Sunday, December 30, 2012

JR Newsletter: 30 December 2012 (121)

Welcome to the last JR Newsletter for 2012.  This week, our one contribution has some important information from Sheridan Downey:

The big news this week has to be Dave Olmstead's announcement that he is retiring after the FUN Show.  Dave, the sole owner of Alpine Numismatics, has been a colleague, mentor and friend for more than 2 decades.  I will miss him ... as much for has wry wit as his depth of numismatic knowledge.  His "war stories" are endless, intriguing, insightful and always fun to hear.  Let's hope he publishes his memoirs after he tires of climbing mountains.

To some collectors a more surprising announcement will be my publication of a significant Fixed Price List.  I'm waiting for photos of a few coins before posting the List on my obsolete and neglected web site, www.sheridanscoins.com.  The offering of over 70 bust half-dollars, 1801 through 1833, will focus on scarce and rare die marriages in grades Fair through AU.  It should hit the Internet by the end of the week.  I will, of course, have the coins with me at the FUN Show in Orlando, Jan. 9-12.  Anxious collectors who wish an advance copy of the FPL may email me now at sdowney3 (at) aol.com, indicating a preference for PDF or XLS format.

Thanks so much for your continued heroic efforts in editing and publishing the weekly newsletter.  No easy task, especially during the holidays.

All the best,
 Sheridan

Editor's Note:  Sheridan's table is listed in the FUN Program as number 213

Sunday, December 23, 2012

JR Newsletter: 23 December 2012 (120)



We have an important announcement from Rich Uhrich headlining our newsletter this week:

RICH UHRICH ANNOUNCES AN 1806 O-108 HALF (R-7) WILL BE OFFERED AT FUN 

The 1806 O-108 half dollar is the Knob 6, No Stem Through Claw variety, which has been highly sought-after for decades.  This coin has been graded PCGS Fine-12.  There are 7 known 1806 O-108 half dollars.  This coin has been referred to as the Pennsylvania specimen. 
 
The 1806 O-108 half in PCGS F-12 will be offered for sale at the FUN show by sealed bid closing Friday, January 11 at 4 pm EST.  At that time, the bids will be opened, the winning bid will be declared and the winning bidder notified.  Payment is due by 2 pm Saturday, January 12.  For an absentee bidder, other payment arrangements will be made.  The minimum bid is $97,000.  The coin will be on display at Rich Uhrich’s table #312 at the FUN show. 

Below is an image of the 1806 O-108 half in PCGS F-12.

Rich Uhrich

 Click on the image to enlarge it.



------

Jeff Reichenberger provided a few comments about the latest JR Journal:

It was a slow day at the shop, so at midday I cracked open my latest JR Journal to peruse as I slurped my soup. It didn't take long to be sucked into the vortex of David Finkelstein's obsessions. I found myself counting and re-counting, reading and re-reading about stars and azure lines until I actually understood! Never have I had so much pleasure self-inducing bloodshot eyes and a headache. During the time I was engrossed in the two Finkelstein articles I noticed I had three voicemails, which lead me to theorize that I thrice completely ignored the phone ringing!! Further reading brought several fine articles and when I turned the last page and looked at my watch, lo and behold, it was quittin' time! Thanks to the authors and editor for another great JR Journal! No better way to kill a day.

Jeff
------

Finally, a note from the editor:

Paul Hybert provided me some excellent troubleshooting advice that should help me to try to minimize the instances of people receiving two email copies of the weekly JR Newsletter.  Unfortunately, with family and friends visiting this week and next, I have not had time to test these new solutions.  So at least for the time being, I will continue to inconvenience trillions of electrons.  Enjoy the holidays.

Sunday, December 16, 2012

JR Newsletter: 16 December 2012 (119)

First this week, an editor's note:  Some people have reported receiving two email copies of the JR Newsletter.  I can assure you that I have absolutely no clue why that is happening.  I'm not as tech savvy as I would like to be.  As Dick Kurtz wrote when he reported the problem of two issues being delivered to his inbox: "That's better than none!"

------
Also, Tom Little wrote:


I had success with NCS conserving this 1818 Bust half dollar:  http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=6181227&fpart=1


The interesting thing was that extremely experienced dealers wrote the coin off as hopeless....NCS charged me $20 plus $15 for grading the conserved coin.


Tom

------


Yours truly (Richard Meaney) has some recent half dime adventures to share:


Those of us who peruse ebay looking for coins in our area(s) of interest have probably had an experience like this:


You are scanning ebay for coins and you notice a coin that looks promising.  The coin might be really well-struck, attractive, choice for grade, or maybe even a rare die marriage.  So you add the coin to your "watch list" with the intent of checking it out later…when you have more time to study the coin and the auction listing.  Most of the time, when you finally get around to studying the coin (hopefully, before the auction closed!), you find that the coin really is not as nice as you first thought or that it had an obverse of a rare die marriage, but the reverse didn't match up and the coin was a more common variety.


This story is different.  I noticed a beat-up half dime on ebay that looked like a rare remarriage.  I would need to study it further to determine that.  I could tell from a quick glance that the coin was probably cleaned and damaged.  So I added it to my watch list, where it sat for a few days.  A day before the auction closed, I decided to study it more carefully.  I try to convince myself after studying a coin that it truly is NOT the die marriage or remarriage that I first thought it was, so I work hard at proving my first instinct to be incorrect.  No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't succeed at disproving the conclusion of my first, quick-scan attribution.


Long story short, I recently bid on and won an 1832 LM-9.2 Capped Bust Half Dime.  This "Holy Grail" die remarriage is in extremely short supply.  Confirmed examples include the Logan-McCloskey plate coin and a PCGS AU-58 that I have in my collection.  There was a G-4 example reported in the most recent JRCS census, but that coin was shown to be an 1832 LM-8 a little less than a year ago (I have forgotten which specific LM-8 die remarriage it is).  I consider the 1832 LM-9.2 to be an R7+ die remarriage in the Capped Bust Half Dime series.  


Here are photos I took of the coin (click on images to enlarge them):


 

If that's not enough half dime coolness for you, I have also provided images a neat example of a clip on a half dime that also came from ebay during the past week:


 

Richard

Sunday, December 9, 2012

JR Newsletter: 9 December 2012 (118)

Glenn Peterson wrote:

Hi JRCS members,

     I have received copies of the fourth edition of my Ultimate Guide to Atributing Bust Half Dollars.  The fourth edition has revised pricing of the rarer die marriages and a list of the current rarity ratings for each year. I am offering FREE SHIPPING until January 1 at $90 a copy. If interested contact me at gpeters (at) tds.net

Thanks,
Glenn Peterson

------

Ron Guth wrote:

Thanks to Julian Leidman and Daniel Stepan for their help with the 1794 O-104a Half Dollar.  Their responses confirmed that I came to the right place.

Best wishes,
Ron Guth

Sunday, December 2, 2012

JR Newsletter: 2 December 2012 (117)

Nathan Markowitz wrote:

I wish to sound again the call for speakers mentioned by Brad Karoleff at the Columbus EAC/JRCS convention.  I strive to balance a mix of silver, copper, and historical talks.  Please consider sharing your interests with your colleagues; it's a great experience.

Also consider a presentation: this could be silver, copper, early gold , or even  numismatic literature.  See you May 2-5; contact me if you want to offer a presentation or discuss a possible presentation at cascades1787(at)yahoo.com

Nathan
------

Van Walworth wrote:

Perhaps we have enough versions of spreadsheets... but just in case there is room for one more, please share my Bust Dime Spreadsheet with the JRCS group (editor's note:  email me if you wish to obtain a copy of the spreadsheet).  I use one version of this spreadsheet to maintain a record of my personal collection.  I use another version of this spreadsheet to keep a running record of selling prices realized by coin and die variety.

The spreadsheet includes the entire series of early dimes and the capped dimes.  There are two sheets to the spreadsheet file.  One sheet is for recording a personal collection including condition and the number of coins in each die variety.  The spreadsheet automatically totals each die variety and then keeps a running total of all varieties in the set.  The other sheet is for recording the values of coins sold by die variety.  Over time, this promises to be a very useful tool because many of the die varieties do not come available except in rare circumstances, therefore over a long period  time watching and taking notes of various coins being sold, a data base can be constructed that provides a viable base line for establishing a price of certain coins compared to other coins.

Perhaps it will be a help to someone in the group.  Spreadsheets like this are no short task to develop, but they can make it rather easy to track coins and values and such.

Sincerely...

Van
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Daniel Stepan wrote:

In response to the request from Ron Guth, there are publicly available images for 7 unique 1794 O.104a specimens (two of which are called O.104 by the cataloguers), courtesy of the auction houses. The Westmoreland County/DeOlden Heritage Lot #2824 is NOT one of them; it is a misattributed O.104.

The specimen which best displays the diagnostic obverse die crack (Rim thru Star 3 to curls), though not the highest graded specimen, in my opinion is: Stack's Lot #8621: http://stacksbowers.com/Auctions/AuctionLot.aspx?LotID=306769. (Images below).

None of the images from the seven specimens otherwise meeting the Overton definition of O.104a show a true bisecting die crack thru Star 11, but all show the crack from edge thru Star 3 to curls of Liberty and the reverse cud above ER.

Best regards,

Daniel
JRCS #1322, BHNC #204 (LM 012)




Sunday, November 25, 2012

JR Newsletter: 25 November 2012 (116)



Ron Guth wrote:

I'm looking for a good picture of the 1794 O-104a Half Dollar (one that shows the bisecting crack on the obverse) to post on the PCGS CoinFacts website.  Perhaps one of your members who collects pre-Reich coins would be willing to help.

Thanks and best wishes,

Ron Guth
President
PCGS CoinFacts - the Internet Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins
www.PCGSCoinFacts.com
------

Brad Karoleff wrote:

I need to see a few off center strikes on bust dimes and/or quarters before 1827. Images may help especially if they are of raw coins. If anyone can help let me know. Thanks.

Also, the EAC/JRCS annual convention is scheduled for May 2-5 in Newark OH (suburb of Columbus). 

On Thursday evening the happenings will take place.  This is where different rooms are dedicated to the study of specific die marriages for the different series of coins represented at the convention.  The silver room will again have a half dime, dime, quarter, two half dollars, and maybe a dollar die marriage to study.  We are accepting suggestions as to which DM's to study.  Please forward your suggestions to Brad at jrcs19 (at) roadrunner.com.  I am also looking for volunteers to help in the happening room to show the silver coins.

Currently we have decided to display 1823 O109 for the Capped Bust half dollars.  We have had the 1836 LM1 suggested for the half dime, 1836 B3 for the quarter, and the 1839-O for the reeded edge halves.  Do you have any other nominations?

The latest issue of the John Reich Journal was mailed to the membership Saturday.  Anyone not receiving their issue in two weeks should contact Brad at jrcs19 (at) roadrunner.com.

It is also time to renew your membership.  There will be a membership renewal form in with your journal.  Please complete it and return it as soon as possible with your check to insure uninterrupted membership and journal delivery.  Your membership number is requested on the form, it is found on your mailing label after your name.

Thank you all for your membership in the society.  How about recruiting a new member to share your enthusiasm for the society?  We can always use a little new blood in the society. 

Happy Holidays to all.  Remember we will be having a regional meeting of the society at the FUN show on Friday.  Hope to see you there.

Brad
------

Winston Zack wrote:

A quick reply to Max's Bust Dime spreadsheet.  I use a Spreadsheet to record my Capped Bust Dime die marriage collection (sorry, I don't really collect the Draped Bust Dime type, so I did not create one).  It is a little small, but it prints on just 1 page and you can record up to 3 examples for each die marriage if you have multiples.  I find it quite convenient for quick scanning when browsing Bust Dimes at shows.

Cheers,
Winston

Editor's note:  If you want a copy of the spreadsheet, please send me an email.
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Robert Conrad wrote:

Just picked up an 1835 LM-5.1 VF-30 capped bust half dime and when I looked it up, my notes from 2001 said only 2 are known.  JRJ Vol. 14 issue 1 has info on the variety, which is what I noted in my copy of the half dime book. Back then it seemed scarce. It would be fun to see how the availability progressed. Is this still accurate? What's the story?

Thanks,

Bob

Sunday, November 18, 2012

JR Newsletter: 18 November 2012 (115)



A number of readers asked for a copy of the Steve Herrman bust coin inventory spreadsheet.  Among them was Max Lebow.  He wrote:

Attached is an Excel template for Bust Dimes that also includes the R-scale rating, although the ratings have not been updated.  I use this as my main inventory tracker of Bust Dimes.  I hope other members will find it as useful as I have.

Thanks,
Max Lebow

Editor:  If anyone would like a copy of the spreadsheet that Max uses, send me an email and I will send it out to you
------

Wes Chormicle wrote:

Steve Herrman shared an excellent spreadsheet last week.  I too created a spreadsheet a few years ago that has been most helpful in keeping track of my status with Half Dimes.   I will gladly share with those that might care to use it.  It can also be easily adapted to other series.

Wes Chormicle

Editor:  If anyone would like a copy of the spreadsheet that Wes uses, send me an email and I will send it out to you

Sunday, November 11, 2012

JR Newsletter: 11 November 2012 (114)



Lots of contributions this week!  Mark Borckardt starts us off:

I read with interest that the misattributed 1796 dollar came from a Heritage auction in 2006 where the incorrect attribution was noted, per our policy at the time. Today, our policy is to contact the consignor to gain permission to reholder the item before cataloging, eliminating these situations.

Mark Borckardt, Senior Cataloger, Heritage Auctions
------

Glenn Peterson wrote:

CHECK THE PICTURE! I am the happy winner of an 1835 LM-11 MS 63 bust half dime from Heritage. The listing stated that it was Large Date, Large 5C 1835 bust half dime and it was on the "internet only" section of the Heritage auction #1175. It was in fact the Small Date and Small 5C and the more scarce of the two examples (R4). The only other choice UNC example I have encountered of that die marriage was MS 63 and priced at $2000. I was able to capture it for well under half that price. Perhaps the mistaken description help me acquire that piece.  I was also able to acquire a MS 63 example of the second marriage of bust half 1827 O-108 to complement my MS 62 example of the first marriage without F filled. Between these remarriages, the reverse is used to produce 1828 O-101. Happy hunting!

Glenn Peterson
------

Steve Herrman wrote:

I have a Microsoft Excel document which may be shared with other JRCS members.

The document contains up-to-date census spreadsheets for the Bust half dimes, dimes, quarters and halves (Pre-Turban and Capped Bust). Whenever entries are added or changed, summary totals are computed automatically.

Best,

Steve
JRCS #474

Editor's Note:  Send an email to me if you wish to receive a copy of Steve Herrman's spreadsheet.
------

Michael Sullivan wrote:

Thank you for a helpful and lively JR Newsletter on Sunday.    As usual, my friends Jim Mathews and W.D. Perkins were great help in the dialogue and research.   While not included in the article citation last week, my good friend Brad Karoleff helped to inspire my original submission as well.

I applaud the response of Mr. Greg Hansen to take a professional, responsible position to clarify the early dollar marriage error, take the coin off the market, and request NGC to reslab it with the proper marriage designation (BB-61).    Fellow bibliophile and collector David Lange is also thanked for taking quick action on behalf of NGC at no charge to Mr. Hansen.

This is a great example of the numismatic community coming together with information, research, and action via the JR Newsletter.

 Michael J. Sullivan
------

Joe Brame wrote:

My special interest right now is in the Capped Bust Half Dime series, and I am hoping you can help me with a question.

I have just recently acquired an 1834 Half Dime, LM-4, which has very strong mirrored fields on both sides. I did not purchase it (a raw coin) as a Proof, but I really am wondering if it might be.  Certainly I understand that you could not express any opinion without seeing the coin, but I am wondering if you might be able to tell me what characteristics might suggest that it is or is not a Proof.  There currently is a PCGS PR64+ 1834 Half Dime on eBay (200841547496), which I have tried to compare to my coin, but I really have not had much success.  I would say that the eBay coin does not appear to be any better struck than my coin, and the fields on both certainly appear to be comparable.  When I noted that my coin does not have a wire rim, I felt that might be a clue that it is not a Proof.  But the coin on eBay does not appear to have a wire rim.

I am presently planning on submitting my coin to PCGS in December, but I was hoping you might be able to offer some insight as to what I should look for in helping me decide if it is a Proof.  If my coin is not a Proof, it would probably grade MS63 or better.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards,
Joe Brame

Editor's note:  At the very least, the subject of Proof half dimes from 1834 is controversial.  From the Logan-McCloskey text ("Federal Half Dimes 1792-1837"), I found this:  "The contents of the Mint collection have been examined three times by the authors since 1985 and no proof 1834 half dimes were identified."  And later in the text, one finds this, "Breen accounts for several proofs of the LM-4 marriage, and claims the year to be the second most common after 1829 for proof half dimes." 

Judging from price guides, anyone who buys a raw coin and then achieves a Proof designation on a PCGS-graded Capped Bust Half Dime will have earned a significant premium.  I would advise Joe to show the coin to a few other specialist collectors or dealers before submitting to PCGS to get additional opinions.  I am sure readers have opinions on the existence and determination of Proof half dimes from 1834…let's hear the opinions!
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Brad Karoleff wrote:

The EAC/JRCS annual convention is scheduled for May 2-5 in Newark OH (suburb of Columbus).  The Cherry Valley Lodge is hosting the event.  You can contact them at 888.897.4599, mention EAC to obtain the $129 convention rate.

There are still tables available for the show.  You must be a member of EAC to have a table due to insurance regulations.  You should be a member of that organization anyway!  To obtain membership information contact Rod Burress, 9743 Leacrest, Cincinnati, OH 45215.  If you have any other questions about the show the chairperson is Emily Matuska and she can be reached at rmatuska (at) roadrunner.com. 

Our own Nathan Markowitz will be the chair of the educational presentations.  If you would like to volunteer to give a presentation at the show please contact Nathan at cascades1787 (at) yahoo.com. 

On Thursday evening the happenings will take place.  This is where different rooms are dedicated to the study of specific die marriages for the different series of coins represented at the convention.  The silver room will again have a half dime, dime, quarter, two half dollars, and maybe a dollar die marriage to study.  We are accepting suggestions as to which DM's to study.  Please forward your suggestions to Brad at jrcs19 (at) roadrunner.com.  I am also looking for volunteers to help in the happening room to show the silver coins.

Currently we have decided to display 1823 O109 for the Capped Bust half dollars.  We have had the 1836 LM1 suggested for the half dime, 1836 B3 for the quarter, and the 1839-O for the reeded edge halves.  Do you have any other nominations?

The bourse will be open Friday through Sunday.  This is more a throwback to earlier conventions with time to chat coins with your favorite dealers without the distraction of multiple modern slabs.  It is an experience that every numismatist should avail themselves of at least once (a year!).  Come have some fun with us in the heartland of Ohio.  I can't promise the same side events as last year's convention in Buffalo (cross dressers of America had their annual ball at the same time as the convention!) but I'm sure you will have a great time!

Brad Karoleff
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Last, and certainly not least (especially for collectors of Bust Dollars), Rich Uhrich wrote:

The Stacks - Bowers Baltimore auction this week contains an outstanding collection of Bust dollars, for which I am representing the consignors.  The collection is called the Carl and Josephine Legacy Collection, and each of the 85 Bust dollars is so indicated in the auction catalog.  The consignors inherited this collection, which had been stored in a bank safe deposit box since 1974.  So the coins are fresh to the market.  Fortunately, the collectors had placed the dollars in Capital plastic holders, so none had been damaged by improper storage.  Highlights of the collection include 8 (!) 1798 Small Eagle dollars, 3 of which are 13 star and 5 of which are 15 star, the finest of which is a PCGS EF-40.  There is also a 1796 Small Dare Large Letters in PCGS AU-53, a 1797 9x7 in PCGS AU-53 CAC, a 1799 8x5 in PCGS AU-53 CAC, and an 1800 AMERICAI in PCGS AU-55.  But perhaps my favorite coin in the collection is an 1800 B-17 in PCGS AU-50, because it is the early die state without the "collar" that is on almost all of this variety.  Reiver knew of only one when he wrote his excellent book, one other was sold in an auction, but this coin is by far the finest known of this rare die state.  So here is an opportunity to acquire some fresh Bust dollars for your collection, or one for your type set.

Rich Uhrich



Sunday, November 4, 2012

JR Newsletter: 4 November 2012 (113)




This week we have a "dollar collectors special" with lots of information provided as a follow-up to last week's contribution by Michael Sullivan...but first, an inquiry by Ralph Muñoz and a request for assistance by the JRCS Board of Directors.

From the JRCS Board of Directors:  

The JRCS web site is in need of modernization.  If anyone has the skills, time, and willingness to help the JRCS bring its website up to date, we would welcome your assistance.  You can send an email to the JR Newsletter if you can help!
------  

Ralph Muñoz wrote:

I have a request for spread sheets of the various bust type coins.  

I have one for bust halves that I use; that I plug in the coins in my collection.   It is listed by all years, with the known varieties and rarity.  I usually carry it with me to determine if I need a certain variety or if I want to upgrade.  Regarding the spread sheet for halves that I use; it is the property of Steve Herrman for the Bust Half Nut Club, (which I am a member) and I don't have the ownership. 

I want to know if there are similar type spread sheets available for the other bust type coins?  Half dimes, dimes and quarters?  If so, are they listed in the JRCS journal or is there an excel spread sheet available online?  Anyone who can provide a spreadsheet, please send me an email:  munoz1951(at)cox.net

Thanks,
Ralph
JRCS #30

Editor's note:  I have a spreadsheet that I use for half dimes and I sent a copy to Ralph.  If anyone else wants a copy, send me an email and I will send a copy of the spreadsheet to you too.
------

Recall that last week, Michael Sullivan wrote about a misattributed bust dollar being sold on eBay.  When I clicked on the link to check out the auction, I recognized the seller...so I contacted him and shared the information with him.  Additionally, I received input from other dollar collectors on the subject.  So as a treat to dollar collectors especially, here are a number of responses to Michael Sullivan's contribution of last week:

First, David Perkins wrote:

 Michael, 

I just read your posting this morning in JR News regarding the misattributed "1796 BB-64" Silver Dollar.  I agree the dollar in the photograph matches the attributes of the 1796 B-4, BB-61 Dollar. 
When I first looked at the photo, the holder looked funny to me as it only listed the BB Number (and no Bolender Number).  I thought this coin might be in a counterfeit NGC holder.  I don't have any of my early dollars that are in NGC holders at home, and as today is Sunday the bank is closed.  Thus I can't compare the holder to any of the labels on any of my coins that are in NGC early dollar variety holders.  I looked up examples in the Heritage archives and the early dollars in photographed in NGC holders that I viewed all have both the BB and B numbers listed on them.  This one does not for some reason, but I can’t state for fact that all early dollars in NGC holders have or should have both BB and B numbers on them.

I had never done this before, but I went to the NGC website and under "NGC Research" clicked on "View Coin Certification" to do a Certification Number Lookup.  I had read about this service in NGC advertisements.  I entered the number on the NGC holder (#3988818-005) to verify this coin.  It verifies this certification number as a “1796 SM DATE LG LETTERS BB-64, B-6” Dollar in NGC XF 40.  

This leaves me with at least a couple of questions, “Why is the “B-6” (Bolender) number not listed on this holder?”  (as the B-6 number shows up when entering the number into the NGC Website for verification) and “Did NGC simply misattribute this coin as to the correct die marriage?” 

I only know of three existing specimens of the 1796 BB-64, B-6 Dollar.  Thus it remains a R-8.  And I might add that if this were actually a 1796 BB-64, B-6 die marriage in XF 40 it would sell for MULTIPLES of the $9,895.00 “Buy it Now” asking price!  Not only is it rare, it would be the only known early die state of this die marriage, missing the heavy vertical die break that bisects the reverse on the 1796 BB-64, B-6 Dollar! 

Thank you for publishing this in JR News.  I think it is important to publish something on this offering and coin in the next issue of the John Reich Journal.  Michael, as you reported this would you like to write up something and include a photo of the coin in the holder?  We can add a photo of “a correct” 1796 BB-64, B-6 for comparison. 

Thanks.
Regards,
W. David Perkins
--

Next, Jim Matthews offered the following:

For what it's worth, both grading services commonly get attributions wrong--we send in 5 to 10 coins per auction to get a corrected label--so this is not unusual at all.

The don't have the numismatic staff and time to worry about all attributions!

Counterfeit holders are a huge problem, especially with PCGS overseas in the Orient.

Jim
 --

My initial correspondence to the eBay seller, Greg Hansen, is below:

Greg,

You may or may not know that I am editor of the John Reich Collectors Society weekly "e-journal" entitled JR Newsletter. We received correspondence this week (I provided Greg with a link to the online version of the JR Newsletter) about a misattributed bust dollar on eBay. When I checked out the coin, I saw a coin being offered by eBay seller greghansen, who I assume is you. The mistake is not yours, it is a mistake made by NGC.

Die marriage collectors are necessarily fussy about their attributions. I think NGC and Dave Lange especially would love the opportunity to correct the mistake.

Richard
--

Greg quickly responded to me:

Richard,

Thank you for your message. 

I do not have the Bowers-Borckardt reference book identified in the JR Newsletter posting.

As you may surmise from the above, I am not a die marriage collector. I bought the coin as a 1796 type coin when I was putting together a Bust Dollar date set from 1795-1803. It has sat in my collection for several years, largely ignored, until I decided to focus more on a 'Box of 20' set. With that decision, I no longer needed every bust dollar in my set and am in the process of selling those coins not needed for my Box of 20. That is how the coin came to be listed on EBAY.

I am somewhat surprised that I have/was not notified through the EBAY system about the attribution error since several of your society members apparently spotted the error right away.

I have mixed feelings about the cost/time off market associated with returning the coin to NGC for reslabbing. I suppose if I still own the coin in early January, I will take it to the FUN show, which is the next show I will be at where NGC will have a presence. In the interim I have corrected the listing, which I invite you to look at and comment if you think it is clear enough for prospective buyers.

I am familiar with the name of David Lange and his position with NGC, but we are not acquaintances. If you have an email or contact information, I would like to speak or correspond with him to understand what would be required of me to get the error corrected.

Thank you again for your message. It does none of us any good to list/sell variety coins which are improperly attributed and it is unfortunate that my lack of special knowledge in this series led to me relying upon the third party attribution when preparing my auction listing.

Greg Hansen
 --
I then shared with Greg the information that I received from Dave Perkins and Jim Matthews.  Additionally, an internet search for Dave Lange's contact information (readily available due to his passion for coin boards and their history!) provided me with additional information I could share with Greg.  So in addition to sharing the Perkins and Mattews emails, I sent the following to Greg:

Dave Lange announced at a JRCS meeting a few years ago that he is now the sole attributor at NGC. He said previously there were too many errors, so NGC decided to ensure there would be one person responsible for attribution in an effort to cut down on errors. There's a good chance that your coin was slabbed before Dave had that full time job. I found Dave has a website with his contact information. His website is http://www.coincollectingboards.net
--

I quickly received another response from Greg:
 
Richard,

The information does indeed help. I will copy your most recent message along with a link to my EBAY auction and send it to Mr. Lange to get his thoughts.

Your most recent email caused me to search my records to see if I could identify where/when I acquired this coin. I knew I had purchased some privately (including a 1798 from you) and some via auctions.

By searching back I found that this coin was bought out of a Heritage auction in 2006. Embarrassingly, their auction description did indeed note the incorrect slab attribution. The incorrect attribution meant nothing to me at the time of purchase since I was simply trying to acquire an XF type coin for that date. Having sat in my collection for nearly 7 years I simply forgot about the misattribution when I listed it. Quite frankly 'BB-61' or 'BB-64' would have meant nothing to me since I was blissfully unaware of any rarity factors. I think my BIN price is evidence of my ignorance of any special value for a true BB-64.

Here is the direct link to the Heritage auction where I acquired the coin. I have been the owner of the coin since that auction.

Heritage auction page for 1796 NGC misattributed BB-64 Bust Dollar

Please accept this as my permission/consent for you to share any or all of the information I have shared back to you about this coin with society members or any other interested person(s). All reference to the BB-64 attribution has been removed from the EBAY auction title and I have modified my description to inform all potential purchasers of the incorrect attribution on the slab. If you review the Heritage auction posting, this is how they elected to handle the issue when they sold the coin.

Once I communicate with David, if I can get some assurances that my coin won't be tied up or languish for 6-8 weeks on a resubmission, I will probably just elect to get it reholdered so there is no chance that the coin may be misrepresented in the future. Thanks again for David's contact info. I will email him now.

Greg Hansen
--

As many of you who have met Dave Lange would expect, I got a quick follow-up from Greg after he contacted Dave Lange at NGC:

Richard, Just a quick Monday morning update. David responded to my email very promptly. He advised that he has already made the correction in NGC database, but of course that doesn't fix the mislabeled slab issue. He recommended I bring it to FUN where they will reslab free of charge. I intend to follow his advice in that regard.

Upon further reflection, I have also decided to pull the
EBAY auction entirely despite the disclosure of the mis-attribution. My concern is that if the coin is successfully sold 'as is' there is the considerable risk of future misrepresentation and/or misidentification either intentionally or inadvertently by others as clueless as I was about the significance of the variety. I think the responsible thing to do is to ensure the misattribution gets corrected and fixed while I have ownership of the coin and have the power to do so. I guess since I've owned it nearly 7 years, a couple more months won't make that much difference and I've got enough other stuff to liquidate that not being able to market this coin for a couple of months isn't going to be that big of a deal.

Thank you and the society for bringing this matter to my attention. It was careless of me not to make a note on the slab of the misattribution at the time of purchase. Lesson learned.

Greg Hansen

--

I hope readers have enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed being a part of it.
Richard





  

Sunday, October 28, 2012

JR Newsletter: 28 October 2012 (112)

Robert Stark wrote:

What a wonderful project David Finkelstein has undertaken!

Thank you! 
 Bob Stark

------

Michael Sullivan wrote:

 
Miss Attributed "BB-64" R-8 Early Dollar Attempts to Cross the Auction Block Again
 
When you see an R-8 Bust Dollar on E-Bay offered at "type coin money" you need to take a closer look.    For at least the second time, a 1796 NGC XF40 "BB-64" is being offered on E-Bay.   The BB-64 is an R-8 marriage per the W.D. Perkins census published in the Feb-2011 edition of the John Reich Journal.   Comparing the reverse of the E-Bay offered coin with the Bowers-Borckardt standard reference for Silver Dollars & Trade Dollars of the United States, 1993 indicates the offered coin is actually a BB-61 designated R-3 by Perkins.  
 
For those who elect to compare the photo images on E-Bay with the BB reference, I suggest you focus on the berry positions on the reverse left of the coin.    The mismatch with BB-64 and match with BB-61 is immediately apparent. 
 
As the saying going on the internet, "Buyer Beware."   See E-Bay Lot:  271083272540
 
 
Michael Sullivan

Sunday, October 21, 2012

JR Newsletter: 21 October 2012 (111)

Paul Kluth wrote in response to Richard Meaney:

Enjoyed reading your adventure today, especially since I also collect terminal die states on the various U.S. series.  Always cool when you find a surprise in the junk pile and even better when you win an auction for that prize, one a few others probably noticed too.

Paul

------

David Finkelstein wrote:

I have recently started a project to consolidate all copper, silver and gold Delivery Warrants / Treasurer Receipts from 1793 to 1836 into an Excel spreadsheet.

Delivery Warrants were written orders from the Director of the Mint to the Chief Coiner.  They specified the number of coins, by denomination, to be delivered to the Treasurer of the Mint.  Treasurer Receipts were receipts written by the Treasurer of the Mint.  They specified the number of coins, by denomination, that were received from the Chief Coiner.

It is my understanding that Delivery Warrant data is scattered throughout the document  files at the National Archives and Records Administration, and that the spreadsheet that I am attempting to create does not exist. Presently I have the following Delivery Warrant data:

1. In Appendix I of Die Varieties of Early United States Coins, Robert Hilt II lists the Delivery Warrants for Half Dimes through Eagles.  His warrant data is complete for warrants 1 through 110 (October 15, 1794 through February 28, 1798).  He then lists only 8 warrants from #111 to #307.

2. Bill Eckberg provided me Treasurer Receipts of Half Cent and Large Cent deliveries from 1793 to 1811.

3. Steve Tompkins has documented Quarter Delivery Warrants though 1828 on page 396 of Early United States Quarters, 1796-1838.

4. Brad Higgins has documented the 1801 - 1807 Half Dollar Delivery Warrants in the JRJ.

If anyone has Delivery Warrant or Treasurer Receipt data that is not identified above, please contact me at dfinkelstein@comcast.net.  The data that you provide will be noted in the spreadsheet.  Thanks in advance for your support of this project.

David Finkelstein

Sunday, October 14, 2012

JR Newsletter: 14 October 2012 (110)

No contributions this week, so I thought I would share this recent purchase.  I saw a lot of six cull half dimes on eBay that looked pretty innocuous/lousy.  The obverse photo looked like this:







A quick assessment of the coins told me that they had a host of problems (damaged, cleaned, bent, holed, etc.).  Nonetheless, being the persistent half dime collector that I am, I decided to take a quick look at the reverse picture.  In fact, I was surprised there even was a reverse picture, since too many sellers of culls on eBay don't provide reverse images.  So here's what I saw when I clicked on the reverse image:


Immediately, my attention focused on the coin at the top left.  I recognized that cud as one of the rare cuds in the half dime series.  The cud in that location is found on the 1832 LM-10.4 remarriage.  It is estimated to be an R-6 insofar as rarity is concerned (and I think it is a high R-6 at that...some might term it an R6+).  One of the neat things about this remarriage with the cud is that the position of the cud on the reverse is nearly directly opposite the date on the obverse, so due to the presence of the cud, the date does not strike up fully (or at all, in some cases!) on this remarriage in its latest die state.  This coin was obviously very worn, but only hints of the date are visible in hand, which is to be expected.  So I entered a bid and ended up winning this lot of coins for sixty one dollars...no doubt far more than the seller could have expected.  I haven't seen many of these and suspect that I got a really, really good value for my money with this purchase.  It is a duplicate, but when it comes to rare cuds, one can't bypass such an opportunity!

Richard Meaney

Sunday, October 7, 2012

JR Newsletter: 7 October 2012 (109)

One contribution this week:

Tom Little wrote:

Thanks for the update.  I sold this 1837  Bust half on eBay last week:  http://www.ebay.com/itm/251154312176?ssPageName=STRK:MESOX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1562.l2649

NGC is using the new "GR" attribution system.

Editor's Note:  Images of the obverse and reverse of Tom's coin are below.


Sunday, September 30, 2012

JR Newsletter: 30 September 2012 (108)


David Finkelstein wrote:
 
A website has been created to serve as a message board and data repository for anything U S Mint research related. The website is www.USMintResearch.com.  The website went live in August, 2012, and focuses on the First and Second United States Mints from 1792-1839, Mint personnel, policies, procedures and operations, research at the National Archives and other facilities, and U S coins prior to 1840. Why 1792-1839? This covers all U S coins struck after the Coinage Act of April 2, 1792 and prior to the Seated Liberty series. Eventually the website will be expanded to include the other Mints and additional series of U S coins.
 
Participants are encouraged to post documents, research, images, pictures, in-progress articles, and theories, and engage in discussions.
 
Access to the website is currently restricted.  In order to gain access, you have to be invited.  The website requires a secure login.
 
If you are performing research and want to participate, please send an email with your name and reason for joining to David Finkelstein at dfinkelstein(at)comcast.net
 
------
Jim Matthews wrote:
 
 I'll be presenting a talk at the Baltimore Coin show for the JRCS Regional meeting. Details to follow. Had to double check my crazy schedule to see which coast I would be on--and it looks like this one will work out fine as I'm going to be home for that month in Virginia.
 
I'll bring along some of my Draped Bust and Capped Bust dime cuds for discussion and examination.
 
Jim Matthews
questions write me at bustdollar(at)yahoo.com
 

Sunday, September 23, 2012

JR Newsletter: 23 September 2012 (107)

The sole contribution for the week is a renewed effort by Brad Karoleff:

There will be a regional meeting of the John Reich Collectors Society at the upcoming Whitman Baltimore Coin Expo on Friday November 16th at 4PM.  Is there anyone attending that would like to give the educational presentation at the meeting?
Please contact Brad at bkaroleff(at)yahoo.com if you would like to present.
Brad

Sunday, September 16, 2012

JR Newsletter: 16 September 2012 (106)

Brad Karoleff wrote:
 
There will be a regional meeting of the John Reich Collectors Society at the upcoming Whitman Baltimore Coin Expo on Friday November 16th at 4PM.  Is there anyone attending that would like to give the educational presentation at the meeting?
 
Please contact Brad at bkaroleff(at)yahoo.com if you would like to present.
 
Brad
 
------
 
Steve Herrman wrote:
 
Capped Bust Half Dollar Census information for R4 to R8 die marriages is now being
solicited for inclusion in the next issue of the John Reich Journal.

Please send your complete inventory listing (including ALL duplicates and die states) of
R4 to R8 Capped Bust Half Dollar die marriages to Steve Herrman:
 
Email: Herrman102(at)aol.com
FAX: 303-989-6393

Note: The top 15 collections shall each be identified by the JRCS membership number of
the submitter. Duplicates will be counted and reported as part of the totals. Your personal
census will be kept strictly confidential, and shall not be used for any other purpose.
 
Steve
 
(see list below)
 
 List of R4 to R8 Capped Bust Half Dollar Die Marriages
Year Var R.
1807 111 4+
1808 110 4+
1809 101 5
1809 104 5-
1809 108 4
1809 110 4+
1809 112 5-
1809 113 5
1809 114 5
1811 102 4
1811 107 4
1811 112 4-
1811 113 5
1812 101 5-
1813 102 4
1813 104 4
1814 106 4+
1817 102 7-
1817 104 6
1817 105 4-
1817 108 4
1818 110 4
1818 115 4+
1819 103 4
1819 106 4
1820 104 4+
1820 107 5
1822 102 4+
1822 103 5-
1822 112 4
1823 102 4
1823 109 5+
1823 113 7
1824 102 5+
1824 112 4
1824 114 5-
1825 103 4-
1825 104 4+
1825 109 5
1825 117 4
1825 118 8
1826 103 5-
1826 114 4+
1826 115 5-
1826 119 4-
1826 120 4-
1827 103 4
1827 108 4-
1827 109 4-
1827 110 4-
1827 111 4
1827 113 4-
1827 116 4+
1827 122 5
1827 123 5-
1827 124 5+
1827 127 5
1827 128 4-
1827 129 4-
1827 133 4
1827 134 4
1827 136 4
1827 137 6
1827 138 4
1827 139 4-
1827 140 4+
1827 144 5+
1827 145 5
1827 147 4
1827 148 6+
1827 149 8
1828 105 5
1828 106 4+
1828 111 4
1828 123 5+
1829 106 5-
1829 109 4+
1829 118 4+
1829 120 8
1830 105 4
1830 112 4+
1830 114 5
1831 113 4
1831 115 4
1831 117 4
1831 120 6
1832 109 4
1832 114 4+
1832 117 4+
1832 119 4-
1832 123 7
1833 111 4+
1833 115 5+
1833 116 7
1834 118 4
1834 119 4
1834 120 4
1834 122 7
1835 111 8
1836 103 4-
1836 105 4-
1836 107 4
1836 120 4-
1836 121 5+
1836 123 4

Sunday, September 9, 2012

JR Newsletter: 9 September 2012 (105)

We had one contribution this week.  Alan Bricker wrote:

Following up upon Richard Meaney's commentary in the August 26th edition of JR Newsletter, to the best of my recall I first reported on the existence of the new prime marriage of the 1830 LM-1 half dime in JRNews during April or May of 2007. This report came about on the heels of the revelation of the new 1835 "LM-12" marriage. What happened, as I announced at the recent JRCS meeting in Philadelphia, was that I had actually purchased the AU discovery coin for the new 1830 LM-1 prime marriage on February 10, 2000 at the Long Beach Expo (incidentally, that day was the inaugural day for the remarkable S.S. Central America "Ship of Gold" traveling exhibition). I could not recall having ever before seen such a crisp, sharp-looking 1830 V-10 (LM-1) showing no clashmarks and no visible die cracks. I had intended to do some further studies and side-by-side comparisons with the new purchase after returning back home, however, the coin slipped into safe deposit along with some other acquisitions and was thenceforth forgotten for a few years. The spring 2007 JRNews reports on the new 1835 "LM-12" soon had me traveling back to the safe deposit facility to review some 1835 half dimes, and after seven years the prime-marriage 1830 LM-1 specimen was serendipitously "rediscovered". At this point in the spring of 2007, I reported in JRNews on the existence of the new prime marriage of 1830 LM-1 and, for lack of a better idea, suggested a possible designation of 1830 "LM-1.0".

Alan Bricker

Editor's Note:  I have added images of my 1830 LM-1.1 below.  You can click on either image to view a much larger version:



Sunday, September 2, 2012

JR Newsletter: 2 September 2012 (104)

I received no contributions for the JR Newsletter this week, so here's a half dime for your viewing pleasure (1832 LM-9.2)


Sunday, August 26, 2012

JR Newsletter: 26 August 2012 (103)

Liz Coggan wrote:

We will be, beginning on Monday, uploading a nice consignment of Capped Bust halves all with Overton numbers on the slabs.  I just received the coins back from PCGS late Friday and we will be offering them on our new online auction site at www.jjteapartyonlineauctions.com
 
Registration on the auction site is simple and FREE for a 90 day trial period.  Simply click on the Registration link once there, or if you prefer, call Gail or me at 1-800-343-6412 and we will set you up. 
 
We hope this will be the beginning of many nice collections offered on our online auction site.  There are more Bust Halves at PCGS so be sure to visit the auction site often as we will be adding additional parts of this consignment as they come back from grading and attribution.
 
Best wishes,
 
Liz Coggan
J J Teaparty, Inc. 

------

Richard Meaney wrote:

Many of you have likely read the article I wrote for the most recent John Reich Journal (August 2012) entitled "Is it Time for a New Remarriage Chart for Capped Bust Half Dime Reverse G?"  What some people don't know is the motivation for the investigation that resulted in my writing the article.

A number of years ago, back when Bill Luebke was publishing the weekly email "JR News" there was an article submitted by Alan Bricker in which Alan told of an 1830 LM-1 half dime he had found that appeared to be such an early die state (compared to the descriptions in Logan and McCloskey's "Federal Half Dimes 1792-1837") that we might need to call it an "1830 LM-1.0" because it likely preceded the 1830 LM-1.1 in emission order.  Although other specialists had not seen Alan's coin, we talked about the subject on and off over the years.  Half Dime aficionados looked for coins that would fit the description Alan had offered (no clash marks) for his AU+ coin.  It wasn't until 2009 that I found an 1830 LM-1 that fit the description of the coin Alan had written about.  Then a year or so later, another similar specimen was found.  When the similar specimen was found, I decided it was time to write the article. 

Also influencing my decision to write the article was something I had heard John McCloskey say a few times in the past.  Paraphrasing liberally, John has said that "information changes over time as collectors obtain new coins and study them and compare them against references and other coins they know about -- people will learn new information and publish that information, since it is the natural process of research."  I was happy to hear John make a similar statement again at this year's JRCS Annual Meeting at the Philadelphia ANA.  Anyone who has ever written an article, book, or published other research recognizes that their contributions are just steps toward a better understanding of the subject.  I am happy to have contributed to the body of knowledge on Capped Bust Half Dime remarriages, thanks to the encouragement and assistance of other specialists.

Richard

Sunday, August 19, 2012

JR Newsletter: 19 August 2012 (102)

Phil Carrigan wrote:

I have two items from the ANA: #1 more on the missing Davis dimes and, #2 the Tuesday auction session with (most of) Dave Davis' dimes.
I spoke to John McCloskey regarding where were the missing coins found by the family-member search group. After the JRCS meeting ended, I spoke to John.  "Do you know where the Davis missing coins were located?" John indicated he learned this after the success of the search.  Dave hid these because he couldn't return them to the bank.  He had a tall bookcase with books against a wall.  He removed all the books and moved the bookcase from the wall.  The coins were placed at the wall, the bookcase was returned to its place and the books were re-shelved. Due to Dave's illness and medication he couldn't recall where he hid these coins--we all owe his family members our thanks.
I was pleased to obtain eight of Dave's Bust dimes .  While I had recorded the coins of interest to me, I was concerned at the seeming conflict between certain coins designated by PCGS as cleaned or damaged.  I know PCGS as a reputable company while I know the individual who wrote the annotated descriptions of Dave's coins, including those given the cleaned and damaged negative tag.  I carefully examined 45 coins, 16 of which were cleaned or damaged.  Jim Mathews provided objective and balanced commentary which I found invaluable.  My customary practice is to simply pass on such problem coins.  I purchased three such coins and am pleased to own these.
Philip J. Carrigan
------
Bill Kindl wrote:
 
I spent the better part of Friday (10 AM - 3 PM) at the ANA show in Philadelphia.  Attendance was on the light side; several aisles had very little traffic; I noticed dealers reading their newspaper or on their computers just waiting for people to stop by.  I was very surprised and disappointed as I had expected a much larger attendance.  Several dealers stated it had turned out to be a much better show for "buying".
Bill Kindl
------
David Lange wrote about the "new hot series in bust coins" (OK, that was editor's emphasis added):

NGC Recognizes Reeded Edge Half Varieties

New book prompts renewed popularity in short-lived series

Numismatic Guaranty Corporation has begun attributing the Capped Bust Reeded Edge Half Dollar series by Graham-Reiver (GR) Numbers per the newly-published book describing and illustrating each die marriage for this series. These varieties will be included under NGC’s VarietyPlus Service, an adjunct to its grading and encapsulation services.

Author Dick Graham’s book A Registry of Die Varieties of Reeded Edge Half Dollars 1836-1839 was long anticipated, and its release came during the recent World’s Fair of Money in Philadelphia. A previous monograph written by the late Jules Reiver had been employed by some collectors for attributing Reeded Edge Halves, but this proved to be incomplete and very challenging to use, as it included no photographs. The Graham work solves this problem, and NGC determined that this series would make a worthwhile addition to its already extensive and highly regarded VarietyPlus service.

Unlike the Lettered Edge Half Dollars that preceded them, Reeded Edge Halves were almost entirely hubbed, with the final numeral of the date being the only hand-punched element. The distinguishing points of Reeded Edge Halves are thus very subtle, and these coins may be challenging to attribute in grades below VF-20. It’s suggested that submitters bear this in mind when selecting coins for variety attribution.

Persons submitting Capped Bust Reeded Edge to NGC for certification may receive variety attributions by checking the box marked VarietyPlus on the submission form and paying the $12 fee. Reeded Edge Halves already encapsulated by NGC may be submitted for Designation Review at the same fee, and this cost includes a fresh holder.

The NGC website, www.NGCcoin.com, features a complete table of varieties recognized by NGC under its VarietyPlus Service. This table lists the NGC label description and variety number, as well as all applicable cross-referencing numbers. The Graham-Reiver varieties of Reeded Edge Half Dollars will also be included in NGC’s Certified Coin Registry.

------

Richard Meaney wrote:

I had an absolutely wonderful time at the ANA show in Philadelphia.  I was there all day Tuesday and Wednesday and just one hour on Thursday.  My seven year old daughter attended the show with me.  This was her first major coin show.  I think the longest period of time she had spent at a small, local coin show previously was an hour or two.  Much to my surprise, she had an absolutely great time at the show and seeing the sights (Liberty Bell, Independence Hall) and eating the food (Reading Terminal Market, Philly Cheese Steaks, various ice cream shops).  Katy participated in the ANA's "Treasure Trivia" and the "World Mint Passport" programs along with spending time in the "Kids Zone" and interacting with dozens of dealers and receiving a heart warming reception from just about every single dealer she approached.  The hobby in general and the ANA in particular deserve a pat on the back for the way young numismatists are welcomed and encouraged.

As you might guess, I had little opportunity to look closely at my favorite series of coins (capped bust half dimes) while at the show.  Normally, I visit every table and look at hundreds of half dimes at a large show like the ANA Summer show.  Not so this time.  In order to ensure I could leave the show with one or two coins for my collection, I spent half an hour each at the tables of Doug Bird and Tom Reynolds.  I purchased two nice Classic Head Large Cents for my collection.  Images of each are below:

This 1810 (S-282) came from Tom Reynolds (you can click on images to enlarge them):

This 1812 (S-291) came from Doug Bird:



Sunday, August 12, 2012

JR Newsletter: 12 August 2012 (101)

We have three contributions this week.  I expect we will have some reports from collectors and dealers once they get back and settled in post-ANA.

Robert Stark wrote:

The Pre-ANA yesterday afternoon, Saturday, was lightly attended-- a good opportunity to speak with dealers. No wait for lot viewing. Jim McGuigan has some nice early dollars for sale.

Unfortunately for me, I find JRCS difficult to attend. People who travel "locally" cannot reasonably be at an 8 a.m. meeting. Scheduling meetings nearer to mid-day might improve attendance.  Is a lunch meeting impractical?

 Best regards,
 Bob Stark
------

Phil Carrigan wrote:
 
Today I shared with my wife Mary Clare part of John McCloskey's article on the Davis Bust Dime Collection.  The part I read from John's neat article concerned the 63 missing dimes which Janet Davis couldn't locate.  Her approach to invite family members to do a complete search resulted in finding the coins.  The coins were found well hidden in a place no burglar would have found.
What was Mary Clare's response?  Where was the hiding place?  I am now committed to asking John for this bit of key information!
 
Phil Carrigan
 
------
 
 
 Jim Matthews wrote:

This year's ANA took place in Philadelphia. As usual the crowds were thick with collectors and dealers, all trying to find something special for their collections or inventory. Most of the dealers I talked with had a good show, for both buying and selling.

The JRCS meeting took place on Wednesday morning and Dick Graham gave the presentation based on his long awaited and just published new reference book on the Reeded Edge Half Dollars of 1836 to 1839. This series records the dramatic changes undergoing at the Mint, from the adoption of the long dreamed steam operated coining press, to the opening of the first branch mint for silver coinage (New Orleans). Further changes include Gobrecht's gradual introduction of his new Seated Liberty design, which was delayed in the half dollars until 1839. Meanwhile, the half dollar was such an important monetary coin (in fact half dollars were the backbone of most banking and economic transactions during this period) that production had to continue. Dies were prepared from hubs, with only the final digit added in by hand to record the current year. Finishing touches to the dies were also done by hand to strengthen various design elements when needed. Dick Graham's long awaited book is a welcome addition to any advanced library and now the information on particular die pairings is available to any collector, as well as their rarity ratings.

Much of my time was spent enjoying the collectors and dealers I've known for many years, and catching up on collection events, acquisitions and family news. It is such a delight to know so many fine people that gather at this annual show. I attended numerous meetings and learned of current research undergoing on various series. It is truly a fascinating time to be a collector.

For my own collection I found a few more cuds on early dimes, duplicates but always welcome. I also obtained a couple of die marriages from the David Davis collection, which will take an honored place in my slowly growing collection of these interesting coins.

Another ANA is now in the history books, and I am already looking forward to next year!
 
Jim Matthews