The E-Sylum v17#44 October 26, 2014
The E-Sylum
esylum at binhost.com
Sun Oct 26 19:42:20 PDT 2014
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The E-Sylum
An electronic publication of
The Numismatic Bibliomania Society
Volume 17, Number 44, October 26, 2014
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WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM OCTOBER 26, 2014
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KOLBE-FANNING BALTIMORE SALE CLOSES NOVEMBER 1, 2014
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NEW BOOKS : ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OBSOLETE PAPER MONEY, VOLS 3 & 4
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NEW BOOK: JEWISH ANTIQUES
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NEW BOOK: MEXICAN BEAUTY: MEXICO'S CABALLITO PESO
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BANCO DE MEXICO ANNOUNCES NEW BOOK AND WEB SITE UPDATE
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BARBER COIN COLLECTORS' SOCIETY SEEKS JOURNAL EDITOR
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MORE ON BLOOM'S LAW
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NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: OCTOBER 26, 2014
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VOCABULARY WORD: ANEPIGRAPHIC
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MORE ON SHAPES OF COINS, TOKENS AND MEDALS
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VOCABULARY TERM: MEDALLIC OBJECTS
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U.S. SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL CELEBRATION THOUGHTS
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GEORGE MCGOVERN'S $1,000 PROMISSORY NOTE
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MORE ON THE JOSEPH WRIGHT 1792 PATTERN
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THE KAISER'S MEDALS
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MORE SELECTED LOTS FROM KOLBE-FANNING SALE #137
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ENCASED POSTAGE STAMPS IN THE STACK'S BOWERS 2014 BALTIMORE SALE
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ARTICLE PROFILES SILVER BARON NELSON BUNKER HUNT
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ARTICLE PROFILES CANADIAN COLLECTOR GEORGE MANZ
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THE TOKENS OF DANIEL TOKAR
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AUSTRALIAN WILDFIRE HERO RECEIVE PAPAL GOLD MEDAL
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ROYAL AUSTRALIAN MINT 50TH ANNIVERSARY COIN
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DENMARK'S CENTRAL BANK TO OUTSOURCE BANKNOTE PRODUCTION
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ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS BANKNOTE ANTI-COUNTERFEITING FEATURES
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WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: OCTOBER 26, 2014
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THE TINIEST ANCIENT COINS
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THE ART AND CRAFT OF FORGER MARK LANDIS
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THE CASE AGAINST REPATRIATING MUSEUM ARTIFACTS
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HARVEY STACK ON STACK'S 123 WEST 57TH STREET LOCATION
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Click here to read this issue on the web
Click here to access the complete archive
To comment or submit articles, reply to
whomren at gmail.com
WAYNE'S WORDS: THE E-SYLUM OCTOBER 26, 2014
New subscribers this week include:
L M Lawrence and
Michael Xavier Spencer.
We now have 1,781 subscribers.
This week we open with a reminder of the upcoming Kolbe-Fanning numismatic literature sale and four new books.
Other topics include Bloom's Law, numismatic vocabulary words, political and satire notes, the Pope's gold medal, and the case against repatriating museum artifacts.
To learn more about Jewish Antiques, the Kaiser's Medals, the Caballito Peso, George Manz, Nelson Bunker Hunt, Daniel Tokar, mandorla-shaped coins, and the Virtuoso's Companion, read on. Have a great week, everyone!
Wayne Homren
Editor, The E-Sylum
KOLBE-FANNING BALTIMORE SALE CLOSES NOVEMBER 1, 2014
David Fanning forwarded this reminder of the upcoming Kolbe & Fanning numismatic literature auction.
-Editor
Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers wish to remind everyone that they will be conducting a public auction of important numismatic books on November 1, 2014 in Baltimore, Maryland, in conjunction with the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo at the Baltimore Convention Center.
The sale features the outstanding library of a Journeyman Numismatist and other properties, and focuses on early American numismatics and closely related foreign areas.
The sale will begin at 3:00 pm in Room 306 of the Baltimore Convention Center on November 1. Lot viewing will be held on Thursday and Friday October 30 and 31 from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm and on the day of the sale from 9:00 am till 12:00 noon.
Printed catalogues have been mailed to established clients. A PDF of the catalogue has been posted to the Kolbe & Fanning website. Prospective bidders may also access the live online catalogue and register to bid through the main website at www.numislit.com.
Absentee bids will be accepted via post, phone, email and fax. Bids sent via the post or by fax must be received by Monday, Oct. 27. Bids may be left by phone or voicemail at the (614) 414-0855 number until Monday, Oct. 27. After that date, call (614) 256-8915 to discuss bids anytime before the sale date. Bids will be accepted via email to df at numislit.com anytime before the sale date. Live online bidding will be available through Kolbe & Fanning’s online auction portal at auction.numislit.com (managed through iCollector). Bidders planning to participate in the sale online are strongly encouraged to register in advance.
Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers LLC is a licensed auction firm in the State of Ohio and is conducting the sale in conjunction with Jonathan Melnick Auctioneers, Inc., of Baltimore, Maryland. For more information, please see the Kolbe & Fanning website at www.numislit.com or email David Fanning at df at numislit.com. We look forward to your participation.
David F. Fanning, Ph.D.
Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers LLC
141 W. Johnstown Rd.
Gahanna, OH 43230
(614) 414-0855
Cell (614) 256-8915
Fax (614) 414-0860
df at numislit.com
www.numislit.com
NEW BOOKS : ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OBSOLETE PAPER MONEY, VOLS 3 & 4
Dennis Tucker of Whitman Publications forwarded this press release about the newest volumes in their obsolete paper money encyclopedia. Thanks!
-Editor
Whitman Publishing announces the upcoming release of volumes 3 and 4 of
the Whitman Encyclopedia of Obsolete Paper Money, by Q. David Bowers. Each volume is an 8.5 x 11–inch hardbound book printed in full color on high-quality paper. Combined, they make up 928 pages covering the early bank currency of the entire state of Massachusetts. The books will debut December 1, 2014, available from booksellers and hobby shops nationwide and online (including at www.Whitman.com), for $69.95 each. The books can also be borrowed for free as a benefit of membership in the American Numismatic Association, through the Dwight N. Manley Numismatic Library.
The Whitman Encyclopedia of Obsolete Paper Money is a multiple-volume study of currency issued from 1782 to 1866, before the modern era of National Banks and the Federal Reserve. Over the course of these decades more than 3,000 state-chartered banks issued their own paper money.
In Volume 3, Bowers gives the history of every Massachusetts town and city from Abington to Greenfield, as well as of every bank in those towns that issued this uniquely American currency. Each note is studied, and hundreds are pictured in full color, with information on grading, rarity, values, significant auction results, advice for collectors, and more. Volume 4 offers the same coverage of the towns, cities, and banks from Hallowell to Yarmouth.
“No price and rarity guide has been published on Massachusetts for many years,” Bowers says. “Collectors own thousands of notes that are awaiting proper identification; some of them have the potential to be worth thousands of dollars.”
Active collectors, researchers, dealers, historians, and other experts have volunteered their time and knowledge to help create this new encyclopedia series. The state editor for Massachusetts is C. John Ferreri, and the foreword is by Anne E. Bentley, curator of art and artifacts for the Massachusetts Historical Society.
Earlier volumes of the Whitman Encyclopedia of Obsolete Paper Money included an overview of the field, and coverage of the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, and New Hampshire. Future volumes will cover the rest of New England, the South Atlantic states, the Mid-Atlantic states, the American Midwest, the District of Columbia, and territories.
NEW BOOK: JEWISH ANTIQUES
David Thomason Alexander submitted this review of a new book on Jewish Antiques, which includes a good deal of numismatic content. Thanks!
-Editor
Jewish Antiques from Menorahs to Seltzer Bottles.
By Tsadik Kaplan.
Schiffer Publishing Ltd., Atglen PA 19310.
168 pp hardcover, copiously illustrated.
Numismatists are sometimes accused of narrow focus, limiting themselves to coins, medals and tokens and shunning the wider array of items relating to the various fields of collectibles that attract their interest. Author, collector, numismatist and researcher Tsadik Cohen is not a collector displaying such a narrow focus.
Judaica is a field of great depth and width, and Judaic numismatics dates back to the world of the ancients and spans the continents of the modern world. I became acquainted with author Cohen while I served as a senior cataloger at Stack’s-Coin Galleries in New York City. He arrived at the office from time to time, bearing some of the most amazing and little-known items in his chosen field of study, Judaica.
Jewish Antiques (JA) presents 15 areas of collectibles dealing with religious practice, major holy days, birth and marriage. More specific areas include material created by the historic Bezalel School of designers in Jerusalem, jewelry, Israeli crafts, athletic subjects and Americana. Collectibles relating to the two World Wars receive sensitive and complete coverage.
Exonumia, as the late Russ Rulau dubbed the area of tokens and medals, receives expert treatment. The book skirts the plentiful issues of the modern State of Israel itself, as these have been fairly thoroughly covered by such compilers as the late Sylvia Haffner and Nathan Sobel.
This section opens with Samuel Friedrich Beer’s bronze medal hailing the Second Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland in 1898 and includes such important medalets and tokens as a 1913 wearable medalet of Ukrainian Jew Mendel Beiliss who was acquitted of blood libel by an all-Christian jury. Of American interest is the 1863 Civil War Token of the Felix Dining Saloon in New York bearing the word KOSHER in Hebrew.
Author Cohen has researched the virtually unknown area of German Jewish medals issued after the 1933 coming to power of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Among these is a death centennial medal of Berlin Rabbi Akiva Eger, struck bearing his portrait in September 1937, a year before Kristallnacht and the beginning of the annihilation of the German-Jewish community.
Charitable tokens include several New York City issues of Jewish schools, orphanages and facilities feeding the indigent poor. An entire collection could be assembled by the many institutions issuing the generally brass issues, only a sampling of which appear in JA. Other chapters include medallic objects such as the enameled badge of the Hebrew Veterans of the War with Spain in 1898 and unit badges of the forces of both sides in World War I.
This book is copiously illustrated in full color with hundreds of images of every conceivable Judaic collectible including religious and devotional metalwork, all-purpose woodwork, porcelain, and, yes, seltzer bottles with their richly colored transparent glass. Candelabra, engraved plates and bowls, Mezuzah cases and wall plaques are other collectibles well represented.
The finest printing on coated stock assures the book its consistently handsome appearance, completed by the meticulous color photography that graces virtually every page. Even casual readers with no general interest in Judaic collectibles will find this remarkable book a rare visual treat.
Jewish Antiques from Menorahs to Seltzer Bottles is available from Amazon.com at $35 per copy; as a newly released book from Barnes & Noble at $35, a price likely to rise in 2015. It can be ordered directly from Schiffer Publishing, 4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen PA 19310 at $45 per copy.
For moe information, or to order on Amazon, see:
Jewish Antiques: From Menorahs to Seltzer Bottles
(www.amazon.com/Jewish-Antiques-Menorahs-Seltzer-Bottles/dp/0764346504)
NEW BOOK: MEXICAN BEAUTY: MEXICO'S CABALLITO PESO
Ralf Böpple of
Stuttgart, Germany submitted this note about a new book on Mexican numismatics. Thanks!
-Editor
I would like to bring to the readers' attention a book that was presented at the US Mexican Numismatic Association Convention in Scottsdale, AZ last week.
Allan Schein: Mexican Beauty / Belleza Mexicana - Un Peso Caballito.
Salt Lake City, 2014. 238 pp., full color with hundreds of coin photos, text in English and Spanish.
Mexico's Caballito ("little horse") peso was issued in five consecutive years, from 1910 to 1914. It is considered to be one of the most beautiful coin designs of the modern era.
This book contains comprehensive information on the coin's designer, French medalist Charles Pillet, its design elements and numismatic history, along with valuable information for collectors on date and die varieties, values, grading, toned coins, counterfeits, and more.
The book is bilingual, translated to Spanish by Mexican coin specialist Roberto del Bosque.
While collecting coins from the year of birth of his father, 1914, the author Allan Schein came across the Caballito Peso and fell in love with the issue (despite the fact that the year 1914 is the highly priced key date of the series). Years of intensive research and study have resulted in this ultimate collector's guide.
This is also what I personally see to be the greatest asset of this
work: it is a perfect combination of historical background for numismatists interested in Mexican coins or world crowns in general on one side and a detailed insight into the series for the specialized collector on the other.
The book is available from Allan Schein at
allan at taekwondograndmaster.com
To read Allan's article on the coin, see:
Mexico's Caballito Peso
(taekwondograndmaster.com/Caballito/)
BANCO DE MEXICO ANNOUNCES NEW BOOK AND WEB SITE UPDATE
Cedrian López-Bosch submitted this information a new book and revised web site from
Mexico's Central Bank. Thanks!
-Editor
I'm a recent subscriber of the E-Sylum newsletter and I've found it very useful. I wanted to give readers two pieces of news:
One is that on Friday Mexico's Central Bank presented the book "Escudos, Reales, Pesos y Centavos. Apuntes sobre piezas relevantes de un gran patrimonio histórico de México" by Juan José de la Cruz Arana, Juan Cristóbal Díaz Negrete, Rocío Hernández García, Alberto Quintero Covarrubias and Marina Salcedo Fernández. This is a very interesting book that comments on specific issues about some of the highlights of the numismatic collection of the bank.
The second is that the Bank also is making available to the general public its collection though a renewed website:
www.banxico.org.mx/ColeccionNumismatica
.
They used to have pictures of some of the coins, but they are extending it to a broader set of items including banknotes, medals and other items from different periods. Here you have a link to the the communiqué
www.banxico.org.mx/informacion-para-la-prensa/comunicados/billetes-y-monedas/monedas/%7B8910629B-08A2-AD30-0895-E7023617521F%7D.pdf
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BARBER COIN COLLECTORS' SOCIETY SEEKS JOURNAL EDITOR
John Frost, Regional Program Director of the Barber Coin Collector's Society forwarded this announcement of their search for a new editor for their publication.
-Editor
The Barber Coin Collectors' Society (BCCS) is looking for a new Editor for its Journal, with the upcoming retirement of long-time Editor, Eileen Ribar. The official publication of the BCCS is a small Journal, currently published quarterly, and contains research and anecdotal articles written by its membership and subscribers, information about the Society, and the upcoming calendar of events, along with several advertisements. This volunteer position requires basic editing and publishing experience, including gathering the articles and blurbs from members and contributors, assembling into the Journal, and providing the completed Journal to a printer for publication.
The BCCS will recruit both internally and externally. Basic numismatic knowledge and interest in Barber coinage are certainly a plus but not required. History has shown the BCCS that publication experience is much more important in a Journal Editor than specific knowledge about Barbers or even coins in general.
The BCCS, founded in 1989, is a non-profit numismatic society of collectors and dealers nationwide, with the purpose of increasing and sharing their knowledge of the coins designed by Charles E. Barber. Anyone interested in this important position should contact the BCCS at
bccs at barbercoins.org
Archives International Auctions, Part XXI
4th Annual Wall Street Coin, Currency & Collectible Show Auction
U.S. & Worldwide Banknotes, Coins, Medals, Scripophily,
Federal Fiscal Documents & Security Printing Ephemera
October 25th & November 4th, 2014
Highlights include:
Lot 759 Palestine Currency Board, 1929 High Grade Issue
Lot 1053 British American Bank Note Company Engravers & Printers
Lot 400 Richmond and Petersburg Rail Road Company, 1870 Specimen Bond
ARCHIVES INTERNATIONAL AUCTIONS, LLC
1580 Lemoine Avenue, Suite #7
Fort Lee, NJ 07024
Phone: 201-944-4800
Email:
info at archivesinternational.com
WWW.ARCHIVESINTERNATIONAL.COM
MORE ON BLOOM'S LAW
Last week I noted that I couldn't find Bloom's Law in his book, Money of Their Own.
Bob Leonard writes:
It's a footnote on p. 65 of the 1957 (1st?) edition: "Once the Philadelphia Mint ... makes us richer. This is now known as Bloom's Law on the Profitable Inertia of Gold."
Thanks!
-Editor
François R. Velde writes:
Regarding Bloom's Law, the figure of $5 per $1m or 5 parts per million (ppm) lost by abrasion in one manipulation is in line with other estimates. In the 1830s the French government sorted by year and individually weighed 400,000 silver pieces, to measure wear. They noticed that the coins, after the manipulations were done, had lost in aggregate 16 ppm. The annual loss on gold coins in the 19th c. ranged from 100 to 1000 ppm depending on country and denomination.
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
BLOOM'S LAW OF THE PROFITABLE INERTIA OF GOLD
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a15.html)
NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: OCTOBER 26, 2014
Query: Samuel H. Black Electrotype Plate
Web site visitor Doug Hildreth writes:
I have what I believe to be a plate from New York City electrotyper
and gilder Samuel H. Black. I have been doing some research on line
and came across your page. I got a lot of information on your page.
Are these plates rare? Do they have any value? Thanks for any help or
direction you can give me.
These plates are interesting and certainly rare, but they appear so infrequently it's hard to place a value on them. Thoughts, anyone?
-Editor
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
DICK JOHNSON ON ELECTROTYPING IN AMERICA
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v13n31a16.html)
More on James T. Mangan
Dave Bowers writes:
Nice issue—interesting and varied content as always.
The maker of the Celestons was also advertising manager for the Mills Novelty Co. of Chicago.
Frank Van Valen of Stack's Bowers published a short article about Mangan and his Celestons on his blog this week.
To read the complete article, see:
“Does anyone have change for a celeston?”
(http://www.stacksbowers.com/NewsMedia/Blogs/TabId/780/ArtMID/2678/ArticleID/64809/%E2%80%9CDoes-anyone-have-change-for-a-celeston%E2%80%9D.aspx)
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
MICRONATION STATECRAFT FOR DUMMIES
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a21.html)
We have other comments on the Featured Web Site listing micronations of the world.
-Editor
Bermania
Paul Bosco writes:
The Micronations list omits Bermania.
True. The list is incomplete, and some readers state, inaccurate.
I understand the United Nations has a statement on micronations that does not match what the FWS describes. Not all micronations are created equal - several are recognized by the international community.
-Editor
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
FEATURED WEB PAGE: MICRONATIONS
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a32.html)
James III
Regarding the 1712 medal on the death of Princess Louisa (on which "Her brother, James III, is depicted on the obverse"),
Chip Howell writes:
James the III of what? I wondered. This is the pretender to the English throne for whom the Jacobite Rebellion is named! Interesting piece, that. See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Francis_Edward_Stuart
William IIII
Regarding the "1830 medal: Accession of William III",
Chip Howell XX writes:
Actually, that's William IIII (the 4th), the "Sailor King" who immediately preceded Victoria.
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
WAYNE'S NUMISMATIC DIARY: OCTOBER 19, 2014
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a18.html)
VOCABULARY WORD: ANEPIGRAPHIC
Last week I asked: "QUICK QUIZ: What's the OPPOSITE of typographic? What do you call a piece with ONLY a design and NO lettering at all?"
Here's what our sharp readers had to say.
-Editor
Chip Howell writes:
Why not just "graphic"?
Pablo Hoffman writes:
Some equivalent correlatives of typographic in this context are ideographic, pictographic, or pictorial. Purists among us might hold that the first two of these terms are redundant, since the suffix "-graphic" encompasses both written and pictorial material, but that doesn't disqualify them as answers to your question.
Ralf Böpple writes:
The word "iconographic" came to my mind.
Bob Van Arsdell writes:
Coins without legends are anepigraphic. Celtic coins without legends are uninscribed.
Correct! Paul Bosco also had the answer Dick Johnson suggests: anepigraphic.
-Editor
Pablo Hoffman writes:
That was my next answer, but I ran out of electrons.
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
VOCABULARY WORD: TYPOGRAPHIC
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a11.html)
MORE ON SHAPES OF COINS, TOKENS AND MEDALS
Dick Johnson's article on coin shapes inspired these reader responses.
-Editor
Mandorla
Regarding "Mandorola" (Almond-shaped),
Bob Leonard writes:
This should be "mandorla".
Rounded Trapezoid
Mel Wacks writes:
I think Dick forgot to include the rounded trapezoidal shape of the Jewish-American Hall of Fame medals. Sample is attached. He should know, because he was at Medallic Art Company when they made the first medals in this series beginning in 1969.
Mel's correct. It should have been included. I'm certain there will be other shapes overlooked in my list. The thing about publishing in The E-Sylum, it brings out responses from knowledgeable numismatists. Have I overlooked any others?
Free-form Stellate Pisciform
Byron Weston writes:
I thought readers might like to see a Free-form Stellate Pisciform I recently purchased on line.
I passed Byron's images to Dick Johnson, and his thoughts appear in the next article. Thanks!
-Editor
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
VOCABULARY WORD: TYPOGRAPHIC
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a11.html)
VOCABULARY TERM: MEDALLIC OBJECTS
Dick Johnson submitted these thoughts on a medal owned by Byron Weston (see previous article). Thanks!
-Editor
Byron Weston's star-burst design medal was produced by the Paris Mint in 1972. It was created by Roger Bezombes, one of France's most prolific artists of this class of medals. He once created a medal of a stork composed of two dozen scissors. His medallic designs are wild and crazy. so he could be considered a "wild and crazy guy" (thank you, Steve Martin). Bezombes had 79 medallic items in the Paris Mint catalog of 1981, plus 16 jettons. He is considered the master of creating these items.
This medal is Star of Joy. It was chosen as the tenth in a series of medals as the special examples from the Paris Mint's General Collection. It displays the sun in the center and 24 rays (these are not arms as we might be wont to call them) they are sun rays. The sun as center is smooth, polished, and contains the lettering. In contrast, the texture of the rays is style rude, an artistic term meaning rough style. A numismatist would be more apt to call it "rugosity."
QUICK QUIZ: What 20th century U.S. circulating coin did Walter Breen describe as displaying rugosity?
This medal falls in the category of numismatic items called medallic objects, a term created by the Paris Mint, as the title of their 1985 catalog, la Medalle-Object. This catalog was the forerunner and displays the foremost collection of these new art objects.
Medallic objects are the modern art of medals. I once called them bas-relief unleashed, since coins and medals are made from bas-relief models. But that's about as close as they come to traditional numismatic items. They do not have the restrictions of coins, nor the limits of medals. They allow their creator's imagination to run wild and express this in medallic form.
Medallic objects can be struck, but more often are cast. Casting allows them to have unlimited shape, open areas, and freedom of design. Recently they have taken on fabrication of mixed media - metal and other compositions - and multiple parts. Fabrication is a key word here as more are assembled from separate parts, often for a contrasting color effect.
Medallic objects allow their creators more than freedom of design. After all, they are the modern art of the medallic field. And their creators' imaginations do run wild! But this lessens their appeal, it seems, as numismatic traditionalists want only coin or coin-like objects. They appeal more to art collectors, or advanced numismatists interested in art.
I have written extensively on medallic objects. When the international organization of medallists (FIDEM) met at the ANA headquarters in Colorado Springs in 2007 I wrote what I hoped would be the introduction to the Exhibition Catalog. Instead the editors boiled it down to an article in the The Numismatist with some fine medallic illustrations. ANA gave every attendee a copy as well as the organization's members in their monthly magazine.
"Objects of Desire" appeared in the September 2007 issue of The Numismatist. The best part was edited out, however. I claim that America invented medallic objects. For Christmas 1965 Art in America magazine wanted a unique promotion. Their management commissioned a curator at the Museum of Modern Art, Edward Albert Bryant, to create something unique.
Bryant contacted William Louth of Medallic Art Company and the two of them developed the concept of having seven modern art sculptors create miniature works of art that could be reproduced. They picked top artists in the field and commissions went out to Chryssa, Ernest Trova, Roy Gussov, Elbert Weinberg, Harold Tovish, James Wein, and Constantino Nivola.
Response was excellent for the quality and artistic distinctiveness of their creations. Medallic items, large galvanos and two small pins -- in addition to medallion size items -- were offered by Art In America in time for 1965 Christmas gifts. That fixed the date as the first medallic objects ever, created by seven Americans!
The Paris Mint issued their first medallic objects in June 1966. This opened the gate for artists all over the world to create medallic objects. To their credit, the Paris Mint encouraged artists to submit models, virtually underwriting the new media. By the early 1970s the Paris Mint was issuing as many as one new medallic object a day! This was particularly true under the administrating of Pierre deHay (about whom I wrote recently in The E-Sylum).
Unfortunately, Americans could not match this pace. One stands out in my mind, however: Salute to Airmail by Roy Lichtenstein in 1968. Meanwhile, a new organization was established in America, the American Medallic Sculpture Association.
AMSA members quickly adopted the new medallic media. As George Cuhaj (onetime AMSA official, author and Krause publication editor) said in a recent exhibition catalog entry, "I could do this" as he viewed what early members were creating. Since then he has created more than thirty medallic objects.
Among traditional medals are found medallic objects in every exhibition of AMSA, and also of the international organization of medallists (FIDEM) created by artists around the world. While artists like the new media. now 50 years old, medal collectors have yet to embrace it in large numbers.
While Byron Weston embraced his new find -- its shape can best be described as "unusual shape" to answer his question -- he has discovered a new numismatic media to collect. I wish others would follow as well.
To read earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
JOHNSON'S MEDALLIC OBJECTS ARTICLE FEATURED IN SEPTEMBER NUMISMATIST
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v10n35a07.html)
MONNAIE DE PARIS COMMEMORATIVE MEDAL CATALOGS
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n37a22.html)
THE BOOK BAZARRE
SELECTIONS FROM THE JOHN HUFFMAN LIBRARY:
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click on “All Subjects” and select “John Huffman Collection”
U.S. SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL CELEBRATION THOUGHTS
With regret, Kay Olson Freeman submits these thoughts on the idea of celebrating the 250th Anniversary of American Independence.
-Editor
Concerning the proposal to celebrate 250th Anniversary of 1776 Independence in Philadelphia, not mentioned was the 1926 Sesquicentennial (150th Anniversary) celebration in Philadelphia.
No one talks about it because it was a complete financial failure.
I do not know what was happening in Philadelphia in 1976.
I was living in New York City then and its 1976 (200th) celebration was great - tall ships in the harbor and Hudson River etc.
That was a party. There is a distinction between an anniversary party celebration and a World's Fair.
The 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia was quite different and its purpose was more than a commemoration of US Independence.
At Expositions, Exhibitions or World's Fairs, countries competed to show their manufactures and arts.
The last World's Fair to excite wonder and amazement was New York 1939-1940.
I do not think that can be recaptured today - for many reasons.
As for celebrating Independence in 2026, in Philadelphia - I am sure something will be done in acknowledgement, but without the same feeling as 1876.
It is said no one knows or cares about history now. (Obviously, I am not referring to E-Sylum readers and participants!)
To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
U.S. SEMIQUINCENTENNIAL CELEBRATION PLANNERS WANTED
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n43a20.html)
GEORGE MCGOVERN'S $1,000 PROMISSORY NOTE
Loren Gatch wries:
When Fred Reed was editor of Paper Money, he encouraged me to write about strange stuff like political satire notes, and Benny Bolin has been kind enough to keep indulging my interest in this topic.
Forthcoming in Paper Money is the attached article, "George McGovern's $1,000 Promissory Note", about a common example of political scrip that appeared at the Republican National Convention in 1972. We are tweaking the relative size of the photographs and the notes, but the text will run as it is.
Here's an excerpt from the article. Thanks!
-Editor
While the word “flip-flop” has been a part of America’s political lexicon since the early
20th century, as a piece of political invective the term has become widespread only in the last
generation. As with most political speech, the more it has been used the less it means. Nowadays,
almost any apparent inconsistency—or even the intellectually honest act of changing one’s
mind—gets a public figure in hot water. Back in 1972, however, “flip-flop” did most definitely
describe the behavior of the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, George McGovern,
towards his running mate, Thomas Eagleton. The fiasco of McGovern’s embrace and then
disavowal of his vice-presidential choice not only created the “Eighteen-Day Running Mate” but
gave rise to a widely-available example of political scrip, George McGovern’s $1000 Promissory
Note.
The convention proceedings in Miami Beach stretched on in a way that rushed the
selection of McGovern’s vice-presidential candidate. When other alternatives, like Boston’s
mayor Kevin White, proved unacceptable, the McGovern forces finally turned to Thomas
Francis Eagleton (1929-2007), the junior senator from Missouri. While not as well-known as
Kennedy, Eagleton’s Catholicism and his links to organized labor promised to balance the ticket
in a similar way. With hardly any vetting of his background, Eagleton was offered a spot on the
ticket on July 13 in a phone conversation with McGovern that lasted barely one minute.
It was only after accepting the nomination that Eagleton confirmed rumors that since
1960 he had been hospitalized three times for depression, and twice undergone
electroconvulsive—popularly called “electroshock”—therapy. Not only had Eagleton
dissimulated in failing to tell the McGovern campaign about these episodes, he continued to
resist explaining his medical record in any detail. Eagleton’s stance put the McGovern campaign
in a terrible bind. Forcing Eagleton off the ticket would look callous, and destroy McGovern’s
image as a different, and more principled, type of politician. Yet keeping Eagleton raised
enormous doubts about the competence of a man who might be second in line to assume the
presidency, as well as about McGovern’s own sense of judgment.
In a joint press conference with McGovern on July 25, Eagleton first publicly confirmed
his past hospitalizations, and McGovern famously declared that “I am 1,000 percent for Tom
Eagleton and have no intention of dropping him from the ticket.” The statement was, according
to Theodore H. White, “possibly the most damaging faux pas ever made by a Presidential
candidate.”
The pushback against McGovern’s decision was intense. The liberal press was against
Eagleton; donations to the Democratic Party dried up; and McGovern’s own campaign workers
were dealt a demoralizing blow.
McGovern’s unfortunate use of the
term “1,000 percent” regarding Eagleton also
resonated with one of his earlier campaign
proposals to reform the country’s welfare
system. McGovern had proposed to give each
American a $1,000 payment (a
“demogrant”); an idea that, linked with a
broader tax reform, actually had a certain
academic pedigree and was a forerunner of what later emerged as the Earned Income Tax Credit.
On its face, though, the notion was easy to caricature; Humphrey ridiculed it during the
California primary, while Nixon’s campaign director Clark MacGregor called it a “$1,000-perperson
giveaway program that would split America permanently into a welfare class and a
working class.”
A short time later, during the Republican convention (also in Miami Beach), Scripps-
Howard newspapers noted how “funny money—fake $1,000 bills bearing the face of Democratic
presidential nominee George S. McGovern—floods convention hotels.” Dispensed over souvenir
store counters at the convention, the $1,000 bills sport a red profile of McGovern, facing to his
left, framed by blue scrollwork. The text, also in red, reads “Here’s the $1,000 McGovern
promised everyone”, “Legal tender to anyone stupid enough to take it at face value”, and with
the promise that “On Nov. 7, 1972 this bill will self-destruct.” The reverse (of which there seem
to be two varieties, one printed brown, and another green) is labeled a “promissory note” with a
portrait of an agitated and perspiring Eagleton mopping his brow. “McGovern says he’s behind
me 1,000 percent”, “but…he didn’t say how far behind!” This side is described as “Payable Nov.
8, 1972, at Credibility Gap, U.S.A.”
Crudely printed on the cheapest paper, the parody notes deftly juxtaposed the two lines of
attack directed at McGovern’s candidacy: that his policy proposals were too radical for the nation and that his treatment of Eagleton reflected poorly on McGovern’s character and
judgment. Reproduced in facsimile in newspapers across the country, the notes themselves
quickly showed up at political events as far away as San Antonio, Texas.
The Democrats never recovered from the Eagleton debacle, and the McGovern-Shriver
ticket went on to lose in November 1972 by the widest margin of the popular vote in the history
of presidential elections.
After the Eagleton
experience, vice presidential nominees were never again selected so casually and without proper
background checks.
MORE ON THE JOSEPH WRIGHT 1792 PATTERN
Steve M. Tompkins submitted the following on the 1792 Wright quarter. He included an image of the Smithsonian copper example, taken by Dick Doty. Thanks!
-Editor
I covered the 1792 Quarter dollar patterns and the reverse die with the border of stars in my book on the bust quarters (published 2008). Please find below the section copied from that book.
"Of the known 1792 dated patterns, only one was produced that did not state a denomination and also portrayed an American eagle on the reverse of the coin.
On the obverse was an elegant portrait of a young, slender, bust of a woman representing lady liberty as prescribed in the mint act. The word LIBERTY is above and the 1792 date below. Liberty’s hair was bound up with a thin ribbon and is not free flowing. There were no dentils and only a small single star was placed to the right of LIBERTY. On the reverse was an eagle motif (also prescribed by the mint act) with wings open and swept back, perched upon a half globe. (This was perhaps derived from the State Seal of New York first developed in 1778). The legend UNITED STATES OF AMERICA surrounds the central eagle/globe motif. There are 87 small five-pointed stars around the periphery perhaps in lieu of dentils (the significance of the number of stars remains a mystery, as well as the single one found on the obverse).
Some previous scholars have postulated a connection between these stars and the ones found on the famous 1794 “starred” reverse die, only seen on the Sheldon-48 Large Cent die marriage. Some have even gone so far as to suggest that they were both produced at the same time and utilizing the same star punch. Most of these theories were put forth when the 1792 pattern quarter was thought to be a pattern for a Large cent. Large cent researcher and author Pete Smith wrote a detailed study in 1986, comparing these two similar dies and came to the conclusion that the stars were not the same size or shape, and were not from the same star punch. The theory of a connection between these dies is just that, a theory. The only similarity comes from the apparent use of a row of stars in place of dentils. The mint did try another type of border on the 1793 Large cents; the beaded border. This experiment and the one utilizing stars was abandoned after 1794 in favor of dentils."
I agree with Tom DeLorey - a blank die with stars from 1792 does not make much sense, however it is possible that the starred reverse large cent die was one that Wright was working on when he succumbed to the yellow fever in late 1793. As stated by Dave Bowers, Robert Scot could have then completed it to create the finished S-48 reverse die. Just a thought...
To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
QUERY: JOSEPH WRIGHT 1792 PATTERN PHOTOS SOUGHT
(www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v17n42a06.html)
NOTES FROM E-SYLUM READERS: OCTOBER 19, 2014 : Counting the Stars
(www.coinbooks.org/club_nbs_esylum_v17n43.html)
THE KAISER'S MEDALS
The October 2014 issue of the American Numismatic Association's official publication The Numismatist included a nice article by E-Sylum contributor Dennis Tucker on the topic of the medals of Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm. At my request, Dennis kindly forwarded several photos from his article. Here they are. Thanks!
-Editor
Reconciliation Medal
The Three Kaisers
Bruderschaft Medal; Friedrich III Medal
Augusta Medal; Wilhelm I Coronation Medal
THE BOOK BAZARRE
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at
Whitman.com or call 1-800-546-2995.
MORE SELECTED LOTS FROM KOLBE-FANNING SALE #137
At my request David and Maria Fanning forwarded images and descriptions for some selected lots in the upcoming November 1, 2014 Kolbe-Fanning numismatic literature sale in Baltimore. Here's another group.
-Editor
Lot 23: Bushnell's Account of Three New York Tokens
Bushnell, Charles I. AN HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF THE FIRST THREE BUSINESS TOKENS ISSUED IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK. New York: Privately Printed, 1859. 12mo, contemporary brown half morocco, gilt, with marbled sides; marbled endpapers; original pink printed wraps bound in. Lithographic frontispiece depicting a Mott token and two Talbot, Allum and Lee tokens, printed in metallic ink; 17, (1) pages; advertisement leaf. Near fine.
A charming copy of this important work. Originally published by Bushnell in a limited large-paper edition, he issued this more commonly encountered (though still scarce) edition to satisfy demand for the work. He continued to add to it, however, issuing a very rare second edition that was generally unknown until the first Kolbe Ford sale. The frontispiece is a lithograph in bronze ink, and the overall production values are well above average. Includes an appendix listing sales of these tokens at auction. The advertisement leaf contains four ads, all by die sinkers. Davis 163.
Lot 83: The Virtuoso's Companion
Denton, M. THE VIRTUOSO'S COMPANION, AND COIN COLLECTOR'S GUIDE. London: M. Denton, 1795-96. The first four volumes, bound in one. 12mo, 19th-century brown half calf with marbled boards; spine with four raised bands, ruled and decorated in blind; red morocco spine label, gilt; marbled endpapers; all page edges red. calf. Finely engraved frontispiece; four engraved titles; 120 finely engraved plates, each depicting both sides of four tokens; 15, (1) page index. Slight rubbing, else a fine copy.
An attractive copy of the first four volumes. Issued serially over several years, complete sets of this, the only comprehensive early work depicting 18th-century English tokens, are today decidedly rare. The preface proposed to issue "fac-similes of four hundred and eighty different Coins, in four Volumes twelves, with an elegant frontispiece, at the price of twenty shillings." After the four volumes here present had appeared, such a wealth of tokens remained un-illustrated that it was decided to extend the series to eight volumes.
Initiated by Denton, the last two parts were published by Thomas Prattent. The work appeared at ten- to fourteen-day intervals in printed wrappers, price sixpence: twelve tokens of three plates comprising a number. Given the method of distribution, the change in publisher (many sets are comprised of only the first 180 plates), and the proclivity of early collectors to cut up plates to illustrate other books (the famous Conder work, for example), it is not surprising that few complete sets have survived.
Lot 96: Elder's Miller Sale Catalogue
Elder, Thomas L. CATALOGUE OF THE SPLENDID RARE COIN COLLECTION OF THE LATE HENRY C. MILLER, ESQ. New York: Daniel R. Kennedy, Auctioneer, May 26-29, 1920. Small 4to [25.5 by 21.5 cm], original black cloth, upper cover lettered in gilt. 154, (6) pages; 2212 lots; 28 superb photographic plates on original cloth hinges. Original prices realized list laid in. Binding slightly rubbed. Near fine.
A magnificent collection of early English coins, Roman silver coins and important American colonial coins. By far best remembered today, however, for including Miller's collection of Connecticut coppers, on which he wrote what is still the standard reference (based partly on prior work by Dr. Thomas Hall).
Plated Miller sales are noted rarities and have always been desirable: in his description of a copy in a 1929 auction catalogue, Elder wrote: "Very rare. Not over 8 or 10 Plate catalogs were issued. Probably none other to be had anywhere for sale. Ought to bring $15 to $20." (The market for these has, suffice to say, increased.)
The first eight plates depict British coins from Celtic times to Queen Victoria, including several Roman Republican coins; the ninth through twenty-second plates illustrate a wide variety of ancient Roman coins, along with a few Byzantine pieces and several coins of Roman Egypt; and the final six plates are devoted to American colonial coins.
Rare, especially in the original binding. Adams 172. Clain-Stefanelli 14081. Davis 365. Ex Richard Picker library (June 1984 Kolbe sale, lot 267).
For more information on the sale, see:
www.numislit.com
ENCASED POSTAGE STAMPS IN THE STACK'S BOWERS 2014 BALTIMORE SALE
Yet another Stack's Bowers catalog arrived in the mail last weekend. As a former collector of U.S. Encased Postage Stamps, I thought I'd showcase a few of them.
-Editor
1862 Dougan the Hatter. Three Cents
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