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<img src="http://cbt.coinbooks.org/global/images/layout/esylum_masthead.bmp" alt="The E-Sylum" width="600" height="150" border="0" />
<h1 class="hidden">The<br />Numismatic<br />Bibliomania<br />Society</h1>
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Volume 11, Number 19, May 11, 2008
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<br><br>
<ul><li><a href='#article1'>
WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM MAY 11, 2008
</a><li><a href='#article2'>
THE E-SYLUM GOES GLAM: NEW FORMAT INCLUDES COLOR AND IMAGES
</a><li><a href='#article3'>
BALLOTS MAILED FOR GREATEST AMERICAN NUMISMATIC LITERATURE SURVEY
</a><li><a href='#article4'>
SALE ON NUMISMATIC TITLES AT DAVID BROWN BOOK COMPANY
</a><li><a href='#article5'>
NEW BOOK: CANADIAN MUNICIPAL TRADE TOKENS”, FIRTH EDITION BY SERGE PELLETIER
</a><li><a href='#article6'>
BOOK REVIEW: GUIDE TO VINTAGE COIN FOLDERS AND ALBUMS BY THOMAS MOLL
</a><li><a href='#article7'>
BOOK REVIEWS: MEXICAN NUMISMATICS – A GUIDEBOOK OF ITS LITERATURE
</a><li><a href='#article8'>
HAVING FUN WITH THE COLLINS 1794 DOLLAR MANUSCRIPT
</a><li><a href='#article9'>
THE BOOK BAZARRE</a><li><a href='#article10'>
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY (AFTER THE FACT)!
</a><li><a href='#article11'>
DANIEL CARR ON COMPUTER SCULPTING PROGRAMS
</a><li><a href='#article12'>
DICK JOHNSON'S COMMENTS ON COMPUTER SCULPTING PROGRAMS
</a><li><a href='#article13'>
EDITORIAL CRITIQUES WASHINGTON, D.C. QUARTER DESIGNS
</a><li><a href='#article14'>
ANA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HELPS BUST COLUMBUS COIN THIEF
</a><li><a href='#article15'>
ON PLATINUM COINS
</a><li><a href='#article16'>
QUERY: MUSEUM'S MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN COINAGE PROJECT
</a><li><a href='#article17'>
CONCENTRATION CAMP MONEY AUTHOR STEVE FELLERS SPEAKS
</a><li><a href='#article18'>
CURRENCY SHORTAGE IN THE ALASKA BUSH
</a><li><a href='#article19'>
THE PAPAL BENEMERENTI MEDAL
</a><li><a href='#article20'>
FALLON CENTENNIAL 'COIN' MINTING AT THE NEVADA STATE MUSEUM
</a><li><a href='#article21'>
THE ABERNATHY BOYS' GREAT CROSS-COUNTRY ADVENTURE
</a><li><a href='#article22'>
COUNTERFEIT-FUELED INFLATION IN SOMALIA SPARKS RIOTING
</a><li><a href='#article23'>
$100 MILLION GIFT PUTS SCHWARTZMAN NAME ON NEW YOUR PUBLIC LIBRARY BUILDING
</a><li><a href='#article24'>
VOCABULARY WORD: QUINCUNX
</a><li><a href='#article25'>
BRAIN TEASER: WHAT DO THESE WORDS HAVE IN COMMON?
</a><li><a href='#article26'>
ONTARIO BAKERY SUCCEEDS WITH HONOR PAYMENT SYSTEM
</a><li><a href='#article27'>
ON TOSSING ANCIENT COINS
</a><li><a href='#article28'>
FEATURED WEB SITE: TEN THOUSAND CENTS COLLABORATIVE ART PROJECT
</a></ul> </div>
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<h3 id = "article1"> WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM MAY 11, 2008 </a></h3> <img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3144/2405448807_8d77ee9ab4_t.jpg" width="67" height="100" alt="Wayne Homren" align="left" hspace="5" vspace="5"> Among our recent subscribers are Peyton Smith, Emily Sewell and Amanda DeWees of Whitman Publications, Robert Ronus, Dave Welsh, Dick Dunn, Robert Kanterman and Larry Schuffman. Welcome aboard! We now have 1,140 subscribers.<br><br>This week we open with news of what I hope will be a welcome change in the format of The E-Sylum newsletter. In other NBS news, ballots for the greatest American numismatic literature survey have been distributed. Book announcements and reviews this week include Canadian municipal trade tokens, a guidebook of Mexican Numismatic Literature and the Guide to Vintage Coin Folders and Albums. [And speaking of coin folders, the June issue of COINage has a nice article about David Lange and the collecting of coin boards, folders and albums, written by Dom Yanchunas.]<br><br>In responses from last week's issue, Daniel Carr and Dick Johnson review computer sculpting programs for coin and medal designers, Tim Shuck discusses platinum coins, and Larry Gaye discusses Byzantine coins used for tossing at soccer matches.<br><br>In the news, an editorial writer blasts the design choices for Washington D.C's quarter, under-banked inhabitances of the Alaskan bush resort to cash substitutes, and counterfeit-fueled inflation in Somalia sparks rioting.<br><br>To learn how many people it takes to create a one-hundred dollar bill, read on. Have a great week, everyone.<br><br>Wayne Homren <br> Numismatic Bibliomania Society <div class="box"></div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article2"> THE E-SYLUM GOES GLAM: NEW FORMAT INCLUDES COLOR AND IMAGES </a></h3> Four months away from our tenth anniversary, The E-Sylum is getting a facelift. It's not Botox but HTML. Hypertext markup language (or HTML) is the stuff behind the scenes that tells your computer how to display web pages. Beginning this week The E-Sylum will be published in both plain-text format and HTML, which allows for a much more appealing design incorporating links, color, images, and other formatting features. <br><br>This week only you will receive TWO separate copies of your E-Sylum: the first one in the text format you're used to, and the second one in the new HTML format. It may appear in your Junk folder; if so, add us to your "safe senders" list. You may also have to tell your mail reader to download the images in the message. But these should be one-time configuration changes on your part, and barring any major problems, you'll receive The E-Sylum in glorious color from now on. Users of Blackberries and other small devices which don’t display HTML should continue to see a plain text version.<br><br>Many thanks to the Numismatic Bibliomania Society board for their financial support in hiring a design firm (Grove Marketing, Inc.) which has been working with us on a redesign of our web site as well as The E-Sylum. NBS also purchased some new services from Capalon Internet Solutions, the folks who run Binhost.com which hosts our mailing list. We're excited about the improvements and hope you find the new format both useful and enjoyable.<br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article3"> BALLOTS MAILED FOR GREATEST AMERICAN NUMISMATIC LITERATURE SURVEY </a></h3> Len Augsburger writes: "The ballots for the Numismatic Bibliomania Society survey of the greatest American numismatic literature (announced in the Fall 2007 issue of The Asylum) have been mailed to the membership. President John Adams has taken the lead by completing and returning the first ballot. I'll issue updates in this space over the next few weeks as ballots are submitted."<br><br>Alan Weinberg writes: "The list neglects to list Joe Levine's Presidential Coin and Antique Company's auction catalogs from approximately 1970 to date (which I'd rate in the top 25), DeWitt/Sullivan American Political Badges and Medalets which lists and pictures many hundreds of tokens and medals (which I'd rate in the top 30) and Frent/Schlesinger which pictures its share of tokens and medals (which I'd rate in the top 75).<br><br>"The Frent/Schlesinger reference is a massive two-volume set that is titled 'Running for President'. And yes, the co-author Schlesinger is THE Arthur Schlesinger, Harvard Professor and noted advisor to JFK. "These are expensive books - Sullivan ($200) and F/S ($200 or so) - and are more widely known among political ephemera collectors- but have considerable plates and listings of tokens and medals - in the case of Sullivan (DeWitt is an earlier less complete version of Sullivan) literally multi-hundreds of rare tokens and medals are pictured, described in detail, etc. "But Joe Levine's PCAC catalogues, which go back to the early 70's, have had extensive sales of great tokens and medals with plates and historical descriptions. How his auction sales catalogues escaped the list sent out is a mystery. The PCAC catalogues have a prominent place in my library. They are much more prominent in the numismatic hobby than perhaps 1/3rd of the references listed." <div class="box"> ["Top 100" projects such as this always stir controversy, but that's part of the appeal and fun of them. I'm sure many worthy publications didn't make the first cut, but let us have your thoughts. I'm a bit perplexed myself on how I'll cast my votes for despite my long association with American Numismatic Literature, there are quite a number of items on the list (particularly auction catalogs) that I do not have in my library and would have a difficult time evaluating. -Editor] </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article4"> SALE ON NUMISMATIC TITLES AT DAVID BROWN BOOK COMPANY </a></h3> Ian Stevens of the David Brown Book Company writes: "E-Sylum readers may be interested in a number of numismatic titles we're currently offering at a discount." A number of titles on Greek, Roman, British, Scottish, and U.S. numismatics are included. Two examples are: 'Sylloge of Coins in the British Isles 55: Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg Part IV. English, Irish and Scottish Coins, 1066-1485' (list price $108.00, now $29.98, and 'Imprimatur: The Art of the Bank Note' (list price $90, now $39.98). For more information, see the firm's web site: <a href="http://www.oxbowbooks.com/feature.cfm/FeatureID/284/Location/DBBC"> www.oxboxbooks.com </a><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article5"> NEW BOOK: CANADIAN MUNICIPAL TRADE TOKENS”, FIRTH EDITION BY SERGE PELLETIER </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Author Serge Pelletier forwarded this following press release about his newest book. -Editor] </div> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/coinbooks/2478064805/" title="Canadian Municipal Trade Tokens by Numismatic Bibliomania Society, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3265/2478064805_8f24457922_m.jpg" width="155" height="240" align="right" alt="Canadian Municipal Trade Tokens" /></a> The fifth edition of “A Compendium of Canadian Municipal Trade Tokens” by Serge Pelletier, is now available from the publisher. “For the most part, prices are strong with some rather spectacular increases in the collector pieces with low mintage. There is also a renewed interest in varieties and silver pieces” said Ray Desjardins, the editor, whose work concentrates mainly on determining the market values. <br><br>“We have also noticed an increase in popularity of Canadian municipal trade tokens with overseas collectors. Initially attracted by the bimetallic pieces, more and more of them now collect all circulating issues. All this bodes well for the hobby” concluded Desjardins.<br><br>The 160-page publication is half-letter size, spiral bound, with a card cover and a transparent plastic protector. It list the more than 1,700 Canadian municipal trade tokens know to date, in all metal (except pure gold and platinum) and provides reference number, denomination, year, succinct description of obverse and reverse, metal, mintage and value for each.<br><br>The tokens are presented by province and territory, the municipalities in alphabetical order within, and the tokens are listed chronologically.<br><br>Its built-in checklist makes it a must for any Canadian municipal trade token collector.<br><br>It is available for $14.95 from the publisher, Eligi Consultants Inc., which can reached at: Box 11447, Station H, Nepean, ON K2H 7V1 CANADA, tel: +1-613-823-3844, fax: +1-613-825-3092, Email: info@eligi.ca. S&H is extra. Canadian resident must add the applicable taxes. <br><br>Formerly known as “Canadian Trade Dollars”, Canadian municipal trade tokens are community “coins” sponsored by a local non-profit organization and given legal monetary value in a specific area, for a limited time, by the appropriate local authority. They are used as money in normal commercial transaction during the period of validity. These tokens have been issued, however, for commemorative and fund raising purposes since 1958.<br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article6"> BOOK REVIEW: GUIDE TO VINTAGE COIN FOLDERS AND ALBUMS BY THOMAS MOLL </a></h3> <div class="box"> [David Lange submitted this review of the print-on-demand book "Guide to Vintage Coin Folders and Albums" by Thomas Moll. -Editor] </div> I learned of this book by sheer chance, with Dennis Tucker of Whitman announcing his discovery of it on a popular coin message forum. Perhaps it is meaningful that the only response to this posting was my own, but I was determined to get a copy of the book nonetheless. Certainly the reason that this book, published last year, went unnoticed until now is that it comes from the print-on-demand service, Lulu.com. A person has to be looking for a particular title to find it there, and it never occurred to me that anyone else was studying this subject besides me. <br><br>I’ve never heard of Thomas Mall, which is unusual, given my many writings about coin albums, folders and boards; we folks have a way of finding one another. I suspect that Mr. Moll does not follow mainstream numismatics or our paths would have crossed at some point. A search of his other Lulu titles reveals that his main interest seems to be German-American genealogy in Pennsylvania, as he has written a four-volume series on this subject. There is no biographical information to be found within this particular book.<br><br>Now that I have a copy of his coin album book in hand, here’s the scoop: This is a perfect-bound volume measuring 6” x 9” and including 117 pages in all. It has a number of black-and-white illustrations of so-so quality, but these have been selected and placed quite usefully. Following a brief overview of the subject, including Moll’s introduction to coin collecting as a child, Part I features a listing of available brands and titles. These are arranged not by publishers, but rather alphabetically by country. For example, under the heading of Australia Moll briefly describes the four companies that produced coin folders and albums for this nation and includes a roster of the titles each one offered. A price range is given for whichever entries he has acquired for his own collection, while the ones that have eluded him are marked simply as “not seen.”<br><br>There are several omissions of both brands and titles (prominent among the USA publishers not mentioned at all are Harris, Shore Line and Hobbies Unlimited). On the other hand, I learned from this book of several Whitman titles never even suspected by me. These include the eight folders Whitman produced for Ireland having green covers in place of the usual blue (Moll confirmed six of these in his own collection) and a line of Whitman folders for Jersey and Guernsey that the company announced but neither Moll nor I have seen.<br><br>Part II is quite unusual in its theme: The author lists all the options for storing coins in folders and albums not made for those specific issues. For example, if one wants to house of collection of Luxembourg one-franc pieces from the years 1952-87, the author advises using Whitman folder No. 9042, which is titled simply NICKELS. This almost borders on the surreal for me, as my interest in coin folders and albums is solely in their appeal as collectable items, whereas Moll’s focus seems to be on their utility in storing and displaying coins. This section occupies 20 pages by itself and includes some very obscure country references (Zambian collectors—never fear! There are folder options for you).<br><br>Part III brings Moll’s book to a conclusion with a complete roster of Dansco folders by catalog number and Whitman folders and albums by catalog number. This can be quite useful as a checklist of available titles. Though I published most of this information in a series of articles in The Asylum some years ago, it is not generally available at this time with the exception of Moll’s book.<br><br>Per the author’s own mission statement, this book does not address folders produced before the 1950s nor after the mid-1980s, his focus being on what he considers to be (and I concur) the heyday of folder and album production—the 1950s and ‘60s. One weakness of this book is that it does not address the various editions of each publisher’s coin folders and albums (to date there are ten distinctive editions of the Whitman blue folders alone), nor does it provide any specific chronology. For example, a nearly complete listing is given of the Whitman line, yet there is no way to know when a particular title was introduced and, in many cases, discontinued. It is implied that most of the world and obsolete USA titles date from decades ago, but there is nothing here to help the serious collector. Given that the author’s focus seems to be more on the usefulness of folders and albums in housing coins than on their rarity and value as collectable objects, this is perhaps excusable.<br><br>While this book will be a helpful reference to anyone not already familiar with the subject, it will have no impact on my plans to push ahead with a comprehensive history and catalog of coin folders and albums in two separate volumes. This is an area of numismatics that deserves a fuller treatment, but Moll’s book fills a useful void in the interim. Priced at just $14.95 plus shipping, the curious reader is risking little to add this fun title to his library.<br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article7"> BOOK REVIEWS: MEXICAN NUMISMATICS – A GUIDEBOOK OF ITS LITERATURE </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Two E-Sylum readers have submitted reviews of the new book "Numismática Mexicana – Una Guía de su Literatura" (Mexican Numismatics – A Guidebook of its Literature) by Christopher Martin Bolton Morgan. First up: Adrián González Salinas. -Editor] </div> Numismática Mexicana – Una Guía de su Literatura (Mexican Numismatics – A Guidebook of its Literature) Author: Christopher Martin Bolton Morgan<br><br>First Edition, Mexico, D.F. 2008 Black Card Cover with Gold Stamped Titles (1), 108 pages, no illustrations. Language: Spanish Length: 23.1 cms Width: 18.8 cms Thickness: 0.7 cms Weight: 234 grams <img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3034/2478673722_147ff9f018_m.jpg" align=left><br><br>After reading the book “Mexican Numismatics – A Guidebook of its Literature” cover to cover and I consider that this book fills a great hollow within Mexican Numismatics.<br><br>The content of the book follows a strict classification by epoch or period in Mexican History since Aztecs (Pre-Columbian), Spanish Kings through Republic, Empires and Modern Coins (including the Revolutionary Period).<br><br>The periods can be summarized as follows: Introduction, Pre-Columbian Epoch (…-1535) : 13 | Charles & Johanna Kings (1536-1556) :29 1 Cobs Coinage (1556-1732) : 54, Pillars & Busts (1732-1810) : 35 | Insurgency/Independence/Counter-Stamps (1810-1822) : 61 | First Empire (Iturbide, 1822-1823) : 8 | Republican Period (1823-1864, 1867-1897) : 46 | Second Empire (Maximilian, 1864-1867) : 24 | Modern Coinage (1905-To Date) : 30 | Coins and Bills of Mexican Revolution (1913-1917) : 56 | Banknotes : 57 | Medals & Proclamations : 72 | Tokens of Mexico and Copper Coinage : 60 | History of Mexican Mints & Banks : 145 | Dictionaries/ Encyclopedias/References : 7 | Economic/Monetary/Political Mexican History : 58 | Books and Catalogues for the Aficionado: 53 | Notable Auction Catalogues : 49 | Numismatic Collections/Expositions/ Exhibitions : 17 | General Works : 41<br><br>In summary, the book contains 915 Mexican Numismatic references mainly from books, magazines, numismatic societies & associations publications from Mexico, USA, Canada among others. Examples of these publications are: The Numismatist, The Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine, The Centinel, Plus Ultra, Plus Ultra Newsletter, El Boletín (Numismático), Monedas (Puebla), The Coin Collector’s Journal, The Canadian Antiquarian & Numismatic Journal, The American Journal of Numismatics, International Bank Note Society Journal, ANS’ Museum Notes, Numisma (Spain), USMexNA’s Journal of Mexican Numismatics, Calcoin News, Memorias de la Academia Mexicana de Estudios Numismáticos, Philippine Numismatic Monographs, Numismatic Circular, Journal of International Numismatics, Numismatic International Bulletin, Gaceta Numismática (Spain), Barrilla, The Whitman Numismatic Journal, World Coin News, The Asylum, COINage, Money Trend, TNA News, Mexican Revolution Reporter, Berliner Blätter, The British Numismatic Journal, Acta Numismática, TAMS Journal, The Medal Collector, Coin & Medals News, The Canadian Numismatic Journal, LANSA, Numismatické Listy, Coins Magazine, Numismática (Peru), The Hispanic American Historical Review.<br><br>This guidebook follows the format of Elvira Clain-Stefanelli’s book “Select Numismatic Bibliography” (1965) which only contains 33 Mexican publications. The Index details an astounding 127 different authors! <br><br>In some cases, this guidebook contains biographical information about some famous authors; this valuable information is not easy to obtain. Also, the guidebook details the editions of the books when applies and, personal comments about rarity, availability and anecdotes of specific books. Again, this information is very rich to the reader.<br><br>In the introduction, Mr. Bolton recognizes that he omitted other publications but I think that he included the main core of all Mexican numismatic references. I am completely certain that Mr. Bolton invested a lot of time to complete this guidebook.<br><br>Finally, I'd like to congratulate Mr. Bolton for his extraordinary effort to publish a great, great book about books. <div class="box"> [Dennis Tucker of Whitman Publications also submitted a review. -Editor] </div> Christopher Bolton’s Numismatica Mexicana: Una Guia de su Literatura (“Mexican Numismatics: A Guide to its Literature”; copyright 2008) is an impressive and very useful work of scholarship. Bolton opens the book with Aaron Feldman’s famous quote: “Compra el libro antes de la moneda”—good advice for anyone interested in Mexico’s nearly 500 years of coinage. A guide such as this one, which documents more than 900 resources, is valuable for both newcomer and seasoned numismatist.<br><br>Bolton admits in his introduction that, Feldman notwithstanding, his passion for books started some 10 years after he bought his first Mexican coins. Guide books and catalogs expanded his outlook beyond coinage of the 20th century, to earlier eras, as well as to paper money, tokens, and medals. <br><br>After being bitten by the bibliophile bug, Bolton’s passion was “incurable”—his rule became to buy at least one book for every five coins. He writes, “The 915 references cited in this bibliography represent, in my opinion, a good start to organizing the available written material [on Mexican numismatics].”<br><br>Numismatica Mexicana is perfectbound with an attractive faux-leather softcover, with the title and author’s name stamped in gold foil—reminiscent of Whitman’s line of “black books” from the 1960s. Two versions are available: octavo (7-1/2 x 9-1/8 inches) and quarto (8-3/8 x 10-3/4 inches). The former is printed on both sides of each leaf, the latter on recto only (“to allow collectors to make notes or add any additional references I may have omitted,” says the author).<br><br>What Bolton has compiled is more than just an alphabetical listing of books and articles. He categorizes the 900-plus works by numismatic epoch from pre-Conquest to the modern day, each book according to its main focus (or to the first epoch it covers). Dictionaries, auction catalogs, political histories, and similar references are categorized in their own sections, by content. <br><br>Bolton does not simply list authors, titles, and places and dates of publication — for many of the works, he provides a summary and analysis of their substance. This kind of annotated bibliography offers valuable information for the researcher. <br><br>For example, recently in The E-Sylum editor Wayne Homren posed the question, “So what are ‘Arras Tokens’?” In Numismatica Mexicana Bolton lists several articles on arras, and synopsizes their contents (i.e., “A list of 12 arras, but without substantial information about their origins”; “Five more arras, but only one is illustrated”; “Interesting article about the ‘coins’ used in Mexican weddings, with a list of 13 arras”). <br><br>Other helpful notes include whether the work is illustrated, if it has an English translation, and if it was republished elsewhere in whole or in part. Also, most sections conclude with an “Also see,” directing the reader to related works in other sections. (For example, researchers in the “Carlos y Juana, 1536–1556” section are also referred to the auction catalog section, No. 828, The Paul Karon Collection of 8 Escudos and Other Classic Latin American Coinage.) The book concludes with a five-page index of authors linked to their works within the bibliography.<br><br>Sections include: pre-Columbian to the Conquest; Charles and Joanna, 1536–1556; cob coinage, 1556–1732; Pillar and Bust coinage, 1732–1810; insurgency, independence, and countermarks, 1810–1822; First Empire (Iturbide), 1822–1833; Republic, 1823–1864 and 1867–1897; Second Empire (Maximilian), 1864–1867; modern money, 1905 to date; coins and bills of the Revolution, 1913–1917; paper money; proclamation and oath medals; fichas, tlacos, pilones, and monedas de cobra; history of the Casas de Moneda and Banca Mexicana; dictionaries, encyclopedias, and reference works; economic, monetary, and political histories of Mexico; books and catalogs for the aficionado; catalogs of significant auctions; numismatic collections, expositions, and exhibitions; and general works.<br><br>I should note that Numismatica Mexicana is written in Spanish, and my citations in this review are translations of Bolton’s text. English-language books and articles are listed by their English titles, which in most cases offers sufficient guidance to monolingual readers. On top of that, if you have a few years of high-school or college Spanish, and a working knowledge of “coin Spanish,” you’ll find the prose easy to follow.<br><br>With careful organization, thoughtful analysis, and considerable scope, Christopher Bolton has done the numismatic community a great service in this highly recommended book.<br><br>I would, however, offer several professional opinions on how to improve the book for its next edition. One minor complaint concerns the binding: the spine has no copy! When the book is sitting spine-out on a shelf, you don’t know its title or author’s name. It should be possible to fit at least the title on both formats (definitely on the thicker-spined quarto). <br><br>Another observation: there are occasional stray marks, about the size and shape of a hyphen, scattered about two or three on every other page, sometimes within the text. This “chatter” can be distracting. It’s hard to tell if the marks are from the printing process (not likely, since the books were published digitally), or perhaps artifacts from the Quark (or other) software used for layout; either way, the glitches are probably easily fixed. <br><br>On a nitpicky note, what Bolton calls an “introduction” is technically a preface—its purpose is not to introduce the subject matter of the book, but to explain the book’s mechanics (why and how it was written), which it does engagingly and very well. <br><br>From a typographical perspective, the book exhibits the occasional technical errors and inconsistencies often seen in self-published (and sometimes in commercially published!) works; in this case, they’re minor and don’t affect the reader’s experience. <br><br>More serious (but not major flaws at all) are some navigation-related weaknesses in the design: the layout would benefit from navigational aids such as running heads or feet that indicate the section (and possibly the book numbers covered on that page); and the verso folios (page numbers on left-hand pages) should be set flush outside, not flush inside, so they’re easier to read while flipping through the book. (The latter applies only to the octavo format; in the quarto, the folios are centered at page bottom.) <br><br>Again, these comments are meant to improve the first edition, not condemn it. This is a book that deserves to be published again and again in future editions, as its talented author continues to add to it, to the benefit of numismatists everywhere.<br><br><div class="box"> Author Christopher Bolton adds: "The cost of the book (Quarto sized) is USD $45.00 plus USD $25.00 express shipping (five days) to the US and Canada. However if Asylum or E-Sylum members request the book I will ship out copies at USD $55.00. <br><br>Orders in Mexico will cost USD $50.00 two day shipping included. Other countries would have to be quoted on an individual basis.<br><br>Copies may be ordered vía my E-mail: cbolton@prodigy.net.mx and I can accept payment by international money order, Paypal or cheque (US or Pound Sterling funds)."<br><br>[Many thanks to our reviewers for their efforts and to the author for providing copies. Congratulations on what sounds like a very welcome work. -Editor]</div> <a href="http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v11n13a06.html"> NEW BOOK: BIBLIOGRAPHY OF MEXICAN NUMISMATICS BY CHRISTOPHER BOLTON </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article8"> HAVING FUN WITH THE COLLINS 1794 DOLLAR MANUSCRIPT </a></h3> <div class="box"> [W. David Perkins of Centennial, CO submitted the following item relating to the Jack Collins manuscript on 1794 dollars. -Editor] </div> I enjoyed your review in last week's E-Sylum of the Jack Collins and Walter Breen manuscript for "1794: The History and Genealogy of the First United States Dollar." <br><br>At this time I cannot find the file with my correspondence with Jack Collins (three moves will cause this problem…), but as I recall I first contacted Jack in the late 1980s or early 1990s. I had acquired a "special" copy of the September 18, 1968 Lester Merkin Public Auction Sale catalog from the late Art Rubino, a numismatic (and other) literature dealer from Santa Fe, NM. Art had set up at a Denver coin show, and in a box of catalogs (under a table in his booth) was a copy of this sale with "Mr. Ostheimer" at the top of the cover, and "My Estimate / Realized" in the bottom right corner. <br><br>When I opened it I found a three page auction settlement from Merkin to the Ostheimers laid in. As it turns out (from the auction settlement statement) the 1794 silver dollar in this sale was not consigned by the Ostheimers. All but two of the over 100 early dollars had been consigned to this sale were the property of the Ostheimers. [For more information on this discovery and sale catalog, see The Asylum, Volume 25, No. 2 Spring 2007, pages 16-19. The cover page of the Ostheimer's copy of the sale catalog is also illustrated on the cover of this Spring 2007 issue.]<br><br>I was aware of the book on 1794 Dollars that Jack Collins was working on, I believe from Q. David Bowers having mentioned this off and on in the Bowers & Merena Rare Coin Review. I wrote Jack Collins to let him know the 1794 Dollar was not the Ostheimers. As it turns out, Jack already knew this (I was impressed!). Over the years we corresponded on occasion about other 1794 Dollars.<br><br>I was able to meet Jack for the first time at the 1995 Anaheim ANA Convention. This was the first chance I had to see and study a copy of his manuscript. <br><br>I added notes of 1794 Dollar appearances sporadically to my copy over the years. One day J.P. Martin called me from ICG and said he had a 1794 Dollar that he thought may have been repaired on the obverse, and would I be able to stop by and take a look at it and give him my opinion. J.P. described the specimen over the phone. I told him I could stop by the next day over the lunch hour (ICG was conveniently located only a couple hundred yards from my office). <br><br>J.P. was not aware of the Collins manuscript nor that I had a copy of it at the time of his call. Nor did I tell him… That night I did my homework and marked three pages as possible matches based on the description J.P. had given me. When I arrived J.P. gave me the coin to look at. I had the Collins manuscript on my lap and under the table, and sure enough it was the one of the specimens I had thought it might be. <br><br>I told J.P. that I thought he was right, and described where and what I thought had been done. He was impressed, as was Keith Love and the others in the room. I then showed him the "Before and After" pictures of this specimen in the manuscript and we all had a good laugh! In reality, it was me who was impressed with J.P. in that he caught this repair as it was done pretty well. <br><br>I also purchased a copy of the new Collins manuscript book from George Kolbe at the NBS Meeting during the 2007 ANA Convention.<br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v11n18a07.html"> BOOK REVIEW: 1794: THE FIRST UNITED STATES DOLLAR BY JACK COLLINS </a> </div><br><br><div class="ctabox"> <center>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article9"> THE BOOK BAZARRE</a></h3> </center> DAVID SKLOW – FINE NUMISMATIC BOOKS now accepting consignments for our October 4th mail bid auction. numismaticbooks@aol.com (719) 302-5686, visit our web site www.finenumismaticbooks.com<br><br>DAVID F. FANNING NUMISMATIC LITERATURE offers fixed price lists on our Web site at <www.fanningbooks.com>. In stock: Stack’s Ford XV Sale, hardcover. Near fine with PRL. Currency of the American Revolution and early Confederation. $150 postpaid. e-mail dfanning@columbus.rr.com><br><br></div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article10"> HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY (AFTER THE FACT)! </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Dick Johnson submitted the following item relating to today's U.S. holiday, Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day, Moms! -Editor] </div> Senator Rockefeller is way too late, since he just introduced legislation to issue a Mother's Day Centennial coin. The centennial date was today (May 11, 2008). It would be like trying to sell month-old newspapers. Doesn't he realize it takes six months for the Mint to create and strike such a coin? Not to mention that the Mint is already overwhelmed with new issues from a new-coin-and-medal happy issuing Congress. Heads up, private medal-issuing industry! If Congress keeps up this pace the U.S. Mint is going to have to sub-contract some of the medal issues to private medal makers in America. Here's the news story: <a href="http://wvgazette.com/News/200805080178"> http://wvgazette.com/News/200805080178</a><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article11"> DANIEL CARR ON COMPUTER SCULPTING PROGRAMS </a></h3> <div class="box">In response to Dick Johnson's article last week about computers and sculpting, Daniel Carr submitted the following comments on computer sculpting programs. -Editor] </div> In some ways I find it a bit odd that many mint's artists are still called "Sculptors/Engravers" when, in this day and age, most coins and medals are created by sculpting a model (the "sculptor" part), but the engraving is no longer done by hand, but by machine (a reducing lathe or similar). And these engraving machines are often run by someone other than the sculpting artist.<br><br>I agree that computerized engraving is the way things are headed. I noted in particular one paragraph from the article:<br><br><blockquote> The advantages of computer engraving, as noted by Jim Licaretz, are its speed and versatility. As such it is ideal for simple images, as graphic designs, most trademarks or logos, and images of buildings. Where it falls short are very complex or highly detailed designs, but most notably, with portraits! </blockquote> There are several reasons why many major mints have not successfully utilized computerized engraving for portraits, most notably:<br><br>1. Most of the programs were not written or constructed in such a way that allows real-time sculpting to be performed when a very large quantity of data is involved. It takes less than one-one-thousandth of an inch (<0.001") to make a huge difference in a facial portrait or facial expression. And to have that kind of resolution covering the entire medal surface requires several million data points.<br><br>2. Most artists are not yet accustomed to using this type of tool.<br><br>As you may know, I wrote my own computer sculpting program several years ago and I've been using it for all my design, sculpting, and engraving work. It is the only such program in existence that was designed and programmed by a single person - that person being an artist who uses the program daily.<br><br>I believe that I have been able to achieve results with my program that can equal the quality of work done using any other techniques. My program does provide sufficient resolution to do quality life-like portraits.<br><br>A major benefit of computerized sculpting not mentioned in your article is that designs can be reviewed by clients in digital form and then approved before any patterns, molds, or dies are cut. At many mints around the world, designs are reviewed and approved as pencil sketches. But subsequent to the approval, there can sometimes be undesirable deviations between the original concept drawing and the final product. This is due to the inevitable changes that occur when transforming a 2-D drawing into a 3-D clay model by hand.<br><br>But with the computerized method, there are no deviations because the approved rendering and the mold/die engraving are both generated by computer from the same source data !<br><br>Below is an example of a medal that I was recently commissioned to do.<br><br>Here is the <a href=" http://www.designscomputed.com/coins/russo.html">original rendering</a> I made from my digital sculpture. This rendering was prepared and approved by the client before any other work was done. <br><br>And here is a photo of an actual medal struck from the dies I engraved: <p><img src="http://www.designscomputed.com/coin_pics/russo_gold_600.jpg" width=300><br><br>The original photograph used as a guide for the design is here: <p><img src="http://www.designscomputed.com/coin_pics/russo1.jpg" width=100><br><br>Last year I put together a side-by-side comparison of the two different approaches to creating a coin/medal: <a href="http://www.designscomputed.com/coins/pres_2007.html"> http://www.designscomputed.com/coins/pres_2007.html</a><br><br>I have personally experienced a strong resistance to my techniques and tools by some people in engraving and sculpting fields. If the discussion linked below is any indication, it may take a while before these new tools get any respect: <a href="http://www.igraver.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1005&page=5"> http://www.igraver.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1005&page=5</a><br><br>In the discussion above, I offered a challenge to any hand engravers. The challenge would be to have a hand engraver/sculptor produce a portrait medal. I would do the same using my techniques. The results would be posted on the internet for everyone to view and comment on. Nobody in that engraving forum accepted my challenge.<br><br><div class="box"> Daniel adds: I am currently working on setting up a new workshop. When I get everything in order, I would be happy to host visitors and show computerized sculpting and engraving in action and in person. </div> <a href=" http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v11n18a09.html"> WILL COMPUTERS REPLACE ENGRAVERS OF COINS AND MEDALS? </a> <div class="box"></div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article12"> DICK JOHNSON'S COMMENTS ON COMPUTER SCULPTING PROGRAMS </a></h3> <div class="box">Daniel Carr's response in the previous item prompted Dick Johnson to follow up with a new set of comments on computer sculpting programs. -Editor] </div> (1) Calling mint artists "engravers" or even "sculptor-engravers" does indeed seem out of place with modern technology. Perhaps a new term should be created to cover more accurately their creative position, something better than my first thought: "coin progenitor."<br><br>(2) You mentioned engraving machines run by nonartists. When the medal firm in Milan Italy, Stefano Johnson, first placed their Janvier in production they had so much respect for the technician that they placed his name on a medal for the Columbian Exposition with the designer of the medal and the artist that created the model. Three names! That is the only recognition I know of that gave credit to the reducing machine operator.<br><br>(3) You are amazingly insightful to recognize why major mints have not successfully utilized computer engraving for portraits. I still observed recent examples similar to items made by the old manual Gorton tracer-controlled technology as "stiff, frozen, lifeless."<br><br>Your portrait of Aaron Russo, on the other hand, prepared on your proprietary program, is exceedingly lifelike. There is a real person staring back at the viewer. It is realistic in how you treated the fullness of the cheeks and the prominence of the jowls. I observe you opened the eyes slightly, and reduced the prominence of the teeth -- both good choices. (An open mouth is difficult to keep from having the teeth dominate the portrait. Most medallic artists won't even attempt such portraits for that reason.)<br><br>The texture of the subject's clothing is excellent for the contrast with the smoothness of the skin and background. Your treatment of the hair is in good style. Can you do texture easily on your program?<br><br>(4) The reverse of this medal exhibits excellent design. Here again, the texture of the document is similar to the clothing on the obverse. That is a mark of an excellent designer to tie the two sides together with the artistic device of repetition. The treatment of the globe is one of the best I have seen with the relief for Alaska and the United States.<br><br>I like the three lines of lettering with uniform arc base lines. The subsidiary device of the sun and rays may be a tad too large, however, it is extremely effective. [The obverse could have used a small subsidiary device as well to add interest. What would you have done with the sun or rays or such on the obverse for that concept of repetition again to tie the two sides together?] Sorry, I didn't mean to do a critique, but your design is so exceptional it was an inspiration!<br><br>(5) Your proprietary computer sculpting program sounds incredible. It should be marketed. If the best software the U.S. Mint has costs $30,000 you should price yours at $50,000. [Government officials are only impressed by big numbers.] Then have someone suggest the Mint needs your program. Stress the medallic portrait feature of your software description.<br><br>(6) There is often a discrepancy between drawing and the ultimate model. In fact, some medallists are terrible draftsmen whose drawings are horrible, but whose models are outstanding. In one case Joseph Di Lorenzo was weak in drawing. However he was one of the best modelers in the post WWII era. He was frequently paired with Paul Calle, a top artist whose designs and drawings were outstanding. The combination of the two created some stunning medals!<br><br>(7) I like your idea of a challenge for a hand engraver to pit his handiwork up against your computer generated portrait. That would certainly be enlightening!<br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article13"> EDITORIAL CRITIQUES WASHINGTON, D.C. QUARTER DESIGNS </a></h3> <div class="box"> [On Tuesday an article in Washington Post critiqued the proposed designs for the Washington, D.C. quarter, noting that none of the people chosen for depiction on the quarter has really close ties to the city. -Editor] </div> First, the U.S. Mint nixed "Taxation Without Representation" as the slogan for the D.C. quarter. Now, the Mint has narrowed the choices for the design of the coin's reverse to three figures from the city's history: Benjamin Banneker, Duke Ellington and Frederick Douglass. <br><br>Each has his merits, of course, but this is a weak field. The problem is not any lack of achievement on the part of the candidates. No, it's the tenuousness of their connections to the District, which are important but way too brief (Banneker); an accident of birth that had little meaning in his ultimate accomplishments (Ellington); and almost irrelevant to his greatness (Douglass). <br><br>Just as almost every state in the union decided that no one person captured the essence of its history and identity, the District should have chosen an inanimate symbol to put on the coin, which so many people fought so hard to get added to the Mint's state quarters program. <br><br>The District, in contrast, settled on three men who, despite their good works, say little about Washington except that it is more than its federal, monumental core. The D.C. government's desire to avoid obvious choices such as the Washington Monument or Lincoln Memorial is reasonable: This is the chance to show that the District is not merely the seat of government but a distinct community. The "Taxation Without Representation" slogan would have made that gesture. But the feds found that way too radical. So now the District is trying to make a statement through the face of one man. <br><br>But here's the problem: Benjamin Banneker, an accomplished mathematician and astronomer ... was born, lived most of his life and died in the Baltimore area. <br><br>Duke Ellington ... was not merely a hugely popular performer, but, far more important, a composer who turned the blues and early jazz into America's classical music form. But while Ellington grew up in Washington and got his early education in the nightspots of the Black Broadway, as U Street was known in the early 20th century, he left town at 23 and never lived here again. <br><br>Which brings us to Frederick Douglass. Born on Maryland's Eastern Shore, Douglass spent most of his career in Rochester, N.Y., ... But his time in Washington came at the end of an illustrious life. <div class="box"> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/05/AR2008050502219.html"> Read the complete article</a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article14"> ANA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HELPS BUST COLUMBUS COIN THIEF </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Dick Johnson forwarded this article from the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch. -Editor] </div> Coins worth nearly $100,000 that had been stolen from a Hilliard resident in December were recovered this week with the help of a coin- shop owner in Pensacola, Fla.<br><br>Burglars stole a safe containing more than $1 million in coins and other valuables from the home of Robert C. Talbott...<br><br>"Usually when coins are stolen, recovery is never made," said Bob Bruce, owner of the All-American Coin & Jewelry Co. in Pensacola. "I know what (Talbott's) going through. I had coins stolen from the shop April 7."<br><br>Bruce doesn't expect to see those coins again. But when a man came into his shop Saturday with a 1903S Morgan silver dollar, Bruce said, he recognized the coin -- which he appraised at $20,000 -- as one stolen in the Talbott burglary.<br><br>"I keep a database of stolen coins," Bruce said. "I talked to the individual on the phone three or four more times. He presented us with seven more coins Saturday, and I told him I'd make him an offer Monday."<br><br>Bruce then contacted Hilliard police.<br><br>Larry Shepherd, a Cincinnati coin dealer who had sold Talbott most of the coins and is now executive director of the American Numismatic Association, verified that the coin was stolen, Bruce said.<br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article15"> ON PLATINUM COINS </a></h3> Tim Shuck of Ames, IA writes: "You had a note in the April 27 E-Sylum about the proof platinum coin you viewed having surfaces that were 'flat-out dull and ugly'. That hasn't been my impression, at least based on the few platinum proofs I own.<br><br>"But, to look again and compare, I just put a platinum Statue of Liberty (or Eagle as some label them) next to a Jefferson nickel and a silver state-series quarter, all graded proof 69. The silver and platinum coins look very similar to me, but both are fairly 'cold' in comparison to the nickel which has more of a warm reflectivity; from the copper content I presume. I think there might be more of a difference in appearance between the metals in a non-proof coin but don't own any of those in platinum to do a comparison.<br><br>"I've always assumed that the reason we don't see many circulating platinum coins is the relative scarcity of the metal, which would translate into a higher cost for coinage. Silver and gold (and copper) adequately provided for the coins needed for most commerce. A platinum coin probably would have been pushed to a denomination higher than the double eagle, which likely was not needed or wanted.<br><br>"Since I first started looking at bullion prices in 2004 platinum has always been about two times the price of gold per once, more or less, even though the ratio of the two in native state is much higher (meaning platinum should be even more expensive). In any case that's a fairly steep price of admission, so to speak. Given the storied political history between gold and silver factions perhaps there's just never been room for another noble metal advocacy."<br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v11n17a10.html"> WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: APRIL 25, 2008 </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article16"> QUERY: MUSEUM'S MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN COINAGE PROJECT </a></h3> Wayne Schroll writes: "Do our readers have any information on the publication dates of any of remaining volumes of The Fitzwilliam Museum's Medieval European Coinage Project? The project web page lists the seventeen volumes (1 and 14 published so far), but nothing about estimated publication dates."<br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/dept/coins/projects/mec/index.html#volumes"> Fitzwilliam Museum Medieval European Coinage Project </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article17"> CONCENTRATION CAMP MONEY AUTHOR STEVE FELLERS SPEAKS </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Steve Fellers, who authored with his daughter Ray a book about concentration camp money, spoke on the topic recently. Here are excerpts from an article about the event in the Shreveport Times. -Editor] </div> A professor passionate about numismatics shared some of the stories tattered pieces of paper tell about the Holocaust.<br><br>Steve Fellers, a physics professor at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, spoke at the Shreveport-Bossier City Holocaust Memorial Commemoration on Sunday about the money circulated through ghettos and concentration camps before and during World War II.<br><br>Sunday's commemoration in Shreveport marked the 25th year community members have put on the interfaith event. Rose Van Thyn, who survived the concentration camp at Auschwitz, spoke briefly about the legacy of the Holocaust, in which 6 million Jews and 5 million other people died.<br><br>Fellers visited Shreveport's Holocaust commemoration Sunday because of his friendship with the late Charlton E. Meyer Jr. and Meyer's wife, Gloria Meyer, of Shreveport. Charlton Meyer assembled an extensive collection of concentration camp currency that he donated to the Holocaust Museum Houston in 2002.<br><br>"Even at Auschwitz, there was money," Fellers said. "We know of money from over 50 camps."<br><br><div class="box"> <a href=" http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080505/NEWS01/805050311"> Read the complete article</a><br><br><a href="http://coinbooks.org/esylum_v10n08a03.html"> BOOK ANNOUNCEMENT: SILENT WITNESS - WORLD WAR II CIVILIAN CAMP MONEY </a><br><br><a href=http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v10n16a04.html"> MORE ON 'SILENT WITNESSES: CIVILIAN CAMP MONEY OF WORLD WAR II' </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article18"> CURRENCY SHORTAGE IN THE ALASKA BUSH </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Inspired by last week's report on dolphin teeth money in the Solomon Islands, NBS Member & Alaska collector Richard Jozefiak writes: "This is an interesting story about currency use today in the Alaska bush." Below are excerpts from the article in the Anchorage Daily News. -Editor] </div> At the general store in Noorvik, an Inupiaq village on the banks of the Kobuk River, Pauline Morris and her customers are on a constant quest for dollars and coins.<br><br>It's not unusual for a local customer to walk into the Morris Trading Post with a $500 or $1,000 paycheck and use it to buy $20 in groceries, she says.<br><br>Typically, Morris hands them whatever cash she can spare and writes them a check for the balance. A stamp on the check identifies it as change -- it becomes a sort of "faux currency" that some will use as cash elsewhere in town.<br><br>Like most remote villages, Noorvik has no bank and no ATM. And when the trading post runs out of dollars and coins, "I have to go out and get them," Morris says.<br><br>That means a bank run to Kotzebue -- 37 miles away by plane at a cost of $170 or more round trip -- to get stacks of bills and hundreds of dollars' worth of pennies and quarters.<br><br>"I get the cash wherever I travel," Morris says.<br><br>This Bush banking method has kept small village stores running for decades. Despite communication advances like high-speed Internet that have begun to penetrate remote villages, plenty of people still lack bank accounts, Morris said.<br><br>While the cash economy has crept into most of Alaska's most remote places, its foundation -- cash, itself -- is often missing.<br><br>"In communities so small that there aren't ways to send funds electronically, the merchants and the post offices are the ones making the economy go," said Jennifer Imus, a senior manager for Wells Fargo Bank in Fairbanks.<br><br><div class="box"> To read the complete article, see: <a href="http://www.adn.com/money/story/396260.html"> Currency bypasses businesses in the Bush </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article19"> THE PAPAL BENEMERENTI MEDAL </a></h3> <div class="box"> [A U.K. news account mentions a medal given by the Pope. According to one web article, "the Benemerenti Medal, meaning “good merit” medal, was created in 1791 by Pope Pius VI". I've not been able to locate a definitive description of the history of the medal on the web. Apparently there have been are many different designs over the years. -Editor] </div> A rare medal awarded by the Pope has been bestowed on two Colchester women.<br><br>Olive Hewitt and Peggy Wilding both received the Benemerenti Medal during the Sunday service at St Theodore's Roman Catholic Church in Monkwick from the parish priest, Father Joseph Wisstock.<br><br>Church committee member Christine Brown said the medals were rare and she had only heard of one other being given out in recent memory in the Colchester area.<br><br>The Benemerenti Medal is a papal honour given in recognition of Christian work carried out over a number of years.<br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://www.gazette-news.co.uk/news/local/display.var.2247565.0.colchester_pair_awarded_papal_medals.php"> Read the complete article </a><br><br><a href="http://www.udel.edu/PR/UDaily/2006/jan/pope010606.html"> Read a 2006 article on the medal </a><br><br>To view Benemerenti medal images from the OMSA photo database, see: <a href="http://www.omsa.org/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=1113"> OMSA photo 1113</a> <a href="http://www.omsa.org/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=6226"> OMSA photo 6226</a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article20"> FALLON CENTENNIAL 'COIN' MINTING AT THE NEVADA STATE MUSEUM </a></h3> <div class="box"> [An E-Sylum reader forwarded a link to an article written by a high school junior about a recent class trip to Carson City, where the group viewed the striking of a medal at the Nevada State Museum. Here are some excerpts. -Editor] </div> Early last Friday morning my senior government class at Lahontan Valley High School and I set off for Carson City. Our agenda was to go to the State Legislature, the Supreme Court building and then on to the Fallon Centennial coin minting at the Nevada State Museum. <br><br>When we arrived at the museum, there were 18 students, Mayor Ken Tedford, City Councilmen John Tewell and Willis Swan, Anne Pershing, Nancy Balash, Michon Mackdon, Valerie Serpa, Capt. Mike Glaser, photographers and many more who came to see the pressing of Fallon's 100th anniversary coin. We all waited patiently as all of us inched our way closer to the six-ton machine to get a good look.<br><br>Once we all quieted down, Ken Hopple, who does the minting, began to explain the mint and its history. He said the mint weighed six tons and had been moved 10 times throughout its existence and that it had been re-purchased for $225.<br><br>Following the brief lesson about this wonderful machine, he finally began to do what we all were waiting for.<br><br>He turned the machine on and we all watched in awe as it pressed a design into the nickel that he had been holding. After about five coins had been minted followed by multiple questions about the process, a ceremony was held commemorating the new Fallon Centennial coin.<br><br><div class="box"><a href="http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080502/FALLON/805020328/1029"> Read the complete article </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article21"> THE ABERNATHY BOYS' GREAT CROSS-COUNTRY ADVENTURE </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Medals are great for commemorating interesting events of all sorts. This newspaper article describes one medal and recounts the tale behind it - the cross-country adventures of two young boys a hundred years ago. -Editor] </div> The other Sunday, Harry Abernathy came up to me before church. “Here’s a little souvenir for you,” he said, and handed me a gold-colored commemorative coin.<br><br>The coin was from the Frederick, Okla., Chamber of Commerce. It featured the figure of two horses with riders on the front, and an old-timey car on the back.<br><br> “If your eyes are good enough, look at the small line under the horses,” Harry said. Well, the type was pretty small, but I squinted and made out “The Abernathy Boys.” I asked him if they were any relation or if the name was just coincidence. “No, no relation - except that we’re all God’s children,” Harry replied.<br><br>Harry then told the basics of the story of the Abernathy Boys and the adventure that earned their remembrance on a commemorative coin. I was intrigued and have fleshed out those details a little bit with some supplemental research.<br><br>The year was 1910, and Frederick, Okla., was still frontier “Wild West.” Louis “Bud” Abernathy was 10, and his brother Temple was 6. Their father was a rancher and a U.S. marshal nicknamed “Catch-em-alive Jack,” a nickname bestowed on him by his friend President Theodore Roosevelt after Roosevelt saw him catch a wolf with his bare hands.<br><br>At this point, I need to mention that Jack Abernathy was a widower. His wife - the boys’ mother - had died some time before their adventures. I daresay if she had been alive, there likely wouldn’t have been any commemorative coin today.<br><br>But, back to the story.<br><br>President Roosevelt was returning to New York from an overseas vacation. The boys convinced their father to let them ride horseback from Frederick to New York to participate in the parade welcoming Roosevelt back.<br><br>They had already had one adventure, riding from Frederick to Santa Fe, N.M., to visit the home of Gov. George Curry. They had carefully planned all the details of the trip and when they showed Jack how thorough their plan was, he allowed them to go.<br><br>That trip took two weeks, and the boys encountered no major problems. At one point along the way, they met several men who escorted them for many miles to make sure they were safe. It turned out that the men were outlaws, who later wrote Jack to tell him that although they didn’t think much of him, they liked the stuff his boys were made of.<br><br>Having made that trip successfully, the boys were able, with Roosevelt’s help, to convince their father to let them ride to New York. With Roosevelt’s publicity, the boys were given heroes’ welcomes along the way, and well-wishers’ donations funded the trip.<br><br>After reaching New York and riding in the parade, the boys used some of the money that they had been given along the way to purchase an automobile. They then shipped their horses back to Oklahoma and drove home.<br><br>Remember, they were only 10 and 6!<br><br><div class="box"> [There's more to the story, so check out the complete article! There have been complete books (both fiction and nonfiction) written based on the brothers' exploits. I ordered one to share with my sons: The Abernathy Boys by L. J. Hunt. -Editor]<br><br><a href="http://www.thenewsobserver.com/articles/2008/05/02/opinions/opinion01.txt"> Read the complete article</a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article22"> COUNTERFEIT-FUELED INFLATION IN SOMALIA SPARKS RIOTING </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Michael Sullivan writes: "This is an amazing news story on the impact of counterfeiting in Somalia - people die over counterfeits." Here are excerpts from the BBC news Michael forwarded. -Editor] </div> Somali troops killed at least two people in the capital, Mogadishu, when they opened fire to halt riots over rising costs and counterfeit money. <br><br>Thousands of people rioted, burning tyres and throwing stones after traders refused to accept local notes and demanded US dollars instead. <br><br>The recent printing of local shilling notes on illegal presses has led to spiralling inflation, reporters say. <br><br>The demonstrators shouted slogans about the traders such as "down with those refusing the old money and down with the dollar-receivers". <br><br>Over the last three months, the value of Somali shilling has fallen dramatically from 17,000 shillings for $1 (50 pence) to 30,000 shillings for $1. <br><br>This has been blamed on the printing of vast quantities of the local currency on illegal presses. <br><br>Most people have limited access to US dollar notes, the only currency shopkeepers will accept. <br><br>Our correspondent says both the transitional government and the leaders of the insurgents have ordered traders to accept both the old and new local notes. <br><br>But businesses argue that most of the old Somali shilling notes are worn out - they date back to before 1991 - and worth very little, and they blame the spiralling inflation on the counterfeit ones. <br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7383746.stm"> Read the complete article </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article23"> $100 MILLION GIFT PUTS SCHWARTZMAN NAME ON NEW YOUR PUBLIC LIBRARY BUILDING </a></h3> Len Augsburger writes: "I had to check a couple other sources when I first saw this because I assumed it was some sort of crank or Onion-type article. Is nothing sacred anymore? Somehow sitting in that splendiferous reading room at 42nd and 5th won't be the same. Sigh..... "<br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://www.bloggingbuyouts.com/2008/03/11/schwarzman-to-donate-100-million-to-the-new-york-public-library/"> Read the complete article</a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article24"> VOCABULARY WORD: QUINCUNX </a></h3> <img src="http://content7.clipmarks.com/blog_cache/en.wikipedia.org/img/45735B5F-4AE6-43A9-BB79-49AE4B7F11FD" alt="Five dots forming a quincunx" align="left">A quincunx is the arrangement of five units in the pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes. The quincunx was originally the symbol of the Roman coin of the same name, whose value was five twelfths (quinque + uncia) of an as. Typically, a quincunx consists of five objects arranged in a square, with one object at each of the square’s four corners and the fifth in the square’s center. <div class="box"> <a src="http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Quincunx&oldid=210397914"> Read the complete article on Wikipedia </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article25"> BRAIN TEASER: WHAT DO THESE WORDS HAVE IN COMMON? </a></h3> It's non-numismatic, but readers may wish to try their hands on the following brain teaser Dave Bowers forwarded to me this week:<br><br> "I am only sending this to my smart friends. I could not figure it out and had to look at the answer. If you can figure out what these words have in common, you are a lot smarter than I am.<br><br><ul> <li> Banana <li> Dresser <li> Grammar <li> Potato <li> Revive <li> Uneven <li> Assess </ul> I managed to get it, and on Tuesday I put the question to my wife and our two sons at breakfast. Christopher figured it out. So ... are you smarter than a nine-year-old? <div class="box"></div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article26"> ONTARIO BAKERY SUCCEEDS WITH HONOR PAYMENT SYSTEM </a></h3> <div class="box"> [Some businesses don't bother with cash registers, and do just fine, thank you. This bakery takes self-service to the limit (and doesn't price in cent increments). But don't expect major retailers to follow. -Editor] </div> Here's an article about the City Café Bakery in Kitchener, Ontario, which uses an honor payment system and almost never gets cheated.<br><br>Customers add up how much they owe themselves and drop their money into a fare box from an old bus. <br><br>“I liked the idea of simplifying things and ... the honour system made a whole lot of sense,” [owner John] Bergen says. “What irritated me about going into Tim Hortons, for example, was waiting in line for something as simple as getting a donut and a coffee. So the thought was, someone can pour his own coffee, grab his own bagel, cut it himself, throw the money in, and walk out. We don’t touch 60 per cent of the transaction.”<br><br>Because it is up to the customers to total their purchases, Bergen has simplified the cost structure.<br><br>“Everything is rounded off to the nearest quarter with taxes included where applicable,” he says. “So every desert is $1.50 (tarts, brownies, and date squares), every pizza lunch is $5, every beverage is $1.25, every loaf of bread is $2.75 (Italian sourdough, multi-grain, and raisin bread on weekends), croissants are $1 each, and bagels are three for $2 (plain, sesame, and multi-grain).”<br><br>The bakery conducts audits every six months and Bergen says only once did things come up short.<br><br><div class="box"> To read the complete article, see: <a href="http://www.boingboing.net/2008/05/06/ontario-bakery-succe.html"> Ontario bakery succeeds with honor payment system </a> </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article27"> ON TOSSING ANCIENT COINS </a></h3> Last week I wrote: <blockquote>[According to the Waverly Leader of Melbourne, Australia, an ancient Roman coin was recently used in a coin toss before a sporting match. Is that a first? Has an ancient coin ever been used this way before? -Editor] </blockquote> Larry Gaye writes: “I have a Byzantine coin client who purchases Byzantine Anonymous folles (10th Century pieces) to use for the coin toss in the soccer (football) games he officiates. He then gives them away to foster the hobby, a very neat way to focus interest.”<br><br><div class="box"> <a href="http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v11n18a28.html"> CLAYTONUS MAXIMUS TAKES THE FIELD: TOSSED COIN 2,000 YEARS OLD </div><br><br>
<div class='box'></div><h3 id = "article28"> FEATURED WEB SITE: TEN THOUSAND CENTS COLLABORATIVE ART PROJECT </a></h3> This week's featured web site is suggested by Dick Johnson. He writes: "Here's an interesting art project that may be of interest to E-Sylum readers. I came across it in <a href="http://monicanoellevoigt.blogspot.com/2008/05/ten-thousand-cents.html "> Monica Noelle Voigt's recent blog post."</a><br><br><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/coinbooks/2478108407/" title="Ten Thousand Cents = $100 by Numismatic Bibliomania Society, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2227/2478108407_872e9852f3.jpg" width="300" height="128" alt="Ten Thousand Cents = $100" /></a><br><br><blockquote> <i> Artists Aaron Koblin and Takashi Kawashima created a digital image of the one hundred dollar bill. Comprising images of drawings made by 10,000 people from Mechanical Turk which is an online business site. They were asked to reproduce an abstract piece and received one cent for their contribution. The final product resembles a mosaic-like image of the one hundred dollar bill.<br><br>These Artists are not the first to work with money in art. However the way that they did it was a great trick, almost. These people who they "hired" did not know why they were asked to created a drawing they just knew that they were being paid for it. I'm not sure if they knew how much they were going to get paid for before they did it. Because I'm not sure that one cent is worth much anymore. </i> </blockquote> <div class="box"> <a href="http://www.tenthousandcents.com"> http://www.tenthousandcents.com</a> </div><br><br>
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