The E-Sylum v9#33, August 13, 2006

[esylum at binhost.com]

Welcome to The E-Sylum: Volume 9, Number 33, August 13, 2006:
an electronic publication of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society.
Copyright (c) 2006, The Numismatic Bibliomania Society.


WAYNE'S WORDS

We have no new subscribers this week - boo hoo!   While you folks 
are at the American Numismatic Association this week, collect the 
email addresses of potential subscribers and send them to me.  I'll 
be happy to send them a complimentary subscription.

This week's issue includes a number of interesting items. We begin 
with a preview of the next Asylum issue, and review proposed changes 
in American Numismatic Association exhibit categories.  In the news 
we have an article about the ongoing controversy and lawsuit involving 
the ANA and a resolution to the tale of the funny $100 bills that 
were turning up earlier this summer - and someone's going to jail.

We also have a resolution to the question of the disposition of Harry 
X Boosel's coin collection, and learn a thing or two (some hearsay) 
about dealer James Randall.  On the trail of numismatic knowledge, 
I chronicle my search for information on a prominent numismatic work 
seen by thousands of commuters daily. 

Speaking of this week's ANA convention, be sure to visit and patronize 
the numismatic literature dealers setting up there.  John Burns and 
Charles Davis will both at the show(at tables 249-250 and 332, 
respectively).  These gents are providing a great service for collectors,
bibliophiles and researchers attending the show.  It is very expensive, 
time consuming and downright tiring to haul a display of numismatic 
literature to a show.  It's also hard to get away from your table at a 
big show, so ask if you could bring them lunch or refreshments.  Browse 
their stock, buy some books and place some orders!  Or bring a few 
choice duplicates to sell!

Next week's E-Sylum may be a bit off-schedule, so hold your fire if 
it doesn't arrive in the usual time window.  I'll be in the middle of 
a house move and may not be able to wrap things up as usual Sunday 
evening - there could be a delay until Monday evening.  If you'd like 
to submit something for the next issue, it would be best to send it by 
Wednesday the 16th.  But as always, I'll do my best to accommodate 
late arrivals if possible.

To learn about the numismatic connection to "heap bad medicine" and 
tondo (and no, it's not the Lone Ranger's sidekick), read on.  Have 
a great week, everyone!


Wayne Homren
Numismatic Bibliomania Society


 
NEXT ASYLUM ISSUE PREVIEWED

NBS President Pete Smith writes: "The second 2006 issue of The 
Asylum is in production and should be in members' mailboxes soon. 
While readers of The E-Sylum enjoy getting their electronic news 
every week, the quarterly Asylum is for those who still like to 
read ink on paper.

The cover story is about "Sir Frank Merry Stenton and the Coinage 
of the Anglo-Saxons." His writing took a more historical perspective 
than just numismatic. This article is written by The Asylum editor, 
E. Tomlinson Fort.

A look at numismatic literature by a newcomer to the field is 
presented by Alison Frankel. Her article on "Discovering the 
Numismatic Bibliomania Society" discusses her attendance at the 
2004 Kolbe auction of the Ford library and related areas that 
interest her.

The American Numismatic Society recently received a donation of 
correspondence sent to the Chapman brothers. In two articles, 
Len Augsburger discusses some of what he found in this valuable 
resource.

The first article, "Woodward/Chapman Correspondence at the 
American Numismatic Society" mentions contact between the 
established Woodward and the upstart Chapman brothers around 
the time of their first sale in 1878. Correspondence continued 
into 1881 as Woodward expressed admiration for the Chapman plates 
and discussed production of his catalogs.

Augsburger's second article, "The ANS Chapman Files: Major William 
Boerum Wetmore" provides biographical information on Wetmore, a 
previously little-known collector. While there were times when 
Wetmore could acquire great rarities like the 1804 dollar, there 
were other times when his wife did not want him buying anything. 
Perhaps some of our modern collectors can relate to that."

[Remember, these articles are ONLY available in the printed Asylum.  
To join NBS, see the informant at the bottom of every E-Sylum issue, 
which I'll repeat here.  

There is a membership application available on the web site 
at this address:
http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html 

To join, print the application and return it with your check 
to the address printed on the application. Membership is only 
$15 to addresses in the U.S., $20 elsewhere.  
-Editor]


ANA EXHIBIT POLICY CHANGES PROPOSED

American Numismatic Association chief judge Joe Boling writes: 
"There are several documents of interest to exhibitors and judges 
posted on the ANA web site as materials for use by the board at 
its meetings in Denver. See particularly the ANA exhibit committee 
report."
http://tinyurl.com/pjgkd

[The Numismatic Bibliomania Society sponsored the Numismatic 
Literature exhibit category, Class 22.  The exhibit history document 
shows that over the past ten summer conventions the average number 
of exhibits entered in class 22 is 2.5, with a range of 1 to 4 
exhibits.  The number of cases per exhibit ranges from 1 to 20 with 
an average of 11.1 cases.

The report notes that "The Committee spent a significant amount of 
time and effort ... attempting to understand if the present twenty-five 
exhibit classifications could or should be condensed to a more manageable
number."  The committee is recommending consolidating down to 17 classes.
The numismatic literature classification would be unaffected and become 
the new class 15.

The committee also makes recommendations regarding exhibit endowments.  
NBS raised thousands of dollars to endow the exhibit category and the 
committee recommends that "Endowments should be treated as restricted 
use gifts, with all interest from endowments being used exclusively for 
the funding of annual awards."   Luckily, because the literature category 
would be untouched, NBS needn't sort out with the ANA how to reallocate 
its endowment fund.

If bibliophiles have any questions or comments on the proposed changes, 
send them to me for publication in The E-Sylum (many of the exhibit 
committee members are readers) or see them in person if you're at the 
convention in Denver.  The Exhibits Chair is Wendell Wolka, and other 
members are Joe Boling, Sam Deep, John Eshbach, Katie Heinrich, Gene 
Hynds, Jerry Kochel, and Fred Schwan. -Editor]


E-SYLUM WINS OUTSTANDING CLUB PUBLICATION AWARD

Marilyn Reback, Senior Editor of the American Numismatic Association's 
NUMISMATIST Magazine writes: "It is with great pleasure that I inform 
you that "The E-Sylum," published by the Numismatic Bibliomania Society, 
has been selected by a panel of judges to receive the second-place 
Outstanding Electronic Club Publication Award.

The Outstanding Club Publications Awards will be presented during the 
ANA's 115th Anniversary Convention in Denver, Colorado, at the ANA 
Representative Program Breakfast on Saturday, August 19, at 8 a.m. 
in Room 601 of the Colorado Convention Center. Congratulations!"

[Many thanks to the ANA for this recognition.  I will be unable to 
attend the convention, and NBS President Pete Smith has a schedule 
conflict.  If any other NBS officer or member will be attending the 
breakfast, please let us know if you're willing to accept the award 
on our behalf.  Thanks.  -Editor]
 

LAKE BOOKS SALE #85 PRICES REALIZED POSTED

Fred Lake writes: "The prices realized list for our sale #85 which 
closed on Tuesday, August 8, 2006 is now posted to the Lake Books web 
site. You may view the list at: http://www.lakebooks.com/archive.html
 
When you reach that page, scroll down (or click on "2006") to sale #85 
and you will find the two options for viewing the list.
 
The sale was very active and last-minute bidding was heavy. Our next 
sale will be held in October of this year and will again feature some 
very fine numismatic reference material."

Fred adds: "There were many new bidders and some mentioned the 
E-Sylum as the source for their interest."


NOYES U.S. LARGE CENTS 1793-1794 AVAILABLE

Charlie Davis writes: "Bill Noyes' new book "United States Large Cents 
1793-1794" has been received from the printer. It contains over 400 
pages with all known die states and the top twelve condition census 
coins illustrated in color enlargements. It is similar in size and 
format to the 1991 volumes. 

Those who have already placed an order will be receiving their copy 
shortly. Others may order from me at $195.00 + $10.00 shipping. The 
deluxe leatherbound edition is at the bindery and we will have a sample 
copy at the A.N.A. Convention (Table 332). The cost is $425.00 + $10.00 
shipping, and the number produced, probably 25, will be limited to 
those orders received by October 15."


CANADIAN HISTORICAL MEDAL SERIES PUBLICATION STATUS SOUGHT

Bob Gilbert writes: "I wonder if anyone knows about the continuing 
delays in publishing of Volumes Two and Three of Canadian Historical 
Medal Series.  To date, only Volume One, Canadian Exhibition Fair 
Carnival Medals, has been printed.  I, as I'm sure all others, paid 
for the entire three volume series back in 2001, but have not heard 
anything about the other two volumes which were supposed to be printed 
years ago.  I used to get updates about delays.  However, for the past 
two years or so I can't get any response from the publisher on what is 
going on.  I don't mind waiting as long as I know I will eventually 
get what I paid for and that they are actively working on this."


BRITISH NUMISMATIC LITERATURE HISTORY AUTHOR SOUGHT

Tom Fort, editor of our print journal, The Asylum, writes: "I am trying 
to find contact information for James Hartley Nichols, who received a 
Masters Degree from Florida Atlantic University in 1978. His master's 
thesis was entitled: "Ancient Greek Coins: A History of British 
Numismatic Literature". 

This might be a great work to serialize in The Asylum, since it does 
not seem to have been published elsewhere, but we obviously need the 
permission of the author. I have already tried a Google search and 
found nothing. Perhaps one of our readers in Florida know of this 
gentleman?"


WHITMAN PHOTOGRAPHY RESPONSES AND A CRESCENT CITY CLAMSHELL

Regarding his request for needed items to be photographed for upcoming 
Whitman book projects, Dave Bowers writes: "It is really wonderful how 
The E-Sylum compresses weeks into hours and eliminates distance for 
numismatic researchers!  I've received a bunch of offers."

Several volunteers contacted Dave directly, including Alan Weinberg 
and Rod Charleton II.   Rod writes: "I too am impressed with the power 
of using The E-Sylum and the Internet.  I received answers to my 
questions in no time.  It's one heck of a research tool if you ask 
me."  Dave was looking for a piece of Crescent City Depression Scrip 
clam money to photograph, and Rod put an image of his example on his 
web site.  Take a look:
http://www.depressionscrip.com/clam 


BEP EMPLOYEE CHARGED WITH STEALING UNCUT $100 SHEETS

Remember those funny $100 bills that turned up in Delaware 
earlier this summer?  Here's our previous E-Sylum article:

$100 BILL ERRORS FOUND IN DELAWARE - AUTHENTICITY DISPUTED
http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v09n24a12.html 

Well, "Feds said Monday they've solved at least part of the 
mystery of the so-called "Delaware Hundreds."

"A Dover coin dealer, who bought three from customers who got 
them at Harrington Raceway's Midway Slots, asked federal officials 
to investigate whether they were printing errors worth thousands 
or merely stolen goods filched at a mint.

A mint worker was arrested Friday and more arrests are possible, 
the Office of the Inspector General said today. Details were not 
immediately available."

To read the complete article, see:
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060807/NEWS/60807
025 

"An employee at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing appeared in 
federal court Monday on charges he stole ten sheets of $100 bills. 

David Faison, of Largo, waived a preliminary hearing and was 
released from jail on his own recognizance. A date hasn't been 
set for his next court appearance." 

"According to court documents, Faison distributed paper stock at 
the bureau's printing facility and had access to the area where 
$100 bills are printed. 

Most of the sheets he is accused of stealing contained 32 uncut, 
partially printed bills. The money appeared normal, but it was 
missing serial numbers and Treasury seals." 

To read the complete story, see:
http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0806/350858.html

To see a local D.C. news video:
http://www.nbc4.com/news/9632261/detail.html 

On Tuesday August 8th the Associated Press picked up the story: 
"For a two-month period beginning in late May, 145 partially printed 
bills passed through the Midway Slots, Dover Downs Slots and Delaware 
Park casinos in Delaware; Bally's and Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, 
N.J.; and the Charles Town Races and Slots in Charles Town, W.Va. 
The bills appeared to have been cut with scissors. 

In July, surveillance videos show Faison sitting at slot machines, 
and records show that the stolen bills were inserted into the 
machines during those times, according to the affidavit. At one 
point, three of the $100 bills were inserted within 19 seconds. 

A search of Faison's home Thursday resulted in the recovery of 
some of the stolen bills, which were hidden in wrapping paper in 
Faison's bedroom closet, the affidavit said." 

To read the complete article, see:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/08/08/national/main1873111.shtml

On Wednesday the Washington Post had a more in-depth article:

"Peter Bradley, the general manager of slot operations at Dover Downs, 
said the casino received a tip from the Treasury Department that 
Faison might show up at the casino.

"They gave us a description, and one day one of our surveillance 
folks picked him up," Bradley said.

The casino made certain that the surveillance videotape of Faison was 
enough of a close-up to show that one of the $100 bills that Faison 
inserted into a slot machine did not have serial numbers or the 
Treasury seal, officials said. Dover Downs security later verified 
that Faison gambled with $400 that day and that all of the bills 
were partially printed."

To read the complete article, see:
http://tinyurl.com/k2he8 

[So Raymond Gesualdo, owner of First State Coin Co. in Dover was 
right - he didn't want anything to do with the bills, believing 
them to be stolen.  Has anyone gotten a look at these notes?  No 
doubt many have already been confiscated by the Secret Service, 
but there are certainly still some out there in circulation or 
being held by people who think they have a valuable error.  

I wonder how long it will take to round them all up?  And what 
will become of them - will they all be destroyed?  Will some be 
held in the Secret Service files?  Will any find their way to the 
National Numismatic Collection?  

A theft of any kind from the BEP is a very rare and historic event, 
and it would be good to see a piece of the evidence preserved at 
the Smithsonian.  But regulations probably prohibit a counterfeit 
being anywhere, even in the NNC - I've never heard of counterfeits 
being part of the collection.  -Editor]


WOODROW WILSON BRIDGE MEDALLION INFORMATION QUEST

I caught a glimpse of the new Woodrow Wilson bridge on TV the other 
night and saw what looked like a very large medallion showing Wilson's 
profile embedded in one of the bridge's pylons.  The bridge carries 
the Capitol Beltway across the Potomac river outside of Washington, 
D.C.  The new bridge (actually TWO spans) is now open for traffic and 
the old bridge is scheduled for demolition August 24th (My birthday!  
Can I push the button?).

Anyway, curious about the medallions, I found the construction project 
web site and emailed the public affairs director about it.  I had been 
unable to find anything on the site about the medallions.

The next morning Alex Lee, Community Relations Manager for the Woodrow 
Wilson Bridge Project replied:  "The medallions were located on the 
old bridge. They were integrated as part of the design of the new 
bridges (pylon/obelisk at the approach in Virginia and Maryland).  
The "coins" were removed and then attached to the pylons.  I am not 
sure who the artist was -  these were originally installed in 1961."  

Alex included pictures of one of the medallions as mounted on the old 
and new bridges.  It appears to feature a large neck-up bust of Wilson 
facing left, flanked by his birth and death dates of 1856 and 1924.  
It appears silver/grey in color and may be aluminum.  If you squint a 
little it looks like a giant Mercury dime.

I checked with a few E-Sylum regulars and here's what they had 
to say:

Rodger Burdette writes: "I don't know much about the medallions or 
who designed them. At present one of the pylons is covered in plastic, 
but the other is exposed. The one medallion that can be seen traveling 
from Virginia into Maryland appears discolored. However, I presume it 
will be restored before the 2nd span of the 12-lane bridge is opened 
in 2008."

Dick Johnson agrees.  He writes: "It looks like the weather has been 
unkind to those medallions.  They should be refinished.  Medallions 
are Joe Levine's specialty. He lives nearby and I'll bet he can tell 
you more than you want to know about these."

Joe Levine writes: "I've seen these for years, but have no idea of 
their history or who did them.  Perhaps you might want to call the 
curator at the Woodrow Wilson House.  Another source might be the 
National Sculpture Society."

So I took Joe's advice and wrote to both organizations.  I didn't 
exactly hit a mother lode of information, but here's what I learned 
from Frank J. Aucella, Executive Director of the Woodrow Wilson House: 
"They were indeed aluminum - state of the art for 1961.  The artist 
was J. Paul Junewine."
 
An Internet search turned up nothing under that spelling, but I did 
find an artist named C. Paul Jennewein. The Smithsonian Institution 
Research Information System (SRIS) returned a reference to the "Carl 
Paul Jennewein papers, 1910-1977".  The collection consists of 13 
linear feet of material on 20 microfilm reels containing  "Drawings, 
sketches, renderings, and designs, 1916-1976, for the following 
commissions: Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service, Brooklyn Central 
Library, the Finance Building of Harrisburg, Pa., and the Jefferson 
Memorial in St. Louis, Missouri." Also "Biographical material; writings 
and notes; correspondence, 1920-1978, , including letters from Daniel 
Chester French, Walker Hancock, Anna Hyatt Huntington.." and others.
http://tinyurl.com/fdloq

Here's an excerpt from an online biography:  "Jennewein was born in 
Stuttgart, Germany, in 1890... The father was a die engraver and 
permitted Paul to watch him work, which soon led to the son developing 
a love of drawing, engraving and etching... After moving to Hoboken, 
New Jersey-he became an U.S. citizen in 1915-Jennewein worked for the 
firm of architectural sculptors and commercial modelers, Buhler and 
Lauter, which was often used by McKim, Mead & White."

"Later in his career, Jennewein designed numerous commemorative medals, 
for which he won many design awards. Jennewein used a number of foundries, 
including the American Art Foundry, Bedford Foundry (later Modern Art 
Foundry), Gargani Foundry, Gorham Company Founders, Kunst Foundry and 
Roman Bronze Artworks.  His most active gallery association was with 
Grand Central Galleries in Manhattan.  He died in Larchmont, New York 
in 1978.  In his will over 2000 works were bequeathed to the Tampa 
Museum of Art. 

Among Jennewein's best known works are: the main entrance of the 
British Empire Building at Rockefeller Center; four stone pylons for 
the 1939 World's Fair representing the Four Elements; two pylons, 
painted in the Egyptian style that flank the entrance to the Brooklyn 
Public Library; allegorical relief panels in the White House Executive 
Mansion; marble sculptures at the entrance to the Rayburn House of 
Representatives Office Building; and thirteen sculptures of Greek 
deity in the central pediment of the Philadelphia Museum of Art."

I followed up with Dick Johnson.  He writes: "I knew Paul Jennewein. 
Strict German-American sculptor. He was the only sculptor I knew who 
had a full time secretary (Mrs. Muzzy). He was also chairman of the 
committee which chose the artists for all the Hall of Fame medals."

Other 'net searches found references to Jennewein's work on a number 
of other monuments and traffic pylons in the Washington, D.C. area, 
but nothing specifically noting the Woodrow Wilson bridge.  I'll stop 
my search here - no smoking gun, but plenty of evidence to confirm the 
artist was most likely C. Paul Jennewein.  Whew!  Now can anyone tell 
us about some of his numismatic work?

To read the complete bio of C. Paul Jennewein:
http://www.askart.com/askart/j/carl_paul_jennewein/carl_paul_jennewein.aspx 

To visit the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge project web site:
http://www.wilsonbridge.com/ 

To read the White House biography of Wilson, see:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/ww28.html 

To visit the Woodrow Wilson House web site:
http://www.woodrowwilsonhouse.org/ 

To visit the National Sculpture Society:
http://www.nationalsculpture.org/ 


VOCABULARY WORD: TONDO

Dick Johnson writes: "The circular relief mounted on the Woodrow Wilson
Bridge, despite its portrait and lettering, is not a "medallion." 
Instead, the correct term for such use, particularly in architecture, 
is a "tondo."
 
While the definition of "medallion" is not set in stone, a medallion 
in numismatics ranges from 3 1/8-inch (or more exactly, 80mm) to about 
12 inches (30.5 cm). Thus numismatic medallions often have two sides. 
Circular reliefs larger than 12 inches USUALLY have only one side -- 
they must be mounted on a flat surface.
 
Obviously, these medallions are not die struck, but must be made by 
other means, casting or electroforming. Casting is virtually unlimited. 
Electroforming is limited only to the size of the tanks in which they 
are made.
 
A relief item larger than 12 inches is usually called a "circular 
relief" or "plaque" if square or rectangular (above 24 inches the 
latter is more of a "tablet").
 
The above terms do not apply to the oversize models or patterns 
from which dies are cut. A 14-inch pattern (as a galvano) ideally 
reduces down to a 4-inch medallion or a 3-inch medal. Its 14-inch 
size is not a "circular relief," it is the end product that 
determines the precise term."

[Many thanks for keeping me honest - I wasn't quite sure of the 
"medallion" term, but didn't know what the correct term was.  Now 
we all do!  -Editor]


HANS SCHULMAN AND SOMER JAMES

Katie Jaeger writes: "Back in 2005, there was an E-Sylum string 
on Hans Schulman.  I just bought a copy of the 1964 Canadian Betts 
reprint from Abebooks, delivered from an antiquarian bookstore in 
Madrid.  It is inscribed: "To Hans Schulman with best wishes, 
Somer James, 2/22/65."
 
Then I Googled "Somer James" and found he was a Canadian numismatist 
discussed on The E-Sylum in 2003!  Neat."
 

ORDERS AND MEDALS SOCIETY OF AMERICA MEETS

According to an August 10 story in the Arizona Republic, "The 
ballroom at the Doubletree Paradise Valley Resort held the 
history of thousands of soldiers, each of their stories encased 
in a bit of metal, with some ribbon and tiny engravings almost 
too small to read.

More than 200 dealers and collectors converged on the resort Saturday 
and Sunday for the annual convention of the Orders and Medals Society 
of America. They came equipped with rare collections, some worth 
hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Richard McDonald, a full-time dealer from Seattle, presided over a 
display of medals awarded to Thomas M. Watt, an American who flew 
for the Royal Canadian Air Force in World War II. Watt is best known 
to a certain generation (and lovers of classic movies) as "the 
Scrounger," a character played by James Garner in the 1963 film The 
Great Escape."

"Dealers represented nations from around the world, from Finland to 
Japan. Some cases held glittering, bejeweled medals from France and 
czarist Russia, but the gems do not necessarily mean they are the 
most valued.

James Morton, who co-owns a London agency, reached past the enameled 
flourishes of Russian awards to the seemingly plainer Naval General 
Service Medal issued in 1848 for actions related to HMS Indefatigable 
in 1797. Engraved with the tiniest of words, the medal would sell for 
about $60,000." 

[Do we have any members of the Orders and Medals Society among us?  
Was anyone at the convention?  -Editor]

To read the complete article, see:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0810medals0810.html

To visit the Orders and Medals Society of America web site:
http://www.omsa.org/ 


CSNS NATIONAL BANK NOTE EDUCATIONAL SEMINAR REPORT

Cliff Mishler writes: "The Central States Numismatic Society on 
Thursday, August 3, sponsored its first ever free-standing one-day 
educational seminar, the subject of which was the development and 
collecting of the National Bank Note currency series, which was 
hosted at the Higgins Museum of National Bank Notes in Okoboji, 
Iowa. The event commanded the participation of roughly 25 collectors 
and dealers from around the country, with 13 states represented. 
The featured speakers were Peter Huntoon from Boulder, Nevada; Mark 
Hotz from Baltimore, Maryland; and Wendell Wolka from Indianapolis, 
Indiana, who served as moderator for the event.

In his several presentations, Huntoon explored the political and 
economic development of National Bank Note issuance, with a focus 
on simplifying the many complex and overlapping ingredients involved. 
Keying his presentations to collecting options, Hotz offered up a 
variety of approaches to "what you can do" in pursuit of National 
Bank Notes, including a presentation devoted to the intrigue of a 
City National Bank of Taylor, Texas, series 1929 $10 note, a blood 
stained note believed to have been among the roll of currency carried 
by Clyde Barrow at the time of the famous Bonnie & Clyde ambush of 
March, 1934. In his pair of presentations, Wolka explored the 60 
years of state chartered and independent banking history in Ohio 
preceding and transitioning into the National Bank Note era.

This event was organized under the direction of Ray Lockwood of 
Marion, Indiana, chairman of the CSNS Educational Committee, with 
on-site coordination handled by board member Jim Moores of Liberty, 
Missouri, who stood in for Lockwood, who was recovering from surgery 
and unable to be in attendance. The participants were welcomed to 
the event by CSNS president Bill Brandimore from Wausau, Wisconsin, 
and Higgins Museum treasurer Rick Hickman, son of the late National 
Bank Note collecting enthusiast and authority John Hickman, who 
offered an overview of the founding and growth of the museum.

Future CSNS sponsored one-day free-standing seminars are in the 
planning stages. The second such event is projected for this coming 
June in Indianapolis, with the program still under development. 
Information concerning this and other future events may be obtained 
by writing to Lockwood at 2075 East Bocock Road, Marion, IN 46952-8799.
Phone; 765-664-6520. E-mail; sunrayofmarion at aol.com."


ANA LAWSUIT HEADS TO COURT

The Colorado Springs Gazette published a story today about the 
American Numismatic Association, its current troubles, and the 
lawsuit scheduled for a hearing September 26th:

"The American Numismatic Association, a nonprofit group that 
educates hobbyists about coin collecting and money, certainly 
knows how to lose it. 

For the past four years, the Colorado Springs-based organization 
has operated at a loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. 

But that's just one of its problems. 

The 115-year-old group, federally chartered as an educational, 
historical and scientific organization, is beset by questions 
over its finances and complaints that its leadership fosters a 
culture of excessive secrecy and demands loyalty oaths."

""It's unfortunate to have such dissension and turmoil in this 
organization," said Beth Deisher, editor of industry publications 
Coin World and Coin Values. "That makes it difficult to move 
forward." 

"Deisher said the ANA is expected to be forthcoming about its 
dealings, but she said she and others have noticed a "shroud of 
secrecy" they say began when Cipoletti took charge three years ago."

"Cipoletti chalked up the turnover to his goals of streamlining 
operations and reaching younger members with new programs, and 
normal adjustments that occur with a new leader. 

"Anytime you start something new or take something away, you're 
going to have disagreement," he said. "People see change as 
somewhat threatening." 

The feud within the ANA is now headed to court. A civil lawsuit 
filed on behalf of the ANA and Cipoletti is scheduled for a jury 
trial Sept. 26. It alleges that three former employees and a 
computer services contractor and his company conspired against 
Cipoletti and the ANA by posting false statements about Cipoletti 
on several Web sites."

To read the complete article, see:
http://www.gazette.com/display.php?id=1320477 


ANS NUMISMATIC CONVERSATIONS SERIES CONTINUES

As Ray Williams recently reported, the ANS broke some new ground 
recently with an educational program made available to remote 
attendees.  The following is taken from a recent ANS press release:

"The American Numismatic Society has inaugurated a new program, 
"Numismatic Conversations," to bring together experts on various 
numismatic topics with collectors, dealers and scholars, who can 
take part from different locations.

This July, the Society presented "Connecticut Coppers" as a first 
in this series and to try out the experimental elements of the program.  
ANS Curator of North American Coins and Currency Robert Hoge showed 
an extensive selection of late 18th century Connecticut coinage to a 
live audience of thirty-four amateur and professional numismatists 
assembled at the ANS headquarters in New York City.  

In addition, other enthusiasts and experts interested in Connecticut 
Coppers viewed the program live via Internet connection.  Six members 
of this remote audience--who were taking part from locations ranging 
from Delaware to California--were connected to the event by 
teleconference as well as Internet.  These remote participants were 
able to view a video feed of the presentation and directly contribute 
comments or questions to the conversation.

Despite some technical issues that will be corrected in future programs, 
the experiment was successful and well received by those who took part.  
The audience particularly enjoyed the close-up video views of the coins
themselves, which were shown both on a screen in the room and on the 
webcast. As the program was videotaped, the Society plans to make 
these sessions available to an even wider audience by offering an 
edited version on DVD and/or as a download from the ASN web site.  

The artifacts featured in the discussion mostly represented new 
acquisitions by the ANS, or rare and exceptional examples that had 
been in the collection, but which had not been on public exhibition 
in recent years.  With the success of this first experiment, the ANS 
intends to continue presenting sessions of "Numismatic Conversations" 
for audiences that will include participants at the Society's New 
York headquarters and online through the webcast.   The Society hopes 
that many of its members and other interested individuals who cannot 
attend in person will participate through this technology. 

The next in the series will be a presentation at 6:30 PM on September 
13, 2006, dealing with the evolution of American war medals and 
decorations during the era when the United States became a world power. 
Military historian (and ANS Development Director) Geoff Giglierano will 
be showing and discussing examples from the Society's collections 
including Medal Honor awards from the Civil War through the Philippine 
Insurrection, and seldom-encountered medals that originated during 
historic events such as the Spanish American War and the Boxer Rebellion.
  There is no charge to attend, but seating in the live audience is 
limited to thirty individuals and reservations are encouraged.  To 
make reservations, or for information on how you can connect and view 
the webcast, please contact Juliette Pelletier at 212 571-4470, 
extension 1311."


NEW ZEALAND COINAGE SWITCHOVER CREATES DEMAND FOR 2004 5C COINS

Martin Purdy of New Zealand writes: "NZ is withdrawing its 5c coins 
at the moment.  The bulk of the mintage for the last "circulating" 
year, 2004, was melted without being issued, only 32,000 being released 
for circulation. One was put up on the Internet for auction recently, 
and finally sold for NZ$360, or about US$220.

Since the item aired, quite a number of 2004 5c coins have been listed 
on TradeMe (the NZ equivalent of eBay).  This will doubtless bring the 
price down, but will at least save more from the melting pot later in 
the year."

Here's a link to a TV news item on it:
http://www.tv3.co.nz/News/tabid/67/articleID/12025/Default.aspx 


CENTENNIAL MEDALS AND TOKENS SALE CATALOGS SOUGHT

Ron Abler writes: "The Henry W. Holland collection was sold at auction 
by Woodward in his sale #19 held on November 11, 1878.  Between 1876 
and 1878, Holland published his list of Centennial medals in the 
American Journal of Numismatics, and he had one of the most extensive 
collections of the time.

I would very much like to find a copy of Woodward's auction catalog 
to further my research on Centennial medals, which I would one day 
like to publish.  If anyone has the catalog or knows where one might 
exist, please let me know.  I would be willing to purchase a copy 
(if I can afford it) or pay for photocopying, if that can be arranged.

Also, in Ed Frossard's Numisma, Vol. 4, No. 5, September, 1880, 
there appeared the following notice:

"The editor of Numisma [Frossard] has just completed the revision 
of his list of Centennial Medals, which may or may not be published 
in catalogue or book form. The list embraces probably from 450 to 
600 different medals and tokens, and the descriptions are in all 
cases from original specimens mostly in the cabinets of Messrs. Wm. 
Sheldon, John W. Haseltine, or the author.

The list embraces quite a number of pieces, the existence of which 
is unknown to collectors, and the medals will be numbered by size, 
beginning with the original Commission Medal, size 64, and ending 
with "the Pigmy"
size 8."

The ANA Library can find no reference to Frossard's list having 
ever been published.  Can anyone out there shed any light on this 
subject?  If such a list does exist, I would appreciate finding out 
about it.  If anyone has a copy, I would be grateful for the 
opportunity to borrow it or to photocopy it.

Based on the Numisma citation, I would obviously also be interested 
in any references to or lists of the Centennial collections of Sheldon 
and Hazeltine.  Thank you very much."


DISPOSITION OF THE HARRY X BOOSEL COLLECTION OF 1873 COINAGE

Tom DeLorey writes: "Harry's coins were sold at auction long before 
he died. I advised Tillie as to what of his exonumia to consign to 
Joe Levine for auction, and purchased the rest outright. I still have 
some of it in my exonumia box." 

Bill Burd writes: "Harry's work on the 1873 coinage was published in 
a series of articles in the Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine from March 
1957 through December 1958.  In 1960 he published a revised limited 
edition of 500 copies in a booklet form titled "1873-1873".  I have 
number 500 with a special hardbound cover and autographed.  

In 1972 Harry sold much of his collection in auction.  Roy Harte had 
an interest in 1873 and purchased many of the coins.  In November 1977 
Harte sold many of his 1873 dated foreign coins in a Bowers & Ruddy 
Auction and Harry purchased many of them.  His paddle number at the 
auction was "73". (I have it in my library along with his notated 
catalog).  

Harte had another auction in 1983 and Harry purchased the Morgan & 
Orr Medal and donated it the ANA.  They were the manufacturer of the 
San Francisco coin press that was on display at the ANA at the time.  
I also have Harry's Florida license plate. It is "HXB-1873"."

Karl Moulton writes: "Harry X Boosel's entire collection was sold in 
the April 28, 1972 Central States sale by Rarcoa.  The U.S. coins were 
sold in lots 577-778; The foreign portion goes all the way to Lot 964. 
There's even a short bio and picture on the inside cover."  Mark 
Borckardt and Julian Leidman also knew of this sale.

Fred Reed writes: "My numismatic date database of nearly 15,000 
significant numismatic events that I use to write my weekly Coin 
World column "The Week That Was" has these references to Harry:

Aug. 17, 1912:  Mr. 1873 collector Harry X Boosel born
May 1	1937: Numismatic Scrapbook correspondent Harry X Boosel 
            reports 69 commem coin bills pending
Sept. 18 1968: Lester Merkin sells Harry X Boosel's 
               first "1873" collection
Apr. 28 1972: RARCOA sells Harry X Boosel's 
               second "1873" collection

I, like Tom DeLorey, had run-ins with Harry's middle initial at 
Coin World in the 1970s. I don't have his death date, but if an 
E-Sylum reader knows it, I'd be obliged to enter that too. My 
contact point is freed3 at airmail.net."

Dave Perkins writes: "In the Lester Merkin Public Auction Sale - 
September 18, 1968 catalog, Lots 96-117 were "SELECTIONS FROM THE 
HARRY X BOOSEL SPECIALIZED 1873 COLLECTION."  The introductory page 
to this sale noted "BOOSEL'S 1873 COINS" under the general sale title 
"EXTRAORDINARY UNITED STATES COINS."  This was quite an auction sale
overall, and is one of my favorite sale catalogs.  The cataloger wrote 
the following which preceded Lot 96:  "The following are all dated 1873. 
All remarks in quotation marks are supplied by Harry X Boosel and 
should be accorded the attention and respect they merit as coming 
from a bonafide expert.  Many of these coins are of great rarity."

Given it was termed "Selections from." I would venture to say these 
were duplicates from his collection.  Only four or so of the lots 
here were plate coins from his book. 

I met "Mr. 1873" once briefly in 1983 or '84 (?) at the Central States 
Convention show in Minneapolis.  John McCloskey (President of the 
Liberty Seated Collector's Club) asked me if I wanted to meet "Mr. 
1873" and of course I said sure!

[Based on these facts, it seems to me that Dave Perkins has probably 
best summarized the disposition of Boosel's collection - duplicates 
sold in 1968 with the main collection sold in 1972.  This could be 
confirmed if most of the plate coins in Boosel's book could be traced 
to the 1972 sale.

Cataloging style and certainly the entire coin market have changed 
quite a bit in the 35 years or so since Boosel's collection was sold.  
It would be interesting to see how the collections would be presented 
for sale today, and what the total hammer price might be. -Editor]

Roger deWardt Lane of Hollywood, Florida writes: "Back in the eighties, 
as a member of the Gold Coast Coin Club, I spent several meeting nights 
talking to Harry X Boosel.  He lived in the Chicago area and was a member 
of the Chicago Coin Club.  At that time Harry X and his wife spent the 
winters in Ft.Lauderdale.  When in town he would visit our meetings. He 
was known as Mr. 1873.
 
In 1983 the Diplomat Resort on Hollywood Beach hosted the AINA American 
Israel Numismatic Association, national convention.  We had the convention 
at the hotel more than one year, but this one stands out as I set up an 
exhibit of my Modern Dime Size Silver Coins of The World.  I won the 
"Best of Show" award which was a fancy clock with a AINA medal and name 
plate on it.  I just checked it to see the date of the convention.
 
Harry came to me, after he said he spent a lot of time looking at the 
hundreds of "world dimes" in my exhibit, and said "you do not have a 
single '1873' coin in it".  He told me he would send me one when he 
got back to Chicago.  This he did and I have a 1873 Russian 10 Kopec 
as part of my date collection with the provenance of Harry X Boosel.
 
I talked again with Harry X at another local meeting, probably at a 
later year.  If I remember correctly, he told me he had disposed of 
his collection, but had a double headed U.S. dime, not 1873 but a more 
current year silver dime, which he sold to me at this meeting as an 
odd item.
 
I think members of the Chicano Coin Club could tell our readers more 
about Harry.  He was a great guy and always had a story to tell."
 

HARRY X BOOSEL AND THE ARAMCO SAUDI ARABIAN GOLD DISCS

John Eshbach writes: "As was noted in this week's E-Sylum, Harry 
Boosel was Mr. 1873.  He also researched the gold discs struck at 
the U.S. Mint in the 1940s.  His article in the July 1959 issue of 
The Numismatist, "Why Those Saudi Arabian Gold Discs" is the sole 
source for subsequence articles on this little known bit of American 
numismatics.  

Talking about the gold discs with John J. Pittman years ago, he 
recalled being at the Philadelphia Mint at the time the discs were 
being struck.  He said a single press located behind secure green 
curtains was used.  The area was off limits but of course, John took 
a peek behind the curtains to see what was being struck.  Harry X 
Boosel was from Chicago and was the Industrial Security Administrator 
of the Navy Material Inspection Service for the central United States.  
He later moved to Florida and he or his wife Tilly occasionally 
exhibited the two Saudi gold discs at ANA conventions."

[A web search found the following item from the September/October 
1981 print edition of Saudi Aramco World:

"To collectors, however, the most interesting Saudi gold coins 
weren't coins at all; they were "gold discs" Similar to coins, they 
were minted by the Philadelphia Mint in the 1940's for Aramco, and 
bore, on one side, the U. S. Eagle and the legend "U. S. Mint, 
Philadelphia, USA" and, on the other side, three lines on the fineness 
and weight. They looked like coins, they were used as coins, but, 
technically, they weren't coins.

In the 1950's, numismatists were puzzled by these "discs" until-in 
1957 - the story emerged in The Numismatist. Aramco, required to 
pay royalties and other payments in gold to the Saudi government, 
could not obtain the gold at the monetary price fixed by the United 
States so the U. S. government specifically began to mint the "discs" 
- actually bullion in coin form for these payments. In 1945, for 
example, the mint turned out 91,210 large discs worth $20, and, in 
1947,121,364 small discs worth $5, according to The Numismatist."

To read the complete article, see:
http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/198105/a.special.luster.htm 

To see one of the 1945 coins recently auctioned by Heritage:
http://coins.heritageauctions.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=407&Lot_No=34
19 


ON THE WIKIPEDIA

Regarding the Wikipedia as a research tool, Tom DeLorey writes: "I 
consider Wikipedia to be a lot of fun, but then, so is a "Magic 8 Ball" 
and only slightly less reliable. Recently I had occasion to Wiki the 
word "hobo" as to its origin, and the results were both absolutely 
delightful and absolutely contradictory."


A NUMISMATIC BOOKPLATE AND INSERT

Gene Hessler writes: "I know that you don't illustrate anything in 
the E-Sylum. But I thought you might be interested in knowing about 
an ex libris that was also a book insert, two recent topics in The 
E-Sylum. 

Martin Srb, one of the security and postage stamp engravers in Prague 
etched and engraved the ex libris for me in 1991, one year after I met 
him on a trip to Prague. Martin surprised me with the finished image; 
I had no idea what he would do. When I saw the finished ex libris I 
was pleased; Martin combined my musical and numismatic lives. I 
recently asked him to make 20 additional prints and sign and number 
them. These were sent to the 20 purchasers of the deluxe edition of 
The International Engraver's Line."


THE RITTENHOUSE SOCIETY FOUNDERS
 
Dick Johnson writes: "Thank you for mentioning the founders of the 
Rittenhouse Society in last week's E-Sylum: Q. David Bowers, Walter 
Breen, Eric Newman, Ken Bressett, Grover Criswell, Ken Rendell and 
myself. Add George Fuld's name to that list. All of us -- save Eric 
-- were the approximate same age (slightly out of our teens at the time). 
We considered ourselves the "Young Turks" of numismatics in those early 
years. We were dedicated to helping each other in our chosen numismatic 
endeavors and careers. 
 
Each of us remained in numismatics and were to make our marks in the 
field in our separate ways, except for Ken Rendell who switched over 
to autographs and became a shining star in that field, (but I bet he's 
got a secret numismatic collection hidden in his vaults!) The coin bug 
bit every one of us pretty hard! Eric Newman, however, being slightly 
older, we considered our ballast to reign in or encourage, on occasion, 
our youthful unbridled passions for numismatics often times in the 
past. 
 
Two of us have died (Criswell, Breen), but I have frequently wondered 
what further accomplishments they could have achieved had they lived. 
But throughout the fifty years of the Rittenhouse Society's existence 
to every one of us, and the dozens of new members brought in later years 
(of all ages!), it was our dedication to numismatic literature that fed 
our burning interest in the field. We created it, collected it, but 
more often, researched it for the knowledge we passed on to others.
 
Thus Rittenhouse members have all had a fondness for books and our 
sister organization, the Numismatic Bibliomania Society, and I am certain 
I speak for all members, in wishing it -- its internet offspring, the 
E-Sylum, and its inveterate editor, Wayne Homren -- continued good luck 
and long life. The same holds true for the Rittenhouse Society. Little 
did we founders dream it would have been embraced by so many dedicated 
numismatists in the intervening years."
 

THE NUMISMATIC MISADVENTURE OF JACOB WEIGEL OF NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ

Last week David Gladfelter asked if anyone had access to Homans's 
Merchants and Bankers Almanacs for 1865 and 1866, to look up the names 
of the president and cashier of the State Bank at New Brunswick, New 
Jersey at a certain point in time.

In response Dave Bowers provided some raw research data about the bank, 
but unfortunately it did not encompass the particular date David sought. 
But Dave's note did include an interesting story related to the bank 
from the 1901 volume of The Numismatist which might interest collectors 
and researchers of New Jersey, San Francisco and Canada paper money:

"The best part of three pages of space was devoted to the curious case 
of Jacob Weigel, a New Brunswick, New Jersey numismatist who was arrested 
for fraud in the connection with the passing of obsolete currency issued 
years earlier by the State Bank of New Brunswick. 

Although a "most convincing and binding chain of circumstantial evidence 
had been forged around Mr. Weigel," it developed that all he was doing 
was selling to collectors and other interested people these notes as 
souvenirs. All of this was explained in due course to Secret Service 
agents, and item by item all of the damning evidence points were wiped 
away. 

The problem came to light when some sharpies in California, who had 
purchased the notes from Weigel, were passing them at face value in 
San Francisco. It was stated that the idea was not a new one, and 
other purchasers from Weigel had passed notes at face value in Montreal,
Canada (where Canadians mistook the notation New Brunswick as a 
Canadian province, overlooking the words "New Jersey" in small letters). 
After much embarrassment, Weigel's innocence was shown, but not until 
after a Secret Service man unfairly seized many uncut sheets."


NOTES ON JAMES P. RANDALL

Dave Bowers writes: "I knew J.P. Randall and used to buy patterns 
from him." Dave provided some raw biographical notes on Randall, which 
I've edited as follows:

"James P. Randall offered a two-page spread of coins for sale, noting: 
"My mail order sales for the month of April 1949 set a new high monthly 
record for a period of 17 years."  Randall was among the group of 
American numismatists (Abe Kosoff, Sol Kaplan, Ambassador and Mrs. R. 
Henry Norweb, Hans M.F. Schulman, John J. Pittman, James P. Randall, 
Robert Schermerhorn, Paul Wittlin, Gaston DiBello, and Maurice Storck) 
who attended the King Farouk "Palace Collections" auction in Cairo, 
Egypt."

[Question: how complete is Dave's list of American Farouk sale 
attendees?  I believe Howard D. Gibbs was there as well, getting in 
trouble with the local gendarmes for arriving with a weapon.  Can 
anyone confirm this, or add others to the list?  -Editor]

Neil Shafer writes: "My collecting began as a youngster in Chicago.  
I used to take the streetcar downtown after my violin lesson and go 
around to the various coin shops.  James P. Randall had such a shop 
for a number of years in the 300 South block on Dearborn, near Leif 
Ronning's shop.  I went into Randall's shop a couple of times, but 
he was not attuned to young collectors who did not want to buy rare 
gold and the like.  Randall handled high-quality pieces.  I remember 
one I wished I could have, an 1825 $2-1/2 gold piece in beautiful 
condition.  But what kid could afford to pay a hundred dollars?   I 
had a much better time at Ronning's who had a tray of low-value world 
coins that I liked to go through.  I have no idea when Randall moved 
to Florida."

Bob Leonard writes: "James P. Randall was one of the more unsavory 
coin dealers of the last century.  Originally from Chicago, he joined 
the Chicago Coin Club about 1940 as member no. 345.  From 1943-47 he 
was listed in the club directory as a dealer at 341 S. Dearborn St.,
Chicago.  (A note in my copy of the 1947 Bulletin indicates that he 
was single at that time.)  No Bulletin was published in 1948, but the 
1949 Bulletin gives his address as 116 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, still 
a dealer.  In 1950 he is listed at P.O. Box 361, Coral Gables, Fla. 
(dealer).  
 
Randall was ANA Life Member 170.  (Unfortunately, the membership 
directories are silent on the dates life memberships were granted.)  
The 1957 ANA Membership Directory has him at P.O. Box 2205, Ft. 
Lauderdale, Fla., while the 1964 directory (the last) shows him at 
2300 Commonwealth Ave., Chicago.  Randall advertised in The Numismatist 
about 1960 and issued price lists of world coins (his specialty) in 
the early 1960s and probably earlier.  Trenchant editorials were 
included in some of his lists.
 
Don Keefer (Aug. 24, 1899-July 4, 1954), a wealthy Chicago abortionist, 
was an active member of the Chicago Coin Club in the late '30s and early 
'40's, exhibiting rare and valuable Oriental coins at club meetings.  
(The late Kurt Eckstein told me on August 2, 1999, that Keefer was 
hunchbacked and had a speech impediment.  He is pictured on p. 738 of 
the October 1942 Numismatist.)  His wife was Oriental, though no one 
seems to know much about her.  In the mid-1940's Keefer began collecting 
Pioneer gold coins and bars; his name appears in Breen's Encyclopedia in 
important pedigrees, and he purchased the "1860" Parsons bar from John 
Ford in 1952.
 
According to Charles Opitz, citing Walter Boyer of Milwaukee, August 
2, 2002, James P. Randall married Don Keefer's widow to gain possession 
of his Oriental coin collection (John Ford had already purchased the 
Pioneer gold coins and bars).  Certainly Randall offered such material 
in his later price lists.  After the last coins were sold, Randall 
divorced Mrs. Keefer.
 
Randall was also said to have been an outspoken anti-Semite, and to 
have been expelled from one of the Florida coin clubs he joined."


PUNCTUATION STYLE ADVICE SOUGHT

Yossi Dotan writes: "I have a question concerning style in writing 
narratives for my book "Watercraft on World Coins." I shall appreciate 
to get help from readers of The E-Sylum to know the proper style for 
spacing in connection with numbers and for hyphenation. My e-mail 
address is yosdotan at bezeqint.net. Thank you very much!

>From the style guide which I follow I digested the following rule: 
"Hyphenate if in adjective compound with a numerical first: 48-inch 
floorboard; 6-sided polygon; 19th-century history; 60-odd. Don't 
hyphenate (1) if the noun is possessive: 35 hours' work, and (2) if 
the numerical relates to a lower-case abbreviation: a 24mm coin, a 
3m-high mast, 5km.)."

Application of this guidance results in sentences like these:

-- The 11-mile (17km)-long Vasco da Gama bridge was opened in 1998. 
[ Hyphen between number and the unabbreviated word "mile"; no hyphen 
and no space between number and the lower-case abbreviated "km"; 
hyphen between the length and the word "long."  ]

-- The reverse depicts a 14th-century Venetian galley. [ Hyphen in 
adjective compound. ] In the 14th century Venice had become one of 
the most powerful trading states in the world. [ No hyphen. ]

A friend was so kind to read the draft of my nearly finished book. 
He suggested to add always spacing after the numbers and not to 
hyphenate so often."

[Perhaps some of the professional journalists among our readership 
could offer some advice on the topic.  I'm just a hack.  -Editor]


HEAP BAD MEDICINE: UTE CHIEF'S LIFE-SAVING LINCOLN PEACE MEDAL

Dan Freidus writes: "It's not quite a "life-saving coin" but there's 
a medal with an interesting story.  The ANS owns a silver Lincoln 
peace medal which was supposedly worn by a Ute chief when he was shot. 
Rather than seeing the medal as the reason for his survival, he saw 
it as being responsible for his being shot.

The ANS record of this item is at
http://64.81.216.220/cgi-bin/showobj?accnum=1917.161.1 
and you can see it in the ANS' exhibit at the NY Federal Reserve 
Bank.  This section of the exhibit has an online version, too (though 
the photo of this specific medal seems to have been omitted):
http://www.numismatics.org/exhibits/DrachmasDoubloonsDollars/cases/case16.D.
html

The ANS has owned the medal since 1917, a gift from J. Sanford Saltus. 
The online record indicates that the box has an article about this 
specimen, though when I worked on the exhibit I believe this medal 
was already in a tray separate from the box so I have not seen the 
article.  Perhaps that gives some info on the provenance between the 
chief (around 1862, presumably) and Saltus."

[The ANS record notes that the medal was "sold by a Ute Indian in 
Colorado who, in 1873, was in a skirmish with another tribe when a 
bullet struck the medal which saved his life. He sold the medal calling 
it "heap bad medicine" because it should have kept the bullet away from 
him altogether."  -Editor]


VOCABULARY WORD: BIBLIOMANCY

Bob Johnson forwarded the following item from the A Word A Day mailing 
list, which I've mentioned a few times before in The E-Sylum.  This 
week's theme is words related to forecasting and divination.

"bibliomancy (BIB-lee-o-man-see) noun

   Divination by interpreting a passage picked at random from a book,
   especially from a religious book such as the Bible."

"If you are having a hard time deciding between turning groupie and
following your favorite band around or to stay put in your accounting 
job, help is at hand. Try bibliomancy. Here's the step-by-step method:

1. Pick a book you trust a lot.
2. Put it on its spine, and let it fall open.
3. With your eyes closed, trace your finger to a passage.
4. Interpret the passage as your lifemap to the future."

[So, here's how numismatists can practice bibliomancy: take your 
favorite numismatic reference off the shelf and let it fall open 
as described above.  Now point to a random passage.  Whatever 
numismatic item that passage pertains to, make it your lifelong 
collecting passion, be it the U.S. Large Cents of 1793, the U.S. 
coinage of 1873, Canadian Exhibition Fair Carnival Medals, Depression 
Scrip clam money, National Bank notes, Connecticut Coppers, U.S. 
Centennial Medals, Aramco gold discs, New Brunswick, New Jersey 
paper money, watercraft on world coins, Lincoln peace medals or die 
varieties of Lithuanian subway tokens.  Or save the wear and tear 
on your library and scroll to a random point in your weekly E-Sylum.  
You never know what may catch your fancy.  Live long and prosper!  
-Editor]


FEATURED WEB SITE: CURRENCY GALLERY - LEBANON

This week's featured web site is the Lebanese currency gallery on
Banknotes.com, "one of the largest web sites for a world banknote
Collector."

http://www.banknotes.com/lb.htm


The Numismatic Bibliomania Society is a non-profit organization 
promoting numismatic literature. For more information please 
see our web site at 
http://www.coinbooks.org/.

There is a membership application available on the web site 
at this address:
http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_member_app.html

To join, print the application and return it with your check 
to the address printed on the application. Membership is only 
$15 to addresses in the U.S., $20 elsewhere.  For those without 
web access, write to:

David M. Sundman, Secretary/Treasurer
Numismatic Bibliomania Society, 
P. O. Box 82 Littleton, NH 03561

For Asylum mailing address changes and other membership 
questions, contact David at this email address: 
dsundman at LittletonCoin.com

To submit items for publication in The E-Sylum, just 
Reply to this message, or write to the Editor at this 
address: whomren at coinlibrary.com

Those wishing to become new E-Sylum subscribers 
(or wishing to Unsubscribe) can go to the following web page:
https://my.binhost.com/lists/listinfo/esylum

All past E-Sylum issues are archived on the NBS web site at this address:
http://www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_esylum_archive.html

Issues from September 2002 to date are also archived at this address:
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