Numismatic News August 27, 2024

Nine professional numismatists have been approved by the Anti-Counterfeiting Educational Foundation Board of Directors for inclusion in ACEF’s Trusted Experts Directory, launched May 29 to provide the public with an easy and practical way to locate professional dealers and experts who buy and sell genuine coins and numismatic collectibles. The nine newly added include: Rick DeSanctis, owner of Numismatic Classics, Inc., Fort Myers, Fla. – bullion coins, U.S. gold coins/U.S coins, world gold coins/world coins, paper money. Kenneth Goldman, owner of Kenneth Goldman Inc., Needham, Mass. – bullion coins, U.S. gold coins, U.S. coins. Michael Lang, owner of Lang Investments and Rare Coins, Edgewater Park, N.J. – U.S. coins. Josh Moran, owner of CIVITAS Galleries, Middleton, Wis. – ancient coins, world coins, U.S. coins. Jeffrey K. Nolen, owner of Gold…

The American Numismatic Association’s (ANA) 2024 literary awards – recognizing articles published in the 2023 volume of its official magazine, The Numismatist – were set to be presented during the Member Awards and Donor Celebration at the Chicago World’s Fair of Money on Aug. 8. The Numismatist was launched by ANA founder and first editor Dr. George F. Heath in 1888. This year marks its 137th volume. The Heath Literary Award, introduced in 1949, acknowledges outstanding articles published in the preceding 12 months. First place goes to William R. Eckberg for “French Liberty & the American Civil War” (September 2023).The author will receive $250, an engraved nickel-silver medal and a certificate. David Schenkman earned second place ($100, an engraved bronze medal and a certificate) for “Philadelphia Incuse Lettering Tokens of…

We may be in the heat of the summer, but the U.S. Mint has the holidays on their mind. Festive ornaments featuring the five 2024 American Women quarters will become available on Aug. 22. The ornaments feature uncirculated quarters from the Philadelphia Mint and honor Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray, Honorable Patsy Takemoto Mink, Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, Celia Cruz and Zitkala-Ša. Ornament descriptions follow. Dr. Mary Edwards Walker Depictions of the Rod of Asclepius and a surgical kit from the Civil War celebrate Dr. Walker’s accomplishments as a physician and battlefield surgeon. To date, Walker is the only woman to receive the Medal of Honor, which is also featured as an icon. The clothing icon represents her commitment to women’s dress reform, as she felt practical clothing was important for…

The year 1965 was one of dramatic change for our change. Silver, in use for coinage since the first days of the Mint, would be largely eliminated. The silver dollar was already long gone and soon the dimes and quarters would switch to a base metal coinage. Only a reduced silver content half dollar would remain. According to the Friday, June 4, 1965 issue of the Dallas Morning News, Dallas, “President Johnson recommended Thursday the most drastic change in U.S. coinage since the first mint was established in 1792: The virtual elimination of silver in coins. “A combination of nickel and copper would be substituted for silver in dimes and quarters and the amount of silver in half dollars would be reduced from 90 per cent to 40 per cent.”…

What can I use to remove the solder holding a coin to a stick pin? If good silver was used as solder, it can likely be removed by a jeweler. Should you use heat and a vacuum suction, residue will still remain. You can consider using a file, sanding sticks, or radial bristle discs. Radial bristle discs make clean-up easier and have some flexibility through which awkward areas can be reached. I can see the obverse and the date on the back of some of my elongated cents. Is this important to the value of these pieces? Common date coins, primarily cents, have been used to make most elongated pieces. There are 1909-S and 1914-D Lincoln cents known that were used as the host coin, likely by non-collectors. Likewise, there…

In the 19th century there was one event, above all, that marked the transition of the Philadelphia Mint from archaic to modern. This was the introduction of the steam-powered coining press on March 23, 1836. Two mint directors, Samuel Moore and Robert Patterson, had worked for years to abolish the old screw presses, which were operated by “blood power” as one of them put it, in favor of the new technology. Mint officials considered this change so important that a special medal was struck to record the event. In 1876, the press left the Mint, having served its purpose through long years of coinage. By the time that the press was sold, countless coins now in the hands of collectors had passed through the portals of this machine. It was…