Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 10, Number 37, September 16, 2007:
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
Copyright (c) 2007, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society.


WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM SEPTEMBER 16, 2007

Among our recent subscribers are Jonah Parsons of F+W Publications,
courtesy of Howard Daniel, and James Andel.  Welcome aboard!  We
now have 1,181 subscribers.

The publication of this issue was delayed until Monday afternoon
due to server maintenance work at binhost.com, the firm that handles
our mailings -sorry!

This week we open with news of a numismatic book sale from Scott
Semens, a book on eighteenth-Century European Medallists, and the
2007 FIDEM Congress exhibit catalogue.  Regarding previous topics
we have a number of interesting responses relating to high relief
U.S. coins and more information on Daniel Carr's "Amero" patterns.

In the news, the unique gold medal presented to Commodore Matthew C.
Perry sells in a Maine estate sale, a couple is arrested while
attempting to "spend" Liberty dollars, and a motorist is jailed
for attempting to use obsolete highway toll tokens.

Longtime Pittsburgh numismatist Charles N. "Chuck" Erb passed away
last week.  According to Dave Bowers, also passing away recently was
Robert Batchelder, a well-liked coin dealer in and around Ambler, PA
in the 1950s and 1960s.  Batchelder later became a leading dealer in
autographs.  I have no other information on Batchelder and would
appreciate hearing from anyone who knew him.

In other news, a run on a British banking institution evokes fearsome
memories of the Great Depression, British banknotes are studied for
drug contamination, and eight tons of stolen original Euro banknote
paper has been recovered from counterfeiters.

To read what may be the world's first ribald limerick about
King Farouk, read on.  Have a great week, everyone.

Wayne Homren
Numismatic Bibliomania Society


SCOTT SEMENS NUMISMATIC BOOK SELLDOWN

Scott Semans is reducing his stock of numismatic literature.  He
writes: "I have hundreds of hard to find titles on (mostly) Asian
and unusual world coin series.  Many are imports, old stock, highly
specialized, or out of print.  I will be devoting more time to coins
and other merchandise, so only the major titles will be restocked
as they sell."

[Below are direct links to pages on Scott's web site.  -Editor]

NEW ARRIVALS, ALL CATEGORIES:  New Arrivals
CHINA, MODERN & PAPER:  China, Modern & Paper
CHINA: ANCIENT & SYCEE:  China, Ancient & Sycee
EAST ASIA: East Asia
INDIA: India
ISLAMIC: Islamic
ETHNOGRAPHIC - PRIMITIVE - ODD & CURIOUS: 
Ethnographic - Primitive - Odd & Curious
EXONUMIA:  Exonumia
GENERAL WORLD: General World
ANCIENT & MEDIEVAL: Ancient & Medieval
EUROPE / COLONIAL / LATIN AMERICA: Europe / Colonial / Latin America


EISLER'S 'DASSIERS OF GENEVA: EIGHTEENTH CENTURY EUROPEAN MEDALISTS'

Ian Stevens, Vice President of the David Brown Book Company writes:
"I'd like to announce that we now have William Eisler's monumental
"The Dassiers of Geneva: Eighteenth-Century European Medallists"
volumes in stock here and for sale to all in North America.  The
books got a very complimentary review in the Summer 2006 issue of
the ANS Magazine.

This link takes any who are interested to further information on
our website and to secure online ordering:
Ordering Info

[The following text is taken from the firm's web site. -Editor]

"The first volume, Jean Dassier, Medal Engraver: Geneva, Paris
and London, 1700-1733, traces the career of Jean Dassier (1676-1763)
and presents his famed series of illustrious men and women from
France and England, as well as the decorative works executed by
the Fabrique de Genève.

"The second volume, Dassier and Sons: An Artistic Enterprise in
Geneva, Switzerland and Europe, 1733-1759, presents an annotated
catalogue of the remarkable historic medals made for Geneva, Berne
and other partner cities in Europe, as well as the superb tokens
depicting the history of the Roman Republic. Much of the book is
also devoted to Jean Dassier's son, Jacques-Antoine (1715-1759)
and his work in England and at the imperial Russian court. 758p,
2 volumes, many illustrations."


FIDEM XXX EXHIBITION CATALOG AVAILABLE

Cary Hardy, Enterprise Manager of the American Numismatic Association,
forwarded details on the exhibit catalog for the FIDEM Congress taking
place at ANA headquarters in Colorado Springs.

He writes: "The catalog, representing more than 500 artists and
over 1,400 medallic creations, is organized alphabetically by
country and artist. Included for most medalists is his or her
year of birth, mailing address, and brief biography or personal
statement, followed by a list of works in the exhibition. Also
featured is a special, four-color supplement, FIDEM at 70',
celebrating the organization's 70th year and the groundbreaking
work of 14 renowned medallic artists, all of whom are 70 years
of age or older.

"Catalogs can be purchased for $39.95 each plus $6.95 shipping
and handling (item # BKFI4). Order from the ANA online at www.money.org
then 'Shop at MoneyMarket' or by phone by calling 1-800-467-5725.
To order by mail: American Numismatic Association MoneyMarket Store,
818 N. Cascade Ave., Colorado Springs, CO 80903-3279."

Cary adds: "We won't have the actual catalogs until the 19th but
they are available to everyone (not just the FIDEM attendees) and
will be sold through MoneyMarket and the ANA Museum Store.  The
exhibit is awesome! It is an extraordinary display for anyone
interested in medallic art, definitely worth the trip here to
Colorado Springs to see it."


NEW PERIODICAL: ISRAEL NUMISMATIC RESEARCH

Jere Bacharach of the Department of History at the University of
Washington in Seattle forwarded the following information from
Haim Gitler, Curator of Numismatics at The Israel Museum in Jerusalem
about a new journal, Israel Numismatic Research.

Volume 1 was published February 11 2007.  Members of the Israel
Numismatic Society will automatically receive a copy each year.
For more information, see:
More Info

[The following text is from the journal's web page. -Editor]

"The first numismatic journal published in Israel was sponsored
by the Israel Medals and Coins Society, which published a Bulletin
in Hebrew in February-March 1962. The editor was the energetic Leo
Kadman, then president of the Israel Numismatic Society. Kadman
produced four fascicles of the Bulletin. Upon Kadman’s untimely
death on December 27, 1963, the Bulletin faltered, and its last
fascicle was published in November 1964.

"The Israel Numismatic Society (founded 1945) first published its
Israel Numismatic Journal as a quarterly, in April 1963. Its first
editorial board was headed by Michael Avi-Yonah. This Journal appeared
for three years. After a hiatus of fifteen years, the Israel Numismatic
Journal reappeared, in 1980, ostensibly as an annual. All edited by
Prof. Dan Barag, this and nine subsequent volumes of the INJ have
appeared since then.

"During the hiatus, the Israel Numismatic Society published an
internal quarterly in Hebrew, entitled Alon (????) and edited by
Arie Kindler, which produced five numbers, between 1966 and 1974.

"Research of the ancient, medieval and modern coinage of this region
has become increasingly relevant to multi-disciplinary studies in
fields such as archaeology, history and iconography. In inaugurating
Israel Numismatic Research the INS national board wishes to stress
the importance of having a high level numismatic journal which
appears regularly, at the end of each calendar year. The ability
to publish a true annual reflects the advances in the field of
numismatics in Israel over the past decade. The title of the journal
signals the Society’s wish to encourage comprehensive and innovative
research in the field.

"The focus of Israel Numismatic Research will be on coinages circulating
in the southern Levant, from antiquity through to the modern era.
Articles on medals, tokens, metrology, sealings and minor arts related
to numismatics will also be considered for inclusion, as will book
reviews."


VISITS TO THE F&W PUBLICATIONS LIBRARY REQUIRE ADVANCE PLANNING

Howard Daniel writes: "My recent visit to the F&W Publications
(Krause Publications) Library was an event planned many months in
advance because the Numismatic and Library staffs are not usually
readily available to watch and guide me, or anyone else.  From the
response to my item in The E-Sylum, I might have implied to some
people that they can just show up and start researching the library.
This is not the case, and their library is not open to the public.
Some long term planning is required by everyone to ensure there is
staff available and not away on company business and/or conventions,
shows, etc.  And it is only available to those known to the staff
and willing to make last minute adjustments to their schedules to
meet the staff's ever changing business requirements."

 HOWARD DANIEL VISITS THE F&W PUBLICATIONS LIBRARY
 esylum_v10n35a03.html


COMMODORE PERRY'S GOLD MEDAL SOLD IN MAINE ESTATE SALE

A unique and very important medal was sold recently in a Rockland,
Maine estate sale, as reported by Sam Pennington of The Maine
Antique Digest:

"The gold medal presented to Commodore Matthew C. Perry by merchants
of Boston “…in token of their appreciation of his services in
negotiating the treaty with Japan signed at Yoku-Hama, March 31,
and with Lew Chew at Napa, July 11, 1854…” sold with its raggedy
original case for $165,000 (including buyer’s premium) to one of
ten phone bidders at Bruce Gamage’s auction in Rockland, Maine,
on Monday, August 27.

"The medal was struck in 1856 at the U.S. Mint on request and paid
for by the Boston merchants. There was this one gold medal struck
along with 20 silver medals and 104 bronze medals.

"The price far exceeded the most ambitious presale estimate of
$30,000/40,000 posited by serious buyers. According to auctioneer
Gamage, the buyer was a collector from New York City who wishes to
remain anonymous. The underbidder on the floor was New York City
coin and medals dealer Anthony Terranova.

"Not that it mattered in the end, but Gamage said he had weighed
the medal on a gram scale and gave that weight and the size to one
of the phone bidders who determined that it “contained at least
five thousand dollars worth of gold.” Gamage also took the medal
to a local jeweler, but did not do any potentially destructive
testing using acid."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story

Antiques and the Arts interviewed the auctioneer about the piece:

"A gold medal presented to Commodore Matthew C. Perry in 1854 for
his efforts in Japan was a glittering draw for collectors at Bruce
Gamage Jr's annual Maine summer auction on August 27. Marking what
the auctioneer characterized as a 'career high' sale, the medal
sold for $165,000 to an anonymous New York City buyer on the phone.

"The medal came from a local summer family, according to Gamage.

"'I knew it was gold and I knew it was good, but I decided to estimate
it on the value of the gold rather than historical considerations,'
said Gamage of the lot's $4/6,000 initial presale estimate. After the
week went by, however, 'I was getting all of these calls [about the
medal], and that's when I began thinking it might bring $30/40,000.'

"The annual estate auction was, as Gamage said by telephone afterwards,
'A fun sale,' grossing close to a half million dollars, which is about
as good as it has been in Gamage's 39-year career."

To read the complete article and view images of the medal, see:
Full Story

[Ads published in Sam Pennington's Maine Antique Digest and website
alerted collectors to the offering.  Sam is working on a longer piece
for the MCA Advisory.  Were any of our readers among those bidding
on the piece?  -Editor]

To view the Maine Antique Digest web ad for the sale, see:
Full Story


OTHER HIGH RELIEF U.S. COINS

Regarding Carl Honore's item on high-relief coinage in the last
issue, Richard Doty of the National Numismatic Collection at the
Smithsonian writes: "I'd like to observe that Carl Honore and I
have been talking about matters technological, industrial, metallurgical,
and numismatic for the better part of fifteen years.  I think he's
right in his comments about curved fields, strikes, die wear, and
American twentieth-century coinage.  The ancestor of the buffalo nickel
and the Walking Liberty half dollar was indeed Conrad Kuchler's
halfpence and farthings of 1799.  Take a close look at one in any
condition above fine, and you'll see a very clever use of depth, a
balancing act between fields, designs, and relief that the Americans
would rediscover a century and a quarter later."

John Dannreuther writes: "Our first high relief coinage was for
our most diminutive gold coin - the gold dollar.

"In 1849, Longacre used concave fields (convex dies) for the obverse
for the first gold dollars (the reverse dies were normal, flat field
types). (The 1849 gold dollar is also the first US regular issue coin
to have the date in the master die.) The original high relief, concave
fields 1849 gold dollars (the No "L" and the first "L" variety had
concave fields) were abandoned because of reverse die breakage. The
stress on the reverse (anvil) dies required a change to flat fields
for both sides. The double eagle prepared later in the year was also
first prepared with slightly concave obverse fields, which were changed
for the 1850 regular issue. The complaint that the double eagle would
not stack was false, but the lesson Longacre learned with the breaking
of the reverse dies for the gold dollars undoubtedly resulted in his
changing the double eagle dies.

"In regards to the early twentieth century high relief coinage, I was
in the Smithsonian last week and was shown some of the Charles Barber
papers (mainly letters) that may, or may not, be familiar to your
readers.

"Although I would not really consider the Mercury dime (yes, it really
is the Winged Liberty Head) and Walking Liberty half dollar high relief
coinage, they do have slightly concave fields. Striking problems were
encountered and the half dollar design was modified.

"Among the Barber letters was a July 18, 1916 handwritten letter from
Adolph Alexander Weinman to Barber. This letter may be published
elsewhere, but I am sure some of the subscribers (me included) have
not seen it. The content is interesting, as it relates to the design
and the ultimate change from brilliant Proofs to Satin/Roman/Matte
Proofs.

"In it, Weinman states:

 I am sending you today by parcel post the bronze cast of the reverse
 of the Dime. I have strengthened the lettering and have slightly
 simplified the foliage of the olive branch. The obverse for the Dime
 is now being cast in bronze and should be in your hands within a few
 days, if the bronze cast turns out satisfactory. I shall also make
 the lettering stronger in this model.

 The obverse for the Half Dollar is now being reduced, after I had
 made certain modifications with Mr. Woolley's consent and I am now
 busy with the reverse.

 I am much troubled about the polished background of the two coins
 shown here. The reflection from the polished surface is so intense
 that one cannot get a calm impression of the design at all. Mr.
 Woolley agrees with me that the background of these coins should
 not be polished and I would greatly appreciate an expression of
 opinion from you in the matter.

 Will you also kindly inform me when both dies for the Dime have
 been completed and a sample coin struck, with dull surface, and
 I will come over to see them.

"(Thanks to Jim Hughes of the Smithsonian for the copy of this letter.)

"Of course, the dime and half dollar do not have the deep concave
fields of the Saint-Gaudens coinage, but as collectors of these two
series know, fully struck coins are difficult for many of the dates,
especially the branch mint issues.

"The convex nature of the dies for high relief coinage not only make
striking difficult, but makes polishing the dies for brilliant Proof
coinage nearly impossible. (This is discussed in detail in Roger
Burdette's book on the 1905-08 coinage.)

"There are just too many technical difficulties to strike regular
coinage with deeply high relief dies. Any clashing would be difficult
to remove without removing some detail, as noted by Carl Honore. We
are lucky that Teddy was so adamant in insisting that the High Relief
double eagles be struck, as the Mint certainly knew that a regular
issue high relief coinage was impractical."


QUIZ QUESTION: THREE U.S. COINS WITH DESIGNER'S NAME

John Dannreuther also offers the following numismatic trivia
question for this week.  He writes: "What are the three U.S.
coins that have the designer's name on them?

"Hints: One of them is an early pattern (considered a regular
issue by some), one is a regular issue (considered a pattern by
some), and the last one is a pattern (no controversy for this
one, but it was issued to honor a recently departed Chief Engraver)."


DICK JOHNSON ON THE DEFINITION OF HIGH RELIEF

Dick Johnson writes: "Carl Honore brings forth some interesting
comments in regard to high relief on coins and medals in last week’s
E-Sylum. ‘High relief’ in numismatics is not difficult to define,
but it is a sloppy and inexact term. It comes from sculpture where
it means relief projecting more than half from its background with
extensive undercutting.

"Such sculptural high relief is impossible to reproduce by die
striking. Coins and medals cannot be struck from relief models
with undercuts.  Period.  In fact, coin relief requires a bevel
on the sides of all detail and lettering of at least 5 degrees.
Anything less than 2½ degrees will always ‘hang up’ in the die
and not eject, less than 5 degrees it will sometimes hang up.

"What ‘high relief’ in coin making means is the highest possible
form of ‘coin relief.’ Coin relief is VERY LOW modulated relief
that forms the design that can be struck in a coining press with
one blow, and has a name in Italian, ‘stiacciato.’ Why Italian?
Because Italians named all forms of sculptural relief:

High relief (Italian ‘alto-rilievo’).
Medium relief (‘mezzo-rilievo’).
Low relief (‘basso-rilievo’).
Very low relief or coin relief (‘stiacciato’).
Hollow relief (‘cavo-rilievo’).
Intaglio or incuse relief (‘intaglio rilievo’).

"For medals any of the last four kinds of relief can be reproduced
and the term ‘bas-relief’ is a term used for all such medallic relief.
(The ‘s’ is silent, it is pronounced BAA-relief).

"For the high relief on coins (that Carl talks about) this has to
be in the original model. Most mints prepare their models on a
‘basin’ – an oversize plaster base preformed with a slight basin
shape, upon which designs are made by building and shaping with
modeling clay or plasteline. Carl mentioned “concave fields.” The
base upon which models are prepared – with a basin shape ultimately
forming the coin’s background – give opportunity for this high relief.

"The Franklin Mint demanded all models be prepared on such ‘basins’
and would often furnish these to their modelers (because all their
work was struck on coining presses). But they demanded no relief
higher than 3/16-inch and whipped out a ‘depth gauge’ to test this
height on all incoming models. All artists creating models for a
series of medals were required to use the ‘basin’ required for that
series (for uniformity).

"Medallic companies do not have this requirement. They could prepare
their dies from any reasonable size or kind of bas-relief models.
Their models were prepared on ‘background plates’ – bases not
necessarily basin shaped. The background plate for medals can be
concave, flat, or even convex in contrast to the concave shape of
a basin. [In my video ‘The Medal Maker’ it shows Laura Gardin Fraser
making her own background plate of wood and shellacking it to give
it a nonporous surface.]

"Metal workers call this slight curve in a basin shape a ‘camber’
and I have written about this previously in E-Sylum. If a camber is
not in the model a slight basin can be created, or increased, on a
modern die-engraving pantograph (like the Janvier). See
esylum_v07n11a10.html
"Carl’s mention of Adolph A. Weinman’s knowledge of coin and medal
making technology is absolutely correct. In addition to being a
highly creative designer he had been preparing bas-relief medallic
models – for medals, plaques, reliefs -- for two decades prior to
his 1916 Mercury dime and Liberty Walking half dollar. In fact, the
U.S. Mint actually struck his 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition
Award Medals in four varieties.

"Weinman was well versed in the technology involved. He had been a
friend of the Weils, Henri & Felix, founders of Medallic Art Company,
even attended classes at the National Academy of Design with Felix
years prior. He had access to their plant in New York City and, of
course, to their medallic knowledge. Imagine their conversations
exchanging technological knowledge together!

"Carl also mentions the problems of striking the Buffalo nickel. The
problem is known as ‘congruent mass’ where high relief exists on both
sides of a coin opposite each other. There is just not enough mass
in the blank for metal to flow into – and fill -- all cavities in the
die in one strike. This can be solved by a pressman increasing the
striking pressure slightly. If not, it may mean remodeling the design
and cutting new dies (but I have no knowledge of this occurring in
recent years).

"Frankly, I believe what Carl is asking for in his request for high
relief coins is not high relief, as such, but rather, greater detail.
The remarkable advantage of coin and medal technology is its ability
to reproduce abundant detail in very small space. This is what gives
a coin or medal design its ‘charm.’

"This detail is obtained by modeling oversize models with a simple
design that has extensive texture and detail. It is then reduced on
a die-engraving pantograph for dies to reproduce such minute detail
on all pieces struck from that die. Too many present day coin and
medal models lack this luxuriant detail."


QUERY: MEDAL OF NEW YORK STATE WOMAN SUFFRAGE PARTY HARVEST WEEK 1916

Sam Pennington writes: "We bought a medal from the latest fixed price
catalog of Rex Stark, the Gardiner, Massachusetts, dealer in Americana.
It's a 3.5 inch cast uniface medal "New York State Woman Suffrage Party
Harvest Week 1916," which is signed AMW.   That's Alice Morgan Wright
(1881-1975), a sculptor and suffragette. The question is what was
Harvest Week, 1916?"


MORE ON DANIEL CARR'S AMERO COINS

As we noted in last week's E-Sylum (September 10), talk show host
Hal Turner has been misrepresenting Daniel Carr's Amero coin patterns.
Jeff Starck of Coin World was already on the trail of this story, which
was published in the Coin World issue of the same date.  I read the
article when I returned from London.

Starck noted that Hal Turner is branded an Anti-semite/racist/bigot by
the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center, which
called him 'the host of hate.'    Starck contacted Daniel Carr and
learned that he tried to contact Turner to correct the record but his
e-mails were ignored (and he couldn't get through via the telephone
number listed).

 CONSPIRACY THEORISTS HOME IN ON AMERO FANTASY COINS
 esylum_v10n36a23.html

The Dallas Morning News picked up on this too and presented the
truth in a September 11 article:

"There's a phony story going around about a mythical currency
that's supposed to replace the dollar called the 'amero.'

"New Jersey blogger Hal Turner says a friend in the U.S. Treasury
smuggled him a 20-amero coin made at the U.S. Mint in Denver –
evidence, he writes, of a conspiracy to unite the United States,
Canada and Mexico in a North American Union.

"Well, you can get as many of these 20-amero coins as you want for
$9 apiece – which would be a steal if it were a real currency.
Just check with Daniel Carr at www.dc-coin.com."

"Mr. Carr said he decided to make amero coins to be provocative
and get people thinking about the issue.

"He said he was not asked by the U.S. Mint to design the coin
(and Mint spokesman Greg Hernandez agrees).

"Meanwhile, Mr. Turner stands by his story and says he has now
heard from an anonymous ATM maker that the government is starting
to provide specifications for amero paper bills.

"What will this guy sell next? Mexican shares in the Brooklyn Bridge?"

Full Story


COUPLE SPENDING LIBERTY DOLLARS ARRESTED

On Thursday, The Week of Walworth County, WI published an article
noting that "A Rockford couple was arrested this spring for using
and trying to use "Liberty Dollars" at three Walworth businesses.

"The suspects, Shaun A. Kranish, 22, and Svetlana V. Dudnik, 24,
may be the first to try and use the 'private barter currency' in
Walworth County, District Attorney Phil Koss said.

"The couple is also the first to post their story on a new blog
site, walworthcorruption.blogspot.com, which started Sept. 7.

"On it, the couple tells their story of how they were allegedly
harassed by police, booked in jail and thrust into the court system
for, as they say, not doing anything wrong.

"On May 6, Kranish was getting something to eat at the Dari-Ripple
in Walworth and attempted to pay for his meal with a $20 'fine silver
Liberty Dollar.' Shortly after he gave it to the clerk, a police
officer arrived and started asking him questions.

"'I tried to explain that it was not against the law, that I was
offering silver for trade...,' a writer claiming to be Shaun wrote,
on the blog site. The article also appears on another blog site,
www.makethestand.com.

"Kranish and Dudnik, who according to the postings are now married,
were arrested and taken to jail. Both are charged with four counts
of misdemeanor theft.

"Kranish also was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon. He had
a .45 caliber handgun in a CD case in his car on May 6, and he was
wearing an empty holster, according to the complaint.

"Walworth police were notified of Liberty Dollars being used at the
Walworth Landing gas station, Daniels Sentry in Walworth and again
at Dari-Ripple in late April, according to the criminal complaint.
Change was given back in at least one of the instances.

"Using the Liberty Dollars as circulating currency could actually
be a federal crime, according to the United States Mint.

"'They are not genuine United States Mint bullion coins and are not
legal tender,' according to the Mint's Web site. 'These medallions
are privately produced products that are neither backed by, nor
affiliated with, the United States Government.'"

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


MAN JAILED FOR USING OLD HIGHWAY TOLL TOKENS

Dennis Tucker and Dave Bowers forwarded the following item about
a man jailed for attempting to use invalid highway toll tokens.

"A Massachusetts man who insists his New Hampshire highway tokens
are still valid just spent three days in jail because he insisted
on using two tokens to pay a 50-cent toll.

"Thomas Jensen, 68, of Braintree, said the state broke a contract
with him and everyone else who bought tokens by refusing to accept
them after January of last year. He was convicted of theft of
services for continuing to use tokens after they were phased out.

"‘‘I gave the state of New Hampshire money for the tokens, and I
expect to be able to use them,’’ Jensen told The Patriot Ledger.

"Jensen was driving to his New Hampshire summer home when he tried
to pay the 50-cent toll with tokens, as he had always done.

"The toll worker refused to take them and a state trooper at the
plaza gave Jensen a citation.

"‘‘(The trooper) said, ‘Just give him the 50 cents.’ I said, ‘I
did, I gave him two tokens,’’’ Jensen told the newspaper.

"Monday, a judge told Jensen he could pay a $150 fine, do community
service or go to jail for three days. He choose jail.

"‘‘Over my dead body was I going to give the state another dollar
for the tolls,’’ Jensen said."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


CHARLES "CHUCK" ERB 1917-2007

[I learned last week that a good friend and numismatic mentor had
passed away - Chuck Erb of Pittsburgh.  Chuck was one of the senior
members of the Western Pennsylvania Numismatic Society and became
one of my numismatic role models.  Chuck took his hobby seriously,
and his passion and sense of detail impressed me immediately.
Chuck's specialty was Bust Halves, and he quietly assembled one of
the best collections in the country. But he had other interests as
well, in very diverse areas such as Swiss Shooting Talers.  His
talks at local clubs were a wealth of information.

When Chuck began selling his collections I purchased his Confederate
Half Dollar restrikes and related New Orleans pieces.  These were
auctioned last year by American Numismatic Rarities when I sold my
Civil War collections.  I saw Chuck last winter when I visited his
home to pick up his numismatic library, which I packed and shipped
on his behalf to Fred Lake who sold it in a recent sale.  Below are
excerpts from Chuck's obituary in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
He was a solid man of a solid generation if WWII vets.  Like my
late friends Glenn Mooney and Jules Reiver, they are of a disappearing
generation whose knowledge and courage will be sorely missed.
-Editor]

Charles "Chuck" N. Erb approached everything he did with passion,
devotion and attention to detail.  Whether building and inspecting
bridges, studying rare coins, volunteering with the Boy Scouts or
caring for his family, he was fully involved.

Mr. Erb, of McCandless, died Sunday, Sept. 9, 2007, of complications
from diabetes. He was 89.

"Anything that he was involved with, he seemed to jump in with both
feet," said his son, Thomas Erb. "He was quiet but quite firm (and)
assertive. He was very much a straight arrow in the sense of duty
to country, family and job. He really took that stuff very seriously."

Mr. Erb served in the Army Corps of Engineers during World War II,
first as an instructor at the Engineering School in Fort Belvoir, Va.

As company commander and captain, he led the 538th Light Pontoon
Company, a floating bridge unit, in Europe. His unit was responsible
for maintaining and guarding three floating bridges on the Rhine River
in Germany and maintaining the bridge at Remagen, the region's only
intact bridge.

"We were world travelers," said his wife of 25 years, Frances Erb.
"He liked Switzerland best, because he's of Swiss descent."

He was an avid numismatist, serving as an expert to other collectors
who sought his help identifying rare coins, Frances Erb said. He sold
his large collection a year ago and invested the money for his four
children, she said.

Mr. Erb focused his collection on half dollars from the late 1800s.
He approached his hobby like a scholar and sometimes found rare coins
in dealers' collections that the dealers had failed to recognize,
Thomas Erb said.

He also enjoyed deer hunting, Civil War history, performing Swiss
folk dances, Swiss sculpture, music and the opera.

To read the complete obituary, see: Full Story


LONDON REFLECTIONS

John Dannreuther (whose email was signed 'In Books We Trust'),
writes: "The latest E-Sylum brought back memories of my two visits
to the British Museum's study room.   It's a very nice atmosphere
to examine coins (except the lighting). The coin exhibit also is
among the best, if not the best, in world."

John Adams writes: "Another numismatic attraction in London is the
exhibit at the V&A showing how a medal is cast, from start to finish,
accompanied by a film clip that further amplifies.  No doubt, the
inspiration for this exhibit was the museum's director, Mark (The
Art of the Medal) Jones."

Nick Graver writes: "Please tell me someone is going to print out all
your London Diaries and bind them as a book!   They are so special, at
least one set should be bound and exist as a genuine book. Has it been
proposed, or done?"

Actually, I've been thinking of doing just that to have something
to give to my kids.  John Adams also suggested "How about doing an
offprint of all of your Notes from London, 20 numbered copies signed
by the author, proceeds to NBS?"   That's a good idea as well.  I
still haven't quite unpacked from the trip, but I'll work on something.
I wonder how many pages it will be - I've never actually printed out
an E-Sylum issue.

Looking back on my London assignment, I thought I'd offer the following
observations.  For numismatists planning a visit, my top recommendations
would be the British Museum and the Bank of England Museum.  Both can
be enjoyed by numismatists and non-numismatists alike, so bring the
whole family.  Better yet, both museums are FREE to the public (but
be sure to drop something in the donation boxes).

If you have time to travel outside of London, consider the Fitzwilliam
in Cambridge.  The medieval armor display is stunning and the exhibits
are close enough to touch (although you're not supposed to, I'm sure).
I found the armor displays at the Tower of London must less interesting,
mainly because the items are farther from the viewer or behind glass.
I got bored marching through and I wasn't the only visitor to jump the
lines to get out quickly.  The temporary numismatic exhibit in the Tower
was the biggest disappointment of my visit.  The recent Coin World
article on the exhibit was clearly written from a press release.
Having seen it in person I wouldn't bother walking up the steps to
get to it.

But don't let me be a sourpuss and turn you off of the Tower of London.
It remains a must-see on my list, but for the power of place and the
masterful interpretations of the Yeoman Guards.  The guards-turned-
tour-guides do an absolutely marvelous job of bringing history to life,
and to hear their tales while standing in on the very grounds where
the centuries-ago events took place borders on the magical.  As
Disneyfied as the place has become, it's no Disney, at least not in
the everything-is-fake-but-fun sense of the word.  Despite the thousands
of years of changes, this place is undeniably REAL, from the Roman wall
to the execution grounds to the White Tower itself.

Back to numismatics, serious collectors should kick themselves if they
don't plan at least one visit to the Student Room at the British Museum.
I procrastinated until late in my visit and wish I had found the time
to visit more often.  The ease of access is unbelievable - I guess I
just didn't expect it would be so easy to just waltz in off the street
and gain access to the collection.  As I noted, security is heavy -
coins are logged carefully and visitors are watched closely, but with
no questions asked visitors can see and handle many of the items in
the museum's extensive collection.

Access to collections is much more limited elsewhere, but one should
never be afraid to contact curators in advance to request a visit.
For example, my visit to the coin rooms at the Fitzwilliam was
enchanting, and serious scholars can be given research access to
parts of the collections on an as-needed basis.

The same can be said of the major London coin dealers.  These are
businesses after all, not tourist attractions, but if my experience
is any indication most of the dealers are quite welcoming to visitors
and happy to take a few moments to visit.  I did not make the rounds
of all the dealers, but Baldwin's, Spink and Dix Noonan Webb were
especially gracious and accommodating to my presumptuous last-minute
visits as my schedule allowed.

Simon Narbeth was equally welcoming and willing to spend a good deal
of time chatting with an interested collector.  In the end I did
purchase several items but I could tell that I was welcome
regardless.  This same spirit was evident in Pam West, who was quite
forthcoming with information during my visit to her coin fair table.
My hat is off to all the dealers for their openness and welcoming
demeanor.

Although non-numismatic I will add the staff at Sotheby's of London
to that list.  I would highly recommend to everyone visiting London
to stop by Sotheby's to view auction lots.  In some ways this was
the highlight of my visit, and I'm very glad I took the initiative
to stop by.  Viewing multimillion-dollar paintings first-hand before
an auction was a true thrill.  It's true that some of the best things
in life are free.   Seeing a painting on a wall in a museum is one
thing, but seeing pieces that have been in private collections for
decades (and likely to return to another private collection) is a
rare treat.  And it would be a fun way for family members to learn
a little bit about collecting.  They’ll remember that painting if
they read in the paper that it sold the next night for $55 million.

Lastly, try to find time for some of the idiosyncratic London sights
that are a bit off the beaten path.  Other highlights of my visit
turned out to be the Sir John Soane museum, the pedestrian tunnel
under the Thames and the Royal Observatory - all free as well, I
might add.

As E-Sylum editor I am blessed with many friends, but as E-Sylum
readers we're all friends.  Readers like Ted Buttrey, Christopher
Eimer, Harry and Phil Mernick, Hadrien Rambach, Douglas Saville,
John Andrew, Caroline Holmes and others all went to extra lengths
to brighten my stay, and to them I'm eternally grateful.  I would
also like to acknowledge Charles Riley of Charles Riley of Aylesbury 
(near Oxford) who graciously offered to meet with me, but our 
schedules never quite synced up.

My main regret is only that I only had a certain amount of time
available to visit with everyone.  I also regret my mental lapses
in having people sign my copy of the Comitia Americana book.
Sometimes I had forgotten to bring it with me, sometimes people
were busy with customers at a coin fair, and in Darryl Atchison's
case, I was so enthralled with his manuscript that I completely
forgot to pull out my book to have him sign.  Nevertheless I'm
glad I thought to take it with me and very happy to have a number
of signatures and inscriptions to remind me of my visits in addition
to these electronic jottings.

Thanks also to all of you, my E-Sylum readers - your comments
and complements were quite encouraging, and although I stayed up
later than I should have some nights completing my diary entries,
I'm glad I did.  It was a fun episode in my collecting life, and
I'm glad to have had your vicarious companionship.  Happy collecting!


RUN ON BRITISH BANK ECHOES DEPRESSION-ERA PANIC

In an article published by England's Telegraph describes a frightening
scene not encountered in decades: "At first, it was a very British kind
of panic: calm, polite, reserved. Armed with folding stools and flasks,
battalions of savers descended on high streets across Britain to lay
siege - quietly - to Northern Rock branches.

"Up and down the country, from Newcastle to Brighton and Bristol to
Bromley, pensioners lined up with young mums, and lawyers stood alongside
labourers.  Susan Ogley, at Northern Rock in Brigate, was ‘a little
worried’ and planned to take out some savings.

"Customers, many of whom had been queuing from 6am, swapped tales of
jammed websites and unanswered phone calls.  By mid-morning, however,
when the besieged staff began turning away customers, the genteel
atmosphere had turned to anger as customers began to clash with
Northern Rock staff, its management and even the Government.

"Orderly queues descended into scrums as customers feared for their
life savings.

"Northern Rock's management supplied no extra cashiers at any of its
branches, and branch managers were left to decide whether to stay
open for longer or not.

"In the London suburb of Golders Green, there were scenes of pandemonium
when staff started to hand out a limited number of tickets for customers
who would be seen.

"Fighting her way to get past the queue outside the Golders Green
branch, wheelchair-bound pensioner Mary Davies, 86, was livid - but
not with Northern Rock or the Bank of England.

"'I think these people are bloody stupid,' said Miss Davies, gesturing
at the throng stretching up the street. The pensioner had come to her
local branch as she does every Saturday to pay £25 into her savings
account and to deposit a cheque.

"'If the Bank of England is willing to stand by Northern Rock, why are
these people worrying about their measly savings,' she railed. 'If
there is a crisis, it is people like these that will have caused it.

"'It's like panic buying in the war - it just makes things 10 times
worse. Having lived through the war, I think this is madness.'"

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


ARTICLE FEATURES COLORADO ARTISTS RENDAL AND SWENSON'S FIDEM CONGRESS MEDALS

The Times-Call of Longmont, CO published an article Tuesday about
local artists whose work appears in the ANA's FIDEM congress exhibit:

"Two local artists’ medals will be part of the International Medal
Federation’s 30th Art Medal World Congress later this month in
Colorado Springs.

"Camille Rendal, an art instructor at Front Range Community College’s
Boulder County campus, and student Elaine Swenson are the only Colorado
artists whose medals were accepted for the congress. In all, 31 U.S.
artists will have 66 medals on display at the exhibition, Sept. 19-22
at the American Numismatic Association’s Money Museum in Colorado
Springs.

"Rendal said she wanted to create a medal that symbolized human
intervention following the devastation of hurricanes Katrina and
Rita in 2005 and the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004.

"One of her two bronze medals portrays a hand extending a ladder upward
to a house, symbolizing the 'individual hand helping people resettle
from tragedy,' she said.

"Swenson, who has a degree in graphic design, also had two medals
accepted for the exhibition. One is a bronze cube that symbolizes
peace through a depiction of Christianity and Islam’s connections
and a dove of peace with an olive branch.

"'A lot of people don’t speak the same language, and using symbolism
gets the message across to different cultures and languages,' she
said of her medals.

"The exhibit will feature about 1,400 medals created by 500 artists
from more than 32 countries."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


ARTICLE DISCUSSSES WYOMING'S STATE QUARTER DESIGN

The Jackson Hole Star-Tribune published an article recently commenting
on the unusual design of the Wyoming state quarter.

"When it comes to matters of public policy and personal taste, Wyoming
and its citizens aren't afraid to buck a trend.

"A recent example of that independent streak is the design of the new
state quarter, which includes a unique feature among the 50 state
quarters, and possibly among all U.S. currency ever made.

"Rather than adorn its 25-cent piece with a clutter of images like
Arkansas (diamond, duck, wetlands), the scenic outdoors like Colorado
(Rocky Mountains) or an intricately cut symbol like Georgia (charter
oak), Wyoming opted for a uniquely simple image to represent itself
to the nation.

"In fact, the clean depiction of a cowboy trying to tame a bucking
horse stands out as the only silhouetted design in the 50 state quarter
series; all others include detailed etching.

"What's more, Wyoming's quarter design may be the only silhouetted
design ever produced on a U.S. coin, said Dwight Brockman, who has
been a coin dealer in Cheyenne for 25 years and is a lifetime collector.

"After selecting the plain silhouetted design in May 2006, Gov. Dave
Freudenthal explained that it represented “our proud Western heritage
and our historical role in establishing voting rights for women.”

"His official news release on the subject made no mention of his
decision to pick the silhouetted design over the more detailed versions.

"The simplicity of Wyoming's quarter has drawn complaints, and praise,
from coin collectors, artists and state residents.

"The design has been called “simple,” “elegant” and “clean.” It has
also been panned as downright “boring.”

"Brockman said comments about the quarter at his shop have ranged
from satisfaction to utter disappointment.

"“I think that was the biggest disappointment with the real numismatists,
is there's no detail in this thing,” Brockman said. “But the average
person is probably pretty excited about it.”

"Beverly Paddleford, a bronze artist and co-owner of the Eagle Bronze
foundry in Lander, said the design is simplistic and beautiful.

"And while she is glad the quarter won't be crowded with too many
images and symbols, she would have preferred more detail in the
final design."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story

To view the Wyoming design, see: proposed/wyoming.html
usmint.gov/...states/index.cfm?state=WY


BRITISH BANKNOTES STUDIED FOR DRUG CONTAMINATION

According to a BBC News report published Thursday, "Almost every UK
banknote in circulation is tinged with drugs such as cocaine and heroin...
But the residue levels are on average the same throughout the UK - even
if the note hails from an area where drug use is rife.

"The findings are now being used to link money that has an unusually
high drug contamination to drug crime.

"The Bristol-based scientists analysed tens of thousands of banknotes
from general circulation to work out the average drug profile of the
UK's banknotes.

"Karl Ebejer, from Mass Spec Analytical, who worked on the study,
said: 'We are pretty much talking about all banknotes being contaminated
with cocaine; one in 20 are contaminated with heroin or cannabis; and
on average less than half are contaminated with ecstasy and amphetamines.

"'We are talking traces - these are amounts we cannot see or feel, these
are amounts that require sensitive instrumentation to detect. They are
in the order of nanograms (billionths of a gram).'

"They looked at £10 and £20 notes taken from eight different locations:
Oxford, Folkestone, Grangemouth, Cardiff, Troon, Dunfermline,
Burntisland and Pontyclun.

"These were chosen to represent places that were urban, rural, rich,
poor, ports of entry and those that had high and low crime rates, to
see if any of these factors had an influence on the amount of drug
residues found.

"Gavin Lloyd, from Bristol University who carried out the experiment,
said: 'We found that none of the factors were significant, the
contamination was exactly the same.'

"The researchers believe note contamination is caused by drug use
but also as notes brush up against each other in cash sorting
machines..."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


EIGHT TONS OF STOLEN EURO BANKNOTE PAPER SIEZED FROM COUNTERFEITERS

"Hungarian police have confiscated eight tons of original banknote
paper from suspected counterfeiters, police chief Jozsef Bencze
confirmed Monday, according to Hungarian news agency MTI.

"Two of six suspected accomplices of the counterfeiters were arrested,
according to police, who believe an international gang to be behind
the operation. Police believe the suspects are Hungarian.

"The banknote paper was found last Thursday in the west Hungarian
town of Gyoer. Police found the 735 packages, each with 500 sheets
of banknote paper in two garages, Bencze said.

"The paper is part of a 15-ton package of banknote paper that was
stolen in Germany in 1995, the German newspaper Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung reported.

"The paper could have been used to print false 50 and 200 euro notes,
with 50-euro fabrications worth 150 million euros (220,5 million
dollars)and 200-euro fabrication worth 440 million euros."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


1987 LOS ANGELES SALE OF FOREIGN COINS

Regarding the sale of foreign coins by the German subway system,
Bob Fritsch writes: "I remember one such sale done by the City of
Los Angeles in 1987.  They had a few tons of foreign coins left over
from the 1984 Olympics and were planning to auction them off.  I
saw the announcement somewhere and sent for their literature.

"Well, the rules for the auction were so draconian that it was
impossible for me to bid them.  They wanted a huge deposit up front
($10K sticks in my mind), a bid by the pound, with a minimum of xyz
pounds, and no clear rules on how the winners would be decided.
Needless to say, I passed on the opportunity.  They must have liked
me however, because I received announcements of new sales for about
15 years after that!"

 BRITISH COINS USED AS SLUGS IN GERMAN SUBWAY SYSTEM
 esylum_v10n32a14.html


GENERAL DOOLITTLE SHORT SNORTER FOUND

Web site visitor Karie Naquin of Rockville, MD writes: "I am so excited!
I was handed change for a ten dollar bill last month in upstate NY, and
one of the dollars is a 1935A silver certificate with many signatures,
among them G H Van Dusen, and none other than General J H Doolittle.
It is hand-dated "1942" and on the other side someone wrote "1492".
I wonder if it is a misprint on someone's part.

"I had no idea what a short snorter was, but as a navy wife of
twenty-seven years, something told me that it was part of a military
ritual.

"I am in the process of trying to research the other names on the
bill.  Some of them are illegible.  I am fascinated by the historical
aspect of this short snorter, and I want to find out more about the
story!"


MICHIGAN COUNTY CREATES MILITARY FUNERAL HONORS CHALLENGE COIN

The Huron Daily Tribune of Michigan reports that "In efforts to honor
those who have served in the armed forces, the county’s Veteran’s
Affairs Office has designed a military funeral honors challenge coin
— quite possibly the first of its kind in the state.

"'We took it upon ourselves to design a coin specifically for Huron
County,' said Veteran’s Affairs Director Sharon K. McLeod. '... As
far as I know, Huron County is the only one in the state to do this.'

"McLeod said the project was just undertaken this year.

"'Commissioner (Curt) Haag came to me and asked me if there was a
military funeral honors challenge coin in Michigan because Wisconsin
has one,' she said. 'I made contacts and found there’s no such thing
in the state.'

"The coins will be given to the family at a veteran’s funeral, much
like when a family is given an American flag and three empty shell
casings during a veteran’s funeral.

"McLeod said the front side of the coin bears a county seal with
the saying, 'Huron County Your Welcoming Neighbor.'

"McLeod said the county ordered 500 coins which will be distributed
to the various service organizations — such as the Am Vets, American
Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. Those service organizations will
reimburse the county for the cost of the coins and then distribute
the coins to the family at a veteran’s funeral service.

"She said so far, there has been a good reaction from the local
service organizations."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


ANOTHER LINCOLN CENT HOARD: TOLEDO MAN HAS OVER 400,000

An article in Tuesday's Toledo Blade profiles an Ohio man and his
hoard of cents.  Check out the steel and bullet-proof glass bank:

"There's no 'penny candy' anymore. The term penny arcade is a misnomer.
Gum-ball machines that decades ago took pennies have long since graduated
to nickels, then quarters.

"So, what's a penny good for these days? By itself, a one-cent piece
surely isn't worth much - they actually cost about 1.7 cents each to
manufacture, according to the U.S. Mint. Some economists and lawmakers
believe we'd be better off without the penny or that pennies should
be made of cheaper metal than zinc and copper.

"But a whole bunch of pennies, now that's a different story.

"Toledoan Ted Grandowicz has an estimated 400,000 of them, weighing
2,700 pounds or so, encased in a bank made of stainless steel and
bullet-proof glass. The longtime tavern owner said the collection
represents a future contribution toward the college education of
two grandchildren, now 15 and 13."

To read the complete article, see: Full Story


NUMISMATIC WEB VIDEOS

Roger deWardt Lane of Hollywood, Florida writes: "The other day I
found something new on the Internet as it relates to Numismatics -
Youtube.com. You should add a new item to the end of your weekly
E-Sylum - the web video of the week."

[Roger forwarded a link to a video montage of coins and paper money
- it's the first in the list below.  YouTube has actually been around
for some time, but this was the first I'd come across a reference to
a YouTube numismatic video.  I did a keyword search and located a few
more.  It may be premature to institute a new E-Sylum feature, but
I'll include a Featured Web Video on occasion.  Please send these to
me for inclusion if you discover one of interest.

The "Ever Wonder How Cash Used to Be Made?" and "U.S. Mint News"
videos were posted by Scott Tappa, an online editor with F+W
Publications.  They were posted just a week ago and were created
at the ANA convention in Milwaukee, WI.  F+W continues to pioneer
in creating online numismatic content.  -Editor]

Colecciones de todo tipo
Colecciones de todo tipo


EROS - CUPID on coins by Gregory Zorzos
CUPID on coins by Gregory Zorzos

5000 years of Iraqi coins and currency
5000 years of Iraqi coins and currency

Ever Wonder How Cash Used to Be Made?
Ever Wonder How Cash Used to Be Made?

U.S. Mint News
U.S. Mint News

Moneda Republicana 5 pesetas 1870
Moneda Republicana 5 pesetas 1870

Moneda China Antigua
Moneda China Antigua


FAROUK: REGINA OR REX?

In his item last week Dick Johnson wrote: "'Farouk' he said. 'But
note the 'R' under the name. R. Regina. King. That is a Christmas
card from King Farouk to Hans Schulman.' Mark stared in disbelief."

Arthur Shippee writes: "I too would have stared in disbelief at
the discovery that Farouk was transsexual!  Regina is feminine,
and if the cabinet had known, they'd all be emotional wrecks.
Making use of one pronunciation of the Latin, I offer:

There was a Farouk titled Rex,
Till questions arose, in re sex.
  'The R's for Regina?
  So really you mean a...?'
And left them emotional wrecks."

  DICK JOHNSON'S SCHULMAN-FAROUK ARCHIVE
 esylum_v10n36a06.html


FEATURED WEB PAGE: NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM

This week's featured web page is the coin and medal collection
of England's National Maritime Museum, suggested by John W. Adams.

"There are approximately 5000 coins and medals with a maritime or
Greenwich association in the National Maritime Museum’s collection.
The collection owes its existence to a group of private medal
collectors with an interest in naval history."

National Maritime Museum

  Wayne Homren
  Numismatic Bibliomania Society