers alongside Red Book, Blue Book, and United States Paper Money. As demand for knowledge of die varieties continues to grow, this new edition aims to serve both seasoned numismatists and newcomers alike.

As part of Whitman's broader publishing strategy and to better serve collectors, the guide will be rebranded under Whitman's new "Professional Series™", joining other advanced titles such as United States Paper Money Errors, United States Pattern Coins, Mexican Money, and So-Called Dollars. This series is designed for deeper study of specialized numismatic topics, providing rich historical context, technical data, and market pricing.

"The idea behind the single-volume approach is part of a larger strategy to develop and release the Cherrypickers' Guide on a more predictable schedule," said Patrick Perez. "We're thrilled to have found someone who can bring wholesale improvements to the product and ensure continuity. Noal's experience, both technical and organizational, will be a key part of that."

For those unfamiliar with the concept of "cherrypicking," it refers to the thrill of finding rare, valuable, or misunderstood die varieties hiding in plain sight—in circulation or dealer inventories. More details about the series and current editions can be found at whitman.com/cherrypickers.

Collectors are encouraged to stay tuned for updates as this exciting new edition takes shape, marking a bold new chapter for one of numismatics' most treasured guides.

For more information, visit www.whitman.com.

SUNDMAN LECTURES: COINS REFLECT CULTURE

Coins are more than just currency—they're tiny time capsules that tell the story of the world. From hairstyles on ancient Roman coins to pop culture tributes on today's commemoratives, money has long mirrored the styles, values, and moments that shape our lives. During the American Numismatic Association's (ANA) World's Fair of Money®, taking place August 19-23 in Oklahoma City, experts will explore how coins, medals, and tokens reflect the culture of the times during the Sundman Lecture Symposium. This year's theme is "Culture's Mirror; How Coins Reflect Popular Culture."

The Symposium will be held at the Oklahoma City Convention Center on Wednesday, August 20, from 10 am to 4:15 pm. This year's speakers and their lectures include:

10 a.m. – Bob Bair: Reflections Upon U.S. Popular Culture, Heritage, and History, As Influenced by Numismatics: A Look at Some of the Events, Individuals, and Coins Which Have Shaped Our Popular Culture

U.S. coins reflect the nation's evolving popular culture, history, and values—making them a unique part of our national heritage. This presentation explores how 19th- and early 20th-century coinage both shaped and mirrored American culture, highlighting ideals like Liberty and the Rule of Law. Influenced by key events such as westward expansion and the Civil War, artists like St. Gaudens, the Frasers, and Weinman created designs that captured the spirit of their time—leaving a lasting impression on the coins Americans used, saved, and admired.

11:15 a.m. – Michael T. Shutterly: Viewing Culture Through the Lens of Numismatics

This talk will look at what the study of numismatic objects can tell us about the cultures that use those objects, and about the cultural environment in which those objects are used. From the moment of creation, a numismatic object serves as a historical artifact reflecting the society and the culture in which it is created. The designers, engravers, and other artists and artisans who create these objects are themselves both the creators and the products of the cultures in which they work, and it is through their artistic vision that cultural values take tangible form. By examining numismatic objects, we can learn a great deal about what cultural values and trends were important – or not – in a given society, and we can trace the development of the underlying cultural trends.

12:15 p.m. Sundman Luncheon (fee and pre-registration required)

2 p.m. – Steve Roach: The Public Reception of the 1921 Peace Dollar and Popular Culture

Anthony de Francisci is known to collectors as the designer of the Peace dollar (1921-1935) and his famed dollar was just a small part of an active sculptor's studio. Working directly from the artist's personal scrapbooks, which include media mentions from the popular publications of the day, this presentation will explore the public reception of his Peace dollar, contemporary popular culture references to the new silver dollar, the narrative of his wife who served as the model, and how this simple project fit into the larger context of his professional life as a working sculptor in the 1920s. Further, this talk will consider the concept of how this one coin – which represented a single relatively small project – has an outsized impact on his reputation.

3:15 p.m. – Russ Bega: The Art of American Coinage: Reflecting Values from 1792 to Today

Coins are more than just a medium of exchange – they are miniature works of art that embody the values, beliefs, and ideals of the societies that create them. In this talk, explore how U.S. coinage, from 1792 to today, tells the evolving story of American identity. Trace the changing depictions of Liberty and how her image reflects shifting ideals of beauty and culture. This talk will examine the symbolic meanings of her trappings, the contradictions of anti-slavery imagery on coins before the Civil War, and the complex representation of American Indians. Through these small objects, uncover how coins have both shaped and mirrored the nation's cultural and political history.

To register for the Sundman Lecture series, visit WorldsFairOfMoney.com. For questions about presentations or more information, contact Doug Mudd at mudd@money.org.

VOCABULARY TERM: REVISION

Revision. A second or subsequent design replacing a prior design not considered satisfactory for further reproduction. Revisions of coins occur to change designs for better wearing qualities (as lowering of lettering on the reverse of the 1913 Buffalo nickel). Revisions of medals occur for a variety of reasons:

(1) Correcting errors of design or inscription.
(2) Change in sponsor's name or title.
(3) Correcting mechanical errors.
(4) Change of seal or trademark.
(5) Addition of lettering.
(6) Removal of lettering.
(7) Modernizing design.
(8) Reinstating medal or sponsoring program.

Revisions almost always require reworking the original models or patterns and cutting new dies. See copies and replicas.

To read the complete entry on the Newman Numismatic Portal, see:
Revision (https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/dictionarydetail/516648)

JOHN SMITH GARDNER (FL. 1794-1796)

When I began this article, I knew very little about John Smith Gardner. By the time I finished, I knew even less.

Gardner was employed at the U. S. Mint as an assistant engraver in November 1794. What we know comes mostly from payment records. These were reported by Robert W. Julian in a series of articles in The Numismatist.

• January 18, 1795 $70.40 John Smith Gardner, 44 days engraving dies @ 1.60, to December 31.
• March 31, 1795 $121.60 John Smith Gardner, 76 days sinking dies @ 1.60 per day.
• June 30, 1795 $174.88 John Smith Gardner. Engraving dies, 78 days @ 2.24.
• September 30, 1795 $174.72 John Smith Gardner. Salary for the Quarter.
• December 31, 1795 $ 234 John Smith Gardner. 78 days as assistant engraver at 3.00 per day.
• March 31, 1796 $234.00 John Smith Gardner Wages as assistant engraver @ 3.00 per day.
• August 26, 1796 $150.00 John Smith Gardner Fifty days engraving dies @ 3.00 per day.

It was reported by Frank H. Stewart that Gardner wrote to Mint Director De Saussure on August 11, 1795, asking for a raise. Apparently, the raise was granted. Stewart did not include a copy of the letter.

There are two people named John Gardner in the 1800 Philadelphia Census. That Census does not list age or profession. My usual sources had no record for his date of birth or date of death.

In the past I have commented on how one writer's proposal becomes the next writer's presumption and then the next writer's proof. While there is much speculation about Gardner, I found little contemporary documentation.

It has been reported that Robert Scot did not treat his assistants well and his assistants may have been more talented than the aging Scot. This may have contributed to Gardner's departure from the Mint.

Some writers have looked at design changes and attributed certain series of coins to Gardner. Other writers claim that he only made punches but not complete dies. Still others state that he was responsible for reproducing the many dies needed for production but had no responsibility for those designs.

This brings me to Gardner's role as an inventor. I am guilty of including something in American Numismatic Biographies that was probably not true. I will be revising the listing.

Frank Stewart mentioned Gardner on page 93 of History of the First United States Mint (1924). He wrote, "Gardner was the inventor of the "Stenographic Telegraphic" to take down the words of a speaker in telegraphic characters."

Walter Breen expanded on this on page 220 of Walter Breen's Encyclopedia of Early United States Cents 1793-1814, "In his own day he was best known as the inventor of the "Stenographic Telegraphic," apparently an ancestor of the court reporter's stenotype machine." When Breen describes how Gardner was "best known," I believe it was one of Breen's flights of fancy.

My search on Google found no reference to anything called a 'stenographic telegraphic'. The telegraph was invented around 1838. A stenographic telegraph was invented by French civil engineer Cassagnes in 1890. The dates do not align with the Gardner era.

I now believe that Gardner was not an inventor of this device. Can anyone suggest where Stewart came up with this idea?

 

SETH G. HUNTINGTON (1920-2021)

Seth Huntington was one of three artists selected for their designs for the Bicentennial coinage. His rendition of Independence Hall appears on the reverse of the 1976 Kennedy half.

As I was compiling the initial listings for American Numismatic Biographies, I discovered that he lived in Minneapolis and I could call him without incurring a long-distance charge.

I called on March 2, 1991, and he was very pleasant and accommodating with my request for information. I could tell that his wife was in the background and concerned about him revealing personal information to a stranger.

Some time later a member of my coin club offered me a one-dollar bill with his autograph. I doubt if most people would recognize the name, but it has a special meaning for me. I never met him, but I like the photo provided with his obituary from the Minneapolis Star Tribune of November 21, 2021.

Huntington, Seth George
2/12/1920 - 11/3/2021

Age 101. Beloved husband, adored father of 8, artist, honored WWII veteran, and the light of our lives.

Seth was the 3rd child born to George William and Gertrude Chris-tine (Van Horik) Huntington of Minneapolis. During the Great Depression, Seth enlisted in the U.S. Army. He served 4 years and 8 months, achieving the rank of Staff Sergeant. As a member of the 6th Infantry "Red Star" Division, Seth fought in the Pacific Theater. Notable action included combat in New Guinea—the Battle of Lone Tree Hill and the Battle of Sansapor—and an uncontested record of 219 days of continuous combat in Luzon.

He was awarded the Bronze Star, the Philippine Liberation Medal, and the Bronze Arrowhead. Late in 1945, he returned to Minneapolis, where he met his future wife, Marjorie. They married in June 1946 and shared 75+ years of marriage.

In 1949, Seth graduated cum laude from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. He joined Brown & Bigelow in 1956, where he worked with many local and national artists. He frequently freelanced and also taught at the St. Paul Arts and Science Center. In 1976, his artistic portrayal of Independence Hall was minted as the reverse of the Bicentennial Kennedy half dollar. Seth ended his career at B&B in 1985 as Creative Director, but continued working in many artistic mediums long into retirement. He was a student of life, for life.

 

TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 5.2

The rust deposits on the SSCA gold come in many types, thick and thin, earthy and stony, red, orange, brown and black. When I am removing the rust it all responds to the solution I use, but sometimes it takes several days and changes of solution. The point is not to dissolve the iron minerals completely, although some is sequestered in the water turning it a kind of yellow resembling urine.

The objective is to alter the rust just enough that it loses its physical grip on the surface of the coin. Again, the bond is physical, not chemical.

In very rare instances large pieces of blackish (oxygen-poor) rust spall off the coins and ingots, showing perfect reverse impressions of the gold surface. The impression is so exact and detailed (down to microns) that the microscopic flow lines from the dies, struck into the coin and imbuing it with mint luster, is replicated in this process of rust mineralization, making a perfect duplication of the original die. A "coin fossil." Lustrous rust!

Except for just a few specimens, those with outstanding aesthetic eye appeal and relatively stable deposits, I removed the rust from all the coins. As a geologist, I liked the rust. It was an important part of the mineral context where we found the gold. But I understand the decision given the modern numismatic scene, where high grade coins are graded and encapsulated by third-party grading services.

So, the decision was made to curate almost all the gold, to remove the rust and mineral deposits, but to take great care in not affecting the surfaces in any other way. It is a delicate and painstaking process. To begin with, let's talk about those iron oxides in micron-precise physical contact with a mint-state gold surface. These minerals are harder than the gold. Considerably harder. Pushing a flake of rust across a gold surface could scratch it. So, coaxing the rust off the surface is challenging and commands full attention. My preference is to do this in a bath of the solution, under a binocular microscope, using a sable-hair artist's brush as the only tool.

The rust and calcium carbonate on the shipwreck have encased and obscured the dazzling gold, but these minerals also perform another fascinating role. In many cases coins and ingots were stuck together, with the minerals acting as cement between the pieces. The result could be "clusters" of coins, for instance a roll of four stacked double eagles. In one case there was a natural wonder we called "The Tower."

The Tower was originally a box of $20 gold coins. Sometime between 1857 and 1988, the box had been eaten away by shipworms and other animals. Before the wood of the box disintegrated the coins inside were cemented together by the minerals. The resulting pile seemed to defy gravity. Rolls of coins were neatly stacked side by side in a single, solid "rock" comprising over 300 coins. This became a prime candidate for mass retrieval.

To read the complete article, see:
Treasure Talk: Episode 5 Part 2 The Wonders of Treasure Mineralization (https://finestknown.com/treasure-talk-episode-5-part-2the-wonders-of-treasure-mineralization/)

For the complete series, see:
Category Archives: Treasure Talk with Bob Evans (https://finestknown.com/treasure-talk-with-bob-evans/)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 1 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n12a12.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 2.1 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n13a17.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 2.2 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n14a15.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 3.1 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n15a16.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 3.2 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n17a16.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 4.1 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n18a13.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 4.2 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n19a20.html)
TREASURE TALK WITH BOB EVANS, EPISODE 5.1 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a13.html)

 

NUMISMAGRAM MEDAL SELECTIONS: JUNE 8, 2025

103158 | SPAIN. Toledo. Primate Cathedral of St. Maria bronze Medal. Issued 1865. Issues paralleling the Most Remarkable Edifices of Europe series (59mm, 91.34 g, 12h). By Charles Wiener in Brussels. CATEDRAL DE TOLEDO 525 POR S EUGENIO, REEFICADA EN EL STYLO GOTICO EN EL XIIIº SIGLO. ARQUITº Pº PEREZ, perspective view of the cathedral exterior from the southwest, from the vantage point of the Plaza del Ayuntamiento // Perspective interior view. Edge: Plain. Ross pp. 20-1, fig. 7. Choice Mint State. Rich brown surfaces, with great glossiness in the fields. A rather scarce offering not from Jacques, but instead from Charles, done in the style of the former's "Most Remarkable" series. $595.

From what is today eastern Netherlands and western Germany, the Wieners were a Jewish family of exceptional medalists, especially known for numerous numismatic works throughout the Kingdom of Belgium. Eldest brother Jacques, along with younger brothers Leopold and Charles, created some of the finest works of medallic art of the 19th century, and all are particularly noted for their work in the highly detailed and intricate work of architectural renderings.

To read the complete item description, see:
103158 | SPAIN. Toledo. Primate Cathedral of St. Maria bronze Medal. (https://www.numismagram.com/product-page/103158)

103188 | GERMANY. Generalleutnant Erich Ludendorff silver Medal. Issued 1914. World War I series: "Germany's unshakable will" (33mm, 12h). By Ludwig Christian Lauer in Nürnberg. GENERALLEUTNANT LUDENDORFF, uniformed bust facing slightly right // MIT DEM UNERSCHÜTTERLICHEN WILLEN DURCHZUHALTEN UND DEM FESTEN GLAUBEN AN DEUTSCHLANDS ZUKUNFT! (with the unshakeable will to persist and the firm faith in Germany's future), downward sword dividing date (19 14), partially within oak wreath. Zetzmann 2045. PCGS SP-62. Exceptionally brilliant and prooflike, with a mostly argent nature near the center and a peripheral ring of vibrant iridescence. $325.

One of the leading German military figures of World War I, Ludendorff was instrumental in the early victories at the Battles of Liège and Tannenberg. Later, he was appointed as First Quartermaster General of the German General Staff in 1916, which essentially set up a military dictatorship (under the command of Ludendorff, Paul von Hindenburg, and Kaiser Wilhelm II) until the end of the war and the dissolution of the German Empire.

To read the complete item description, see:
103188 | GERMANY. Generalleutnant Erich Ludendorff silver Medal (https://www.numismagram.com/product-page/103188)

103203 | FRANCE. Télégraphie sans Fil [Radio] Art Deco bronze Medal. Issued 1927. The emergence of wireless or radio communication (99mm, 401.40 g, 12h). By Paul-Marcel Dammann at the Paris mint. IRIS, Iris striding right among the clouds, head lowered, holding trident-headed scepter and streamers; in background, zodiacal band with Scorpio, Sagittarius, and Capricorn // View of the Earth, focused upon Europe and Africa, surrounded by hexagonal, segmented antennae, the bottom segment of which is emitting radio waves; stars in the background, T S F [Télégraphie sans Fil = telegraph without wires] below. Edge: «cornucopia» MONETA 35. Jones, Art of the Medal, 423. Choice Mint State. Warm brown surfaces, with a great matte nature. Likely one of the finest known of this small output in the larger (99mm) module, of which this is numbered (on the edge) as #35. One of the iconic and rarer Art Deco medallic works of the period. Ex Paul Fellerman Collection. $965.

Following the proof of the existence of electromagnetic waves by German physicist Heinrich Hertz in 1887, a flurry of other scientific minds turned to a new medium for study—the "airwaves." Guglielmo Marconi's invention of the radio, for which he won the 1909 Nobel Prize in Physics, furthered what would become a rapidly growing industry during the first three decades of the 20th century, as communication now need not be reliant upon the connection of wires. Here, Dammann captures this novel technology and pairs it with another movement indicative of its era—the refined, elegant, and geometric artistry that embodies Art Deco.

To read the complete item description, see:
103203 | FRANCE. Télégraphie sans Fil [Radio] Art Deco bronze Medal. (https://www.numismagram.com/product-page/103203)

103177 | VATICAN CITY. Pope Pius XII silver Medal. Issued 1949/Year XI. Commemorating the defense of the Catholic faith against communism (44mm, 39.11 g, 12h). By Aurelio Mistruzzi at the Rome mint. PIVS • XII • PONTIFEX • MAXIMVS • AN • XI, bust left, wearing zucchetto, stole, and pallium // DEFENSIO • FIDEI • CATHOLICAE, radiant female personification of the Catholic Church seated facing on throne, holding long cross and Gospels; in foreground, armored angels standing facing, heads turned slightly inward, holding shields respectively inscribed VERITAS (truth) and IVSTITIA (justice). Edge: Plain. Bartolotti E949; Rinaldi 143; Cusumano-Modesti 66; Ehling/Ernesti 38. Gem Mint State. Stunningly brilliant and prooflike, with enchanting frosting upon the devices. $245.

Evocative of Mustruzzi's Fascist style, this medal takes aim at the perceived threat of communism at the doorstep of the Vatican. As mentioned in Glänzende Propaganda, the parliamentary elections of 18 April 1948 saw the Democratic Popular Front, an electoral alliance between the Partito Comunista Italiano (PCI) and the Partito Socialista Italiano (PSI) receive 31% of the vote, and along with it, 183 seats in the Italian parliament. In the post-war years, the political left and many within the Catholic ranks became intertwined, as can be seen in Giovannino Guareschi's "Don Camillo" novels, in which communism was portrayed, in the Church's eyes, in a positive light.

To read the complete item description, see:
103177 | ITALY. Vatican City. Pope Pius XII silver Medal. (https://www.numismagram.com/product-page/103177)

SOVEREIGN RARITIES AUCTION XVIII

Sovereign Rarities are delighted to present Auction XVIII in partnership with the Royal Mint. Commencing at 10:00 GMT on Wednesday 11th June, the auction comprises over 450 lots and spans almost 2,500 years of numismatic history. Kicking off with a modest but interesting selection of ancient coins, the sale then weaves its way through English and Scottish history to an outstanding selection of modern British Royal Mint issues and world coins, followed by the second part of the Highcliff Collection of Medals, discussed in last Sunday's E-Sylum newsletter. A selection of highlights from the main sale follows.

Lot 3 - AU 4/5 3/5 | Philip II c. 355-348 BC gold Stater Kingdom of Macedon, Philip II (359-336 BC), gold Stater, Pella, late lifetime-early posthumous issue, c. 340/336-328 BC. Beautiful portrait of Apollo, with a wonderfully animated charioteer to the reverse. Graded by NGC as AU, Strike 4/5, Surface 3/5. Estimated at £2,800-£3,200.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 3 - AU 4/5 3/5 | Philip II c. 355-348 BC gold Stater (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758181)

Lot 4 - AU 4/5 4/5 | Philip II c. 355-348 BC silver Tetradrachm "Fine Style" Kingdom of Macedon, Philip II (359-336 BC), silver Tetradrachm, Amphipolis, lifetime issue, struck 355-348 B.C. Exemplary example with fine detail, particularly striking in the high relief of Zeus's head and laurel-wreath, and in the cloak, horse's mane and saddle on the reverse, showing Philip on horseback. Extremely fine, graded by NGC as AU, Strike 4/5, Surface 4/5, "Fine Style". Estimated at £2,200-£2,600.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 4 - AU 4/5 4/5 | Philip II c. 355-348 BC silver Tetradrachm "Fine Style" (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758177)

Lot 20 - Scotland, James IV gold Half-Unicorn, no stops both sides Scotland, James IV (1488-1513), gold Half-Unicorn of Nine Shillings, variety with no stops either side and Roman N in legend, S struck over a lower S in King's name. Features the Unicorn with the shield of the Scottish arms, the horn of the unicorn delightfully breaking through the inner beaded circle, and a sun over cross fleury to the reverse. Good fine to almost very fine, and a rare variety. Estimated at £3,000-£5,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 20 - Scotland, James IV gold Half-Unicorn, no stops both sides (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758355)

Lot 24 - Edward IV first reign gold Quarter-Ryal light coinage initial mark sun Edward IV, first reign (1461-70), gold Quarter Ryal of two shillings and sixpence, light coinage (1464-70). Quartered shield with rose to the left, sun to the right, E above, and lis below, rose at centre of sunburst to reverse. Good very fine and an unusual example, having an additional rose at the end of the obverse legend. Estimated at £600-£800.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 24 - Edward IV first reign gold Quarter-Ryal light coinage initial mark sun (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758569)

Lot 28 - VF30 | Charles II 1684 gold Five Guineas Elephant & Castle Charles II (1660-85), gold Five Guineas, 1684. Second laureate bust right, with crowned cruciform emblematic shields to reverse, sceptres in angles, and four interlinked C's at centre. The King Survey states that only 71 examples have been in commerce between 1960 and 2005. Slabbed and graded by NGC as VF30, final year for reign. Estimated at £12,000-£18,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 28 - VF30 | Charles II 1684 gold Five Guineas Elephant & Castle (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758600)

Lot 40 - PF60 CAM | George III 1820 gold pattern Five Pounds lettered edge George III (1760-1820), gold pattern Five Pounds dated 1820 – the most valuable coin in our sale, at an opening price of £200,000, this is the first UK gold Five Pound piece ever issued to the public with only 25 coins available for private ownership. A numismatic masterpiece designed by Bendetto Pistrucci under the tenure of Master William Wellesley Pole, the brother of the Duke of Wellington, these coins were only struck purportedly the night the King died on 29th January 1820. They have always been a highly coveted coin and design and were for many years the most highly valued coin in the Standard Catalogue. A bold portrait of the King facing right with date below and St George and the dragon on the reverse, signed both sides by Pistrucci. Estimated at £200,000-£220,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 40 - PF60 CAM | George III 1820 gold pattern Five Pounds lettered edge (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758262)

Lot 47 - MS62 | George III Shilling 1798 Dorrien Magens issue, extremely rare George III (1760-1820), silver Shilling, 1798, so-called Dorrien and Magens type. Older laureate and cuirassed bust right, with cruciform emblematic shields, garter star at centre, and crowns in angles to the reverse. This was the first issue of Shillings since 1787 instigated by a group of city bankers led by Dorrien Magens who bought a large consignment of silver when the price dipped in February of 1798. However their release was prohibited for reasons that can be read about in our cataloguing and only a small number of survivors escaped the melting pot. Good extremely fine, graded by NGC as MS62, only two finer examples have been graded. Very rare. Estimated at £22,000-£24,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 47 - MS62 | George III Shilling 1798 Dorrien Magens issue, extremely rare (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758683)

Lot 67 - MS62 | Victoria 1893 gold Five Pounds Victoria (1837-1901), gold Five Pounds,1893. Thomas Brock portrait to obverse and Pistrucci's iconic St George and Dragon to reverse. Graded by NGC as MS62, a sought-after type coin. Estimated at £4,000-£6,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 67 - MS62 | Victoria 1893 gold Five Pounds (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=288&lot_id=758380)

Lot 173 - PF64-63 UCAM | George VI 1937 4-coin gold proof Set George VI (1936-52), gold four-coin proof Set, 1937, issued for Coronation year and technically all patterns not for circulation as they all have plain edges, gold Five Pounds, Two Pounds, Sovereign and Half-Sovereign. Graded by NGC as Five Pounds PF63+ Ultra Cameo, Two Pounds PF63+ Ultra Cameo, Sovereign PF63, Half Sovereign PF64 Cameo, a pleasing set with original case. Estimated at £12,000-£14,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 173 - PF64-63 UCAM | George VI 1937 4-coin gold proof Set (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=285&lot_id=758286)

Lot 200 - PF68 UCAM | Elizabeth II 2019 gold proof 2oz Una & Lion Elizabeth II (1952-2022), gold proof Two Ounces of Two Hundred Pounds, 2019, Una and the Lion. From the collector's favourite, the Great Engravers series, commemorating the iconic design by William Wyon, with Queen Victoria as Una leading the British lion. Graded by NGC as PF68 Ultra Cameo, accompanied by original Royal Mint box and Certificate of Authenticity, and first issue from the Royal Mint Great Engravers Series, limited to an edition of only 225. Estimated at £8,000-£12,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 200 - PF68 UCAM | Elizabeth II 2019 gold proof 2oz Una & Lion (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=285&lot_id=758442)

Lot 204 - PF69 UCAM | Elizabeth II 2020 gold proof 2oz Three Graces Elizabeth II (1952-2022), gold proof Two Ounces of Two Hundred Pounds, 2020, Three Graces. Following on from the success of the Una and the Lion in the Great Engravers Series, William Wyon's 1817 Three Graces design is revived, showing the three daughters of Zeus representing England, Scotland and Wales. Graded by NGC as PF69 Ultra Cameo, accompanied by original Royal Mint box and certificate of Authenticity., and from a limited run of 335. Estimated at £5,400-£6,400.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 204 - PF69 UCAM | Elizabeth II 2020 gold proof 2oz Three Graces (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=285&lot_id=758616)

Lot 325 - PF69 UCAM | Elizabeth II 2009 gold proof 50p Kew Gardens Elizabeth II (1952-2022), gold proof Fifty Pence, 2009. Struck to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Royal Botanical Gardens in Kew, with Ian Rank-Broadly portrait and striking Christopher Le Brun design of the pagoda at Kew to reverse. Graded by NGC as PF69 Ultra Cameo. The classic modern rarity eagerly sought after by all modern coin collectors. Estimated at £2,500-£3,000.

To read the complete item description, see:
Lot 325 - PF69 UCAM | Elizabeth II 2009 gold proof 50p Kew Gardens (https://auctions.sovr.co.uk/index.php?option=com_timed_auction&view=lot_detail&auction_id=285&lot_id=758354)

See www.sovr.co.uk for much more detail about all of these coins, medallions and more!

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
SOVEREIGN RARITIES: HIGHCLIFF PART II (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a14.html)

SARC ACCUMULATIONS & COLLECTIONS AUCTION 2

This is the second auction being held in the new "Accumulations & Collections Auction" format, with the first being in January 2025. Prior to 2025 the large lots (also known as group lots, accumulation lots, or collection lots) were featured on the final day of their premier auctions in January, May and September. Those lots now appear in a stand-alone auction the following month (February, June and October respectively). The first iteration of this auction format was very successful. This second auction contains exactly 750 lots from all time periods and categories. These are the same large lots that normally would have been at the end of their May 2025 sale, so there is an extensive selection of interesting coins to be found, including lots from collections such as:

• The Dr. Robert A. Rosenfeld Collection of World Coins
• The Almer H. Orr III Collection of World Coins
• The Howard A. Daniel III Collection of Asian Coins
• An Anonymous Collection of Indian Coins

The auction schedule is as follows:

The firm is now accepting consignments for all of their future premier, online-only, and accumulation & collections sales. For more information, see the firm's website at www.stevealbum.com or visit their booth at the Hong Kong International Numismatic Fair in June or at the ANA World's Fair of Money in Oklahoma City in August.

HERITAGE: PEH FAMILY COLLECTION

One of the world's finest collections of coins from around the globe will make its long-awaited appearance at the auction block when a selection of lots from the Peh Family Collection are sold in Heritage's HKINF World Coins Platinum Session and Signature® Auction June 18-20.

"It's one of the highest honors of my numismatic career to be able to present at auction amazing coins from the Peh Family Collection at our upcoming HKINF event," says Cris Bierrenbach, Vice President of International Numismatics at Heritage Auctions. "It is particularly joyful for me to revisit incredible specimens contained in the collection such as the Japanese ultra rarities pedigreed to the Dr. Norman Jacobs Collection that we brought to market in 2012. The Meiji 3 1870 Pattern Yen is one of my all-time favorite numismatic items — it checks all the boxes for one of the most iconic trophy coins in the world!"

Also among the top selections from the Peh Family Collection is a Kuang-hsü silver Restrike Specimen Pattern Tael CD 1906 SP66 PCGS that is the highest-graded representative across major certification companies for both the original and restrike varieties and is widely recognized as a cardinal rarity among the Chinese series. These beautiful Taels were intended to replace the existing Mace-Candareens coinage in circulation with a new standard, divided between the Tael, 5 Mace, 2 Mace and Mace. Struck just six years after the reestablishment of the Tientsin mint, which had been destroyed during the Boxer Rebellion of 1900, the series ultimately failed to be introduced into widespread circulation, although the design eventually did influence the standard layout of the Imperial issues adopted after 1908.

Also from the Peh Family Collection comes a Hsüan-t'ung silver Restrike Specimen Pattern "Long-Whiskered Dragon" Dollar Year 3 (1911) SP63+ NGC that is a magnificent example of one of the most celebrated Patterns from the twilight of the Qing Dynasty, widely regarded as iconic expressions of the artistic peak of late Imperial China. It is an excellent example of the skill of Luigi Giorgi, the master engraver at the Central Mint whose signature alone generates considerable interest among collectors, regardless of the issue.

One of the exceptional Japanese coins from the Peh Family Collection, a Meiji silver Proof Pattern Yen Year 3 (1870) PR64 NGC, is an exceedingly rare Pattern for the first machine-struck silver Yen, minted shortly after the newly restored Meiji government established an official silver standard in 1870 as part of the adoption of round and decimalized coinage. Of the few known examples that remain, this example carries the second-highest certified grade, after two NGC-certified PR65s.

The auction is brimming with 276 magnificent offerings from the Peh Family Collection, but it would be shortsighted to suggest all of the event's highlights were sourced from that collection.

Also among the top attractions in the auction is a Hsüan-t'ung Pattern Dollar ND (1910) MS63 NGC, a beauty that features one of the more stylized dragon designs from Hsüan-t'ung's brief reign. This coin is becoming increasingly more elusive to collectors, especially in finer designations.

Among the coins that often enjoy great popularity among collectors are Engraved Master coins, also known as Diaomu or Ancestor coins, like the Qing Dynasty. De Zong Engraved Master Cash ND (1887-1898) Certified 90 by Gong Bo Grading that will be in play in this auction. From the world-class collection of Chinese Cash issues, it is a gorgeous example of the Diaomu that are exceedingly difficult to locate and are identified as the beginning of the Cash coinage process, the "seeds for minting regular currency." This trophy coin is one of the few gathered by the W&L collector, and now is back in the market after more than 30 years. Prototypes for Master coins like the one offered in this auction were carved by hand before being presented to the Emperor for approval before being used as molds for the better-known "Mother coins" … which in turn were used to make several molds for circulating issues.

Another Engraved Master from the Qing Dynasty that will cross the block in this auction is a Wen Zong (Xian Feng) Engraved Master 500 Cash ND (March-August 1854) Certified 85 by Gong Bo Grading. Diaomu are unquestionably scarce, but to find such a large denomination of these hand-engraved Pattern-like pieces is even more rare. Heritage experts have not found a record of a single 500 Cash Diaomu in recent decades, elevating this example to trophy status.

Produced in commemoration of Tuan Chi-jui's taking office as the provisional Chief Executive of the Republic of China at the outset of the "Peaceful Unification" and the abolition of the presidency, a Republic Tuan Chi-jui gold Specimen Pattern Dollar ND (1924) SP61 PCGS is exceedingly popular among collectors. It especially gold examples that are significantly more rare than their silver counterparts and only make it to the collecting market every few years — the example offered here is the first since 2020.

A Hunan. Republic Dollar Year 11 (1922) MS65+ PCGS is a magnificent example of an elusive "souvenir" type from the Changsha mint that was struck to commemorate the promulgation of the Hunan Provincial Constitution.

Images and information about all lots in the auction can be found at HA.com/3124.

WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART THREE

Here's the third and final part of my account of my enjoyable visit last week to Pittsburgh and the Spring 2025 PAN Show. I remark often that the PAN Show just keeps getting bigger and better. When I ran into PAN President Pat McBride early on my first day, I told him that PAN and The E-Sylum have something in common - we both started small and never quit. Decades later we're still here, still improving, and bigger and better than ever. Here's how dealer David Kahn described the show's evolution in his June 2025 DKRC News and Newps email newsletter.

'Nuf said. Consider coming to the fall PAN show on October 16-18, 2025. I hope to see you there! For more information, see: https://pancoins.org/

SS Central America Exhibit
I saved the best for last - the PAN Show's exhibit of material from the wreck of the SS Central America. See "Treasure Talk with Bob Evans" elsewhere in this issue for more on the mind-boggling numismatic treasure find - over two tons of gold coins, bars, nuggets and gold dust sitting at the bottom of the ocean after sinking in an 1857 hurricane.

The PAN exhibit was manned by SS Central America co-discoverer, geologist and historian Bob Evans and collector Greg Darnstaedt. To me, this was like visiting an exhibit on the early Philadelphia Mint manned by Adam Eckfelt and Joseph Mickley. First, the coins.

For many numismatists, it's all about the coins. But there's so much more to the story.

Look closer - two stereoscopic viewers provide a 3-D view of gold coins and bars as discovered on the ocean bed. Wow!

These artifacts don't glitter like gold, but their stories are priceless. Bob explained to me that this white washbasin served as a beacon each time their ship returned to the recovery site and the crew maneuvered the robot toward the wreck. The basin was eventually recovered as well and Greg Darnstaedt purchased it at auction. It took a lot of self control to obey the sign and not reach out to touch it.

The second artifact is the base of a whale oil lamp. There were no electric lights in 1857, and it wasn't until two years later that Edwin Drake started the modern oil industry with a well in Titusville, Pennsylvania, so there were no oil lamps on the SS Central America either - they burned whale oil. Bob recounted how he soaked the lamp base in a solution to remove a century of ocean encrustation. Stepping back into his lab hours later, he encountered a strange smell - it was the remaining whale oil that had leached out and now floated atop his solution. Bob skimmed it off, and a bottle of whale oil from 1857 accompanied the exhibit. Amazing.

The shipwreck was too deep for human divers to survive the pressures, so robots were used to survey the site and recover the gold and artifacts. Robots are clumsy even today, so to reduce the potential for damage, wherever piles of coins were found they were covered in a block of silicone to hold them together and protect them during recovery.

The photo on the left shows silicone being poured over a large pile of double eagles. At right is the exhibit of a block of hardened silicone after the coins had been extracted for conservation, with impressions of the coins clearly visible. Neat item. If someone would use that to cast a copy of the coin pile, it would make a great conversation piece. Where's the SS Central America gift shop?

Back to the coins. Here's an album of photos documenting each individual coin recovered from the wreck.

This was an amazing exhibit. No glittering gold bars, but history by the ton. Thank you, Bob, Greg and PAN for making this happen. Again, be sure to see Bob's article elsewhere in this issue, and follow the links to earlier ones. It's the numismatic story of the century.

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART ONE (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a17.html)
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART TWO (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a18.html)

HERITAGE: THE PANIC OF 1837

The history of banking in the United States has been a turbulent one, as the fledgling nation learned the vagaries of politics, public finance, and government intervention. This process of trial and error was deeply intertwined with the evolving political landscape and the government's attempts to establish a stable economy in a rapidly developing country. This led to a series of boom-and-bust cycles, debates over the role of government in the economy, and a gradual, often painful, evolution of banking institutions and regulations.

The Panic of 1837 represents one of the most turbulent events of its era, if not in all American history. The crisis stemmed from President Andrew Jackson's anti-banking policies and, more specifically, his battle with the Bank of the United States. Originally championed by Alexander Hamilton, the Bank of the United States was zealously promoted by prominent businessmen and politicians, such as John Jacob Astor, Stephen Girard, and John Caldwell Calhoun. This financial venture was one of the first attempts in America to establish a central bank operated by the government. Jackson opposed its operation for an assortment of reasons, but his foremost objection was his belief that a central bank was both unconstitutional and "dangerous to the liberties of the people." He also blamed the concern for contributing to the Panic of 1819, as it had lent far too much money, and then stockpiled gold to save itself at the height of the emergency, thereby sacrificing many small banks and their patrons.

In 1833, Jackson delivered a crushing blow to the bank's power by halting the deposit of federal funds into the institution. Instead, he created a list of approved banks that the government would conduct business with; therefore, the Bank of the United States' services were no longer required. Cotton prices soared, and easily obtainable credit along with a multitude of land opportunities in the newly settled West caused the market to inflate exponentially during 1834-36. Unfortunately, this inflation was only sustainable for so long, and the economy soon ruptured in late 1836. The lands in the West which had seemed so appealing just months earlier became unmarketable.

Banks began to feel the effects of this disaster in 1837, and on May 4, runs on financial organizations began in New York. Customers hastened to exchange their soon-to-be worthless banknotes for hard gold and silver. Because of the volume of government-chartered banks, gold, silver, and coin reserves had quickly become depleted. Over 200 institutions in both the North and South were forced to shutter their doors. Our upcoming July 27 Summer U.S. Currency Obsolete Banknotes Showcase Auction includes a comprehensive offering of notes from concerns which met a variety of fates during this chaotic period.

Countless institutions collapsed simply because they overextended themselves, especially across the South. For example, the Chattahoochee Rail Road & Banking Co. folded, predominantly because of the large loans it offered to stockholders which were not repaid punctually.

We are privileged to offer an example from the bank in our current auction. This piece is representative of the battle to keep funds available which many financial organizations faced and lost during the Panic of 1837. Other unfortunate cases involved certain banks' inability to pay specie (hard coinage) on their notes. This was the dilemma that the Bank of Vicksburg found itself embroiled in.

Incorporated on May 3, 1837, just a day before the run on banks in New York commenced, this company was forced to shut down after its charter was revoked in 1840. One important offering in this Obsolete Showcase Auction is an impressive $15 Proof from the institution.

While the lifespans of these two Southern banks were short, they were not the most disappointing cases of banking failure of their time. Some institutions were initiated in 1837 and did not last more than a year. The Bank of Saline, which opened in 1837 and only operated until 1838, highlights this type of situation. The numerous heavily worn examples from this bank which survive today, however, suggest that the establishment's notes were a popular form of payment during the short time the company was in business. A well circulated ace in our July auction demonstrates this assertion. This piece is distinct for its use of the "Indian Princess" vignette at right which would later appear on the T35 Confederate Treasury Note of 1861.

The Panic of 1837 crippled the national economy and destroyed countless small businesses with loyal customers. However, the shortage of specie during this period contributed to the important rise of fractional banknotes. During this tumultuous period, fractionally denominated currency became increasingly utilized in day-to-day transactions as coinage and precious metals shrank in availability. These fractional issuances facilitated everyday purchases. The City of Detroit is represented in our current auction with this fascinating piece that provides a glimpse into the innovations which were propelled forward. At lower right is the back of a Spanish 2 Reales coin, which was equivalent to the 25¢ denomination of the note. Fractional emissions provided small but much-needed relief to business owners and banks nationwide. These private issue fractional notes served as proof of concept for the Fractional notes (Fractional Showcase July 20) issued by the US government in the early years of the Civil War.

Not until 1843 did circumstances improve, primarily because the recession that had plagued the country for six years finally ended. Then President Martin Van Buren initiated several crucial policies which were characterized by restrained government intervention. Van Buren developed a more balanced federal budget and implemented the Independent Treasury. Private banks could no longer control the government's fiscal endeavors, which reduced volatility. The nation would face new financial calamities in the following decades, but this particular disaster was highly influential. The Panic of 1837 dramatically altered the landscape of the banking system in America, leading to heightened controls on government and private banking while simultaneously lessening governmental influence on Americans' lives. These advances attempted to reduce further conflict and embodied the revolutionary ideals which pervade American history. They are a tribute to the resiliency of the American spirit and a symbol of great determination to survive seemingly insurmountable hardships.

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS ONE POUND NOTE

In a recent blog post, we covered an amazing group of notes from British Guiana, which will be offered in our Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction. In this blog post, we look at another British Commonwealth rarity offered in the sale, this time from the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The Turks and Caicos Islands are in the Caribbean, south of the Bahamas, with which they are geographically contiguous. A British Overseas Territory that has been a part of the United Kingdom since the 18th century, today it's a popular tourist destination and an offshore financial center. Before tourism came to the islands, however, salt exports were the primary industry. There are eight main islands, along with numerous smaller islands, separated into two distinct island groups. Despite a fairly large population for a British Overseas Territory, the islands were traditionally governed from elsewhere, including the Bahamas, Bermuda, and Jamaica, through various political constructs. While the islands have sought their independence, or even a joint federation with the Bahamas, they remain politically associated with Great Britain to this day.

The islands welcomed nearly two million tourists in 2024, with more than 1.2 million of those arriving by cruise ship. Those tourists used U.S. dollars, which has been legal tender since 1973, when it replaced the Jamaican dollar. From time-to-time the islands have also issued coins denominated in Crowns, but those don't circulate and are properly classified as "NLCT," or non-circulating legal tender coins (equal to the US dollar and minted for the collector market). However, in the early 20th century, a group of notes denominated in Shillings and Pounds was issued by the Government of the Turks & Caicos Islands. These are the only pieces of paper money ever issued specifically for the islands, and they are rare in any format.

The Pick catalog lists four issues, consisting of three denominations (5/- Shillings, 10/- Shillings, and 1 Pound), but the Banknote Book further divides it into seven different issues. Due to the rarity of these notes it is possible that more varieties exist. The design is fairly simplistic and is similar to notes from other regions of the British Empire, including the Falkland Islands and Fiji. The notes were printed by Thomas de la Rue in England. The earliest varieties were shipped undated and unsigned, while sometime around 1913, a change was made and the date and signature were preprinted. Depending on the issue, some notes feature a blank back while others show the coat of arms flanked by engraved guilloches. Before issuance, most notes (if not all) featured a counterfoil at left that was separated from the note upon issue and retained by the government.

As previously mentioned, surviving examples are rare in any format. We have previously offered fewer than a handful of notes from the Turks and Caicos in our auctions. Just a few issued notes are known of all three denominations, and the print totals were minuscule, based on the serial numbers that have been observed. The sole hand-signed / hand-dated example that we are aware of is the note recently consigned to us. This 1 Pound note is dated December 3rd, 1903, and is one of the earliest notes issued of the highest denomination, with a fairly low 3-digit serial number. The signatures observed are those of Alexis Wynns Harriott, a well-known businessman from Salt Cay who had served as the island's commissioner from 1888 to 1891, and his son, Edmund Cowles Harriott. Both were Directors of Currency at the time of issue, although little else is known of their tenure and role in the currency issuance.

Collectors may be familiar with another 1 Pound note that appeared at public auction elsewhere in 2020 and 2024. That note, dated 1918, is the only other issued example from the Turks and Caicos Islands that has been offered at public auction in recent history. However, we must note that it has been severely discolored, with the red faded to orange. By comparison, the note that will be offered in our Summer 2025 Global Showcase Auction is an original note graded Choice Fine 15 by PMG. While some rust damage is observed and mentioned by the grading service, it does not feature any repairs, and the eye appeal is excellent with a bold date and signatures. With the discolored note selling twice for nearly $30,000, we would not be surprised if this superior example, with a much earlier (handwritten) date, brings a new record for any note from the Turks and Caicos.

To read the complete article, see:
A Rarity from the Turks and Caicos (https://stacksbowers.com/a-rarity-from-the-turks-and-caicos/)

PANAMA-PACIFIC COIN SET LETTERS

Complete Set of Certifying Letters from San Francisco Mint Superintendent T.W.H. Shanahan for Panama-Pacific Exposition Commemorative Coin Set No. 24.

A fascinating and rare offering, each of these original typed letters are on San Francisco Mint, Office of the Superintendent letterhead, dated May 28, 1915, and state:

Each letter, in turn, is accompanied by its original San Francisco Mint, Office of the Superintendent mailing envelope with the individual coin denomination and No. 24 typed along the right edge on the front. All letters and envelopes are well preserved with the paper crisp and free of foxing, soiling and discoloration. Each letter has been folded into thirds horizontally, from when they were inserted into their respective envelope; the envelopes show (very) minor signs of handing along the edges, but there is nothing here that is not easily forgiven, or just as easily overlooked.

Lot 3266 in our November 2024 Showcase Auction was for complete set No. 28 of Panama-Pacific Exposition commemorative coins, each accompanied by the original letter from Superintendent Shanahan and envelope, of the same types offered here. That set, with the coins, realized $216,000. We have see very few of these original sets and letters over the years, and the present offering, without the coins, represents an opportunity to acquire just the letters and envelopes that will be more realistic for many collectors. We stress, however, that interested bidders should prepare an aggressive strategy - these original letters are rare, as above, and numismatic demand is strong for all kinds of supporting items related to the Panama-Pacific Exposition commemorative coin program. There are no coins in this lot. (Total: 5 letters; 5 envelopes)

To read the complete lot description, see:
Complete Set of Certifying Letters from San Francisco Mint Superintendent T.W.H. Shanahan for Panama-Pacific Exposition Commemorative Co... (https://auctions.stacksbowers.com/lots/view/3-1JHX1H/complete-set-of-certifying-letters-from-san-francisco-mint-superintendent-twh-shanahan-for-panama-pacific-exposition-commemorative-co)

PHYSICAL CRYPTO AT BITCOIN 2025 CONFERENCE

Remember when Bitcoin was only $30? In the early 2010s, people struggled to understand the concept of digital money. To make it more tangible, physical tokens were created, coins with actual Bitcoin embedded inside. Each token carried a public address and could be redeemed like any digital wallet. What began as a way to explain Bitcoin has become something much more.

At the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas, we showcased highlights from our upcoming June Showcase Auction. Most attendees had never seen a physical Bitcoin token in person and many didn't know they existed.

Our next Physical Cryptocurrency Session runs this June and features loaded and unloaded cryptocurrency. Here are just a few of the pieces crossing the auction block:

Lot 3002: 2013 Casascius 1 Bitcoin. Loaded. Firstbits 13G3km4s. Series 2. Brass. MS-62 (PCGS).

Lot 3006: 2017 BTCC "Poker Chip" 0.005 Bitcoin. Loaded. Firstbits 1DWKaBNciU. Serial No. E01624. Series C. Clay Composite. MS-70 (PCGS).

Lot 3029: 2020 Polymerbit 0.001 Bitcoin Banknote. Loaded. Crypto Valley Edition. Serial No. A000049. Series 2A-U (ND). Superb Gem Uncirculated 67 PPQ (PCGS).

Lot 3036: 2020 Ballet 12.5 Litecoin Card. Loaded. Firstbits LQgcZb5. Serial No. AA063020. 50g of .999 Fine Silver. Genuine (PCGS).

It's now 2025, and Bitcoin has reached over $100,000. Those early tokens from the 2010s are now considered rare and highly collectible. If you were early to Bitcoin, you saw something before the world caught on. And even now, this story is just beginning. Imagine holding one of these physical tokens thirty years from now! Register to bid and own a piece of Bitcoin's early history.

To read the complete article, see:
We Showed Physical Bitcoin in Las Vegas and Most People had no Idea it Existed! (https://stacksbowers.com/we-showed-physical-bitcoin-in-las-vegas-and-most-people-had-no-idea-it-existed/)

LOOSE CHANGE: JUNE 8, 2025

The 2025 "State of Collectables" Report

The fact that coins topped the collecting charts didn't surprise me. That was the case back in 2023 and much earlier when AC Nielsen conducted similar research for eBay in 2004.

1. Universal Recognition and Accessibility: Everyone understands and handles money. You don't need to explain why a coin from 1910 is significant the way you might with a vintage toy.
2. Built-in Rarity Metrics:: Mintage figures provide objective scarcity measures. When only 1,500 1930 Pennies were minted, that's not opinion - that's math.
3. Historical Significance:: Every coin tells the story of its time. A 1942 Threepence carries the weight of wartime Australia in ways that transcend mere metal content.
4. Size and Storage:: Try storing 50 vintage cars against 50 rare coins. Coins win on logistics alone.

To read the complete article, see:
The 2025 "State of Collectables" Report by eBay and Deloitte Access Economics (https://www.sterlingcurrency.com.au/blog/news-research/the-fine-art-of-numismatics/the-2025-state-of-collectables-report-by-ebay-and/)

The 1814 Capped Bust Half Dollar

It is sad that a regular date, which is not characterized by repunching in the die or by very apparently unusual numerals, is typically called a normal date! The use of the term normal for regular numerals incorrectly implies that overdates and pertinent anomalies, like a small numeral, are abnormal. Almost all such varieties stem from standard practices and procedures of the first U.S. Mint, and are factors in the personalities of coins. They are not abnormal. Readily apparent minting anomalies are often seen on U.S. coins dating before 1836.

As a result of varieties relating to numerals receiving so much attention, early Capped Bust halves with a regular date are often overlooked. A Capped Bust half with regular numerals and no very noticeable anomalies is less likely to be accompanied by commentary than a Capped Bust half from the same year that is an overdate or features noticeable peculiarities.

Reportedly, more than one million 1814 halves were minted. This total includes 1814/3 halves. It is likely that fewer than ten thousand survive, including both 1814 regular date and 1814/3 overdate half dollars.

To read the complete article, see:
The Capped Bust Half Dollar of 1814: An Analysis (https://www.greysheet.com/news/story/the-capped-bust-half-dollar-of-1814-an-analysis)

Archives International Auction 103 Highlights

Among the marquee highlights are three extraordinary interest-bearing notes from the Civil War era, each representing a crucial financial innovation during one of America's most challenging times:

• A $50 Compound Interest Treasury Note (1864, Fr. #192b), one of just 14 known, featuring an allegorical vignette of "Loyalty" and bold bronze overprint.
• A $100 Compound Interest Treasury Note (1865, Fr. #193b), one of only 12 recorded, and last sold publicly in 2021 for $78,000.
• A $50 Interest Bearing Note (1864, Fr. #212), paying 7.3% annually and one of only seven examples known, with one held in the Smithsonian's collection.

Each of these notes is a rare survivor of a period when the U.S. government used interest-bearing currency to fund the war effort—most were redeemed and destroyed, making surviving examples highly desirable.

Equally significant is a newly surfaced pair of ca. 1836–1839 Citizens' Bank of Louisiana interest-bearing proof notes—a $100 and $500 post note—both believed to be unique discovery pieces. Printed on india paper with engraved interest coupons and designed to pay 5½% interest annually, these historic notes reflect the financial ingenuity of antebellum Louisiana and predate federal interest-bearing currency by decades. Never before seen at auction, they offer a rare glimpse into early American fiscal policy and banking.

To read the complete article, see:
Landmark Auction to Feature Some of the Rarest Interest-Bearing and Error U.S. Banknotes Ever Offered by Archives International Auctions LLC on June 11th, 2025 (greysheet.com/news/story/landmark-auction-to-feature-some-of-the-rarest-interest-bearing-and-error-us-banknotes-ever-offered-by-archives-international-auctions-llc-on-june-11th-2025)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
ARCHIVES INTERNATIONAL SALE 103 (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a15.html)

Tiffany Studios Glass

It is unfathomable (and yet, somehow, true) that Tiffany Studios' glass creations were ignored and regarded as decidedly out of style beginning around the time of Louis Comfort Tiffany's death in 1933 and over the next 25 years.

Revered in their time, the studio's beautiful creations gestated and languished until near the dawn of the age of Aquarius. Then, in 1958, Tiffany's first major retrospective, at the Museum of Contemporary Crafts in New York, saw his and his studio's work reappreciated. Only then were the lamps, vases, windows and other objects of design able to be fully recognized as works of unparalleled art, not just innovative and expensive tabletop and cabinet curiosities for the wealthy, as they were originally marketed.

There have always been cognoscenti who loved Tiffany. The great "for instance" is Andy Warhol, who kept a Tiffany lamp next to his Federal-style four-poster bed. The association between Tiffany lamps and Pop Art and hippiedom is no surprise; I am repeatedly amazed when I look at some of those early Favrile vases and their swirling, dizzying psychedelia. The thread from those to a Fillmore-era Grateful Dead poster or an Exploding Plastic Inevitable happening is easily connected.

To read the complete article, see:
Tiffany's Eternal Glow: How Tiffany Became the Ultimate Design Trophy (https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/louis-comfort-tiffany-eternal-glow-brad-dunning)

To read the complete lot description, see:
The Stillman Memorial Window (https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2025/masterpieces-by-louis-comfort-tiffany-featuring-the-ann-and-robert-fromer-collection/the-stillman-memorial-window)

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART ONE (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a17.html)
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: JUNE 1, 2025, PART TWO (https://www.coinbooks.org/v28/esylum_v28n22a18.html)

ABOUT THIS ISSUE: JUNE 8, 2025

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 pursuing a Master's Degree in Quantitative Economics 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.