RWB

You'll likely find a lot in the Russian coinage field.

Preston had help in the film, but I agree that Broderick sounded more like Bo Derek than a reformed tuba player. After 1893 it was likely a Sousaphone of some sort; before, it would have been a helicon.

This is the counterfeit referred to by Kleeberg et al. However, these were not related to oil rights - those coins were the silver pieces used to pay local employees. Also the comment "it is also possible that, like many counterfeit gold coins originating from the Middle East, this specimen was struck to mask the true source of someone’s wealth or to lend credence to a gold deposit at a bank or sale to a coin dealer" is misleading. Local middle-east counterfeits like the one shown were made to take advantage of the higher dollar value of gold in this form rather than in normal sovereigns. Four sovereign discs were delivered before the 1 sovereign version, and there was plenty of time for fakes to be made and traded of good or adulterated gold before the market reverted and Saudi Arabia made their own sovereign-weight pieces.

I guess when you're the star of the show, a little exaggeration is to be expected.

One notable difference between the OP's image and those from some TPGs is that there is no drop shadow surrounding the coins. The shadow separates the coin from background, and omission allows the background detail to stick into the coin. Here's a drop shadow added to only the reverse.

Here's tighter cropping along with neutral color correction, etc.

The portrait was also made smaller and revised slightly. If anyone could locate Gobrecht's personal papers, an answer might lie there.

Cent and 3-cent and 5-cent copper-nickel blanks were supplied on contracts since about 1869.

Damage. Delamination on reverse.

The bronze cent blanks were supplied by Scovill in Waterbury, CT. I have no details on their rolling and blanking operations. (How did you cope with being the only bass - tuba - in the marching band? With 76 trombones, 110 cornets and over 1,000 clarinets seems like you must have terrific lungs!)

This is of considerable interest as an example of an engraver using an existing coin to sketch out positions for a revised design. It's kind of in between a paper sketch and design model or maybe pattern piece. https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1044269/gobrechts-1843-design-layout-model-cent-update So far no documents have been discovered relating to this, but there are a lot more to search through in the archives.

Now that the Fads, Fakes & Foibles book is out for printing estimates, work moves to the next publication. This one is about 80% complete and covers the gold discs made for Saudi Arabia, the various "gold standards," gold and silver nationalization, the US Mints during their 'starvation period' between the wars and several other subjects of diverse collector interest. Saudi Gold and other Tales from the Mint. Comments appreciated. Once this is complete, I plan to pause to assess where things are and if additional books are wanted (i.e., will collector buy) by the hobby.

Beginning in the 1870s it was the practice by sub-Treasuries to stamp light-weight gold coins with the letter "L" to facilitate removal from circulation and recoinage. Do any members have examples of this? The stamp appears to have been applied to the center obverse. Thanks!

For collectors of gold Eagles, here is a peek at part of a book on Saint-Gaudens Eagles. Content, style and format will be familiar to readers of the companion double eagle book. Publication is a year away - maybe longer.

NARA is expected to reopen soon and I will then complete digitizing documents for 1900 in Entry 229. The digital files will be available at no cost. If you are using data from 1900 for a research project, please send me an email or PM for instructions about receiving the remaining files. Roger Burdette

Wonderful article about practical use of soliton crystals. Bill Corcoran, Mengxi Tan, et al, "Ultra-dense optical data transmission over standard fibre with a single chip source." https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-16265-x

Gold $1, $3, and 3-cent discontinued Sept. 1890, so why were none of these made in 1890? The Mint Bureau and Treasury wanted to discontinue gold dollar, three dollars and 3-cents coins because they were useless in circulation and the gold coins were diverted to jewelry use. That is, the Mint was spending public money to make trinkets for rings, pendants and other decorative items. Production of these coins in 1889 was limited to proofs and small quantities to meet holiday demand. Gold dollars were rationed to banks that promised to sell them only to individual customers. Most orders for $3 pieces were rejected; no one seems to have ordered 3-cent pieces except in proof sets. Treasury sponsored legislation to discontinue these three denominations, and agreed to make none of them in 1890 until Congress could act.

From BBC: 23:28 19 May Venezuela files claim for its gold reserves Venezuela's central bank has made a legal claim to try to force the Bank of England to hand over €930m ($1bn; £820m) worth of gold it holds. Venezuela, already suffering under US and British sanctions, says it wants to use the gold's value to tackle coronavirus. Legal documents say the bank wants the transfer made "as a matter of urgency" to buy supplies like food and medicine. They say the bank has agreed to transfer the money directly to the United Nations to administer for that purpose. Britain does not recognise [sic] the government of Nicolas Maduro as legitimate (saying his rival, Juan Guaido, won presidential elections). The Bank of England acts as a gold custodian for a number of developing nations.

We’ve long been told that the Philadelphia Mint sold old, defaced coin and medal dies as scrap metal. Yet little referring directly to this business practice has been published. Below is a brief letter from Henry Disston & Sons explicitly stating their prior purchase of “old scrap dies from the Mint.” This is just one of many small treasures hiding in U.S. Mint archives and available through the foresight and generosity of the late Eric P. Newman and the Newman Numismatic Portal (NNP).

This letter, from a major U.S. Mining Industry publication, will give members a good idea of the opinion of many business people about the practical utility of double eagles in the domestic economy. This view goes back several years before Congress authorized coining gold dollars and double eagles. (Volunteer transcription.)

This 1893 letter from Philadelphia Mint Coiner William Steele provides specific insight into one cause of misaligned (one side) strikes. The press in question, made by Ferracute Company (Oberlin Smith), was used for striking Morgan dollars and double eagles. Following Mr. Steele's letter is the response from Ferracute. The letter is addressed to Mark Cobb, Chief Clerk. Mint of the United States at Philadelphia Coiner’s Office May 11, 1893 Hon. O. C. Bosbyshell, Superintendent Sir: The thread in the holes in the cast iron head of the Ferracute coining press, where the long bolts run through the arch to hold the upper die, has torn out – this permits the die holder to move about and consequently the die does not strike the center of the planchet. The thread seems to have been too short in length to hold. A new head will have to be furnished and the Ferracute Company had better send here and see what is needed. Very Respectfully William Steele, Coiner Detailed illustrations and information on Ferracute's coinage press are available in Journal of Numismatic Research (JNR), Issue #1 available from Wizard Coin Supply. This issue also includes original Janvier reducing lathe patents in French with English translation by one of my daughters.

For over a decade I've been collecting information (and data) about the 1900-O/CC silver dollars. (Those who want details of the varieties can go to VAMworld and search the date/mint listings.) As one might expect, speculation is great and data is scarce. If members have any thoughts (ignoring Breen's falsehoods), I'd like to hear them - including collector speculation. Thank You!

Transcription of the letter by George Washington to Henry DeSassure thanking him for his service as Mint Director. DeSassure wanted to return to South Carolina and start the canal project. Other letters suggest he was also fed up with criticism of the Mint. Philadelphia Sunday Morning November 1, 1795 Henry William DeSassure, Esq. Philadelphia Dear Sir, I thank you for the plan of the Santee Canal, which you have had the goodness to send me. If General Vickney has gone more into detail, than is found in the expression of your letter relative to the establishment at Fort Johnson, I should be glad to receive an extract thereof; otherwise the transcript would be unnecessary. It is to be observed, however, that the strength of our garrisons must be proportioned to the means from whence they are drawn. I cannot, in this moment of your departure, but express my regret that it was not accordant with your views to remain in the Directorship of the Mint. Permit me to add thereto, that your conduct therein, gave entire satisfaction; and to wish you a pleasant voyage, and a happy meeting with your friends in South Carolina – being with great esteem Dear Sir – Your Obedient Servant George Washington [Note Below] South Carolina, City of Charleston I do hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the original letter, now in my possession, from President George Washington to my father the late Chancellor Henry Wm. DeSassure. December 10, 1850 H.A. DeSassure

The US Mints and New York Assay Office were in almost constant need of expanded vault space. The initial concept of a national mint was to coin gold and silver for depositors and return coins immediately. If strictly followed this approach required only temporary safe storage between deposit and pick-up by the customer. But that was soon found to be an overly generous plan - the country did not have banking and currency control systems capable of absorbing and smoothly distributing the mints' output. Thus, vaults at the mints were almost never spacious enough to avoid crowding. The situation with Standard Silver Dollars (Morgan's design) piled in hallways is well known, but much the same applied to gold, particularly during World War 1 when vast quantities of yellow metal flowed into the New York Assay Office. Gold in the hallways at New York Assay Office …The work of the office is hampered for the sole reason that when large deposits are received it is impossible for use to open and weigh them in quantities larger than $5,000,000 a day, because we have no vault space in which to store the metal while it is being weighed. The result of this is that almost continuously for the last year we have had from $60,000,000 to $10,000,000 piled up in the corridors and hallways of the building, necessitating the hiring of armed guards to watch it at an additional expense to the Government while in the process of being weighed, and resulting in large interest losses to the depositors It also requires us to move by small hand-trucks approximately $15,000,000 of gold in a week, down a long wooden runway, through the public street to the Sub-Treasury… [RG104 E-235 Vol 421. Excerpt from Memorandum dated January 19, 1917 to Assistant Treasury Secretary Newton from Mint Dir. vonEngelken.]

Here's an interesting letter from Scovill Mfg Co. mentioning that delivery of coin blanks (cents and nickels) to the Philadelphia Mint was delayed. Part of the reason was that workmen in the bright dipping department had the "grip" - what we now call influenza or "flu." Scovill supplied all blanks for cents and nickels for many years. It was much cheaper for the mint to buy ready-made blanks than to make their own. The same kind of production problems occurred at Scovill as at the mints, but Scovill seemed more careful in removing defective blanks. However, than did not prevent at least one batch of cent blanks being being contaminated by CuNi blanks cut to cent size.