from a heritage email-- their cool numismatic glossery for today--great infor.

[michael]

Numismatic Glossary:

 

 

Gresham's Law: According to Walter Breen, "When two kinds of money are simultaneously in circulation, the overvalued will drive the undervalued out of circulation." It is more commonly expressed as "Bad money drives good money out of circulation," and more accurately done so with the proviso, "If the face value is the same." This principle has repeated applications in numismatics, ranging from the fact that we no longer see silver coins in circulation to the various times when US coinage would be sent overseas for melting if its bullion value exceeded its face value. Named after Sir Thomas Gresham, a 16th century British financier, who compared the fine coinage of Queen Elizabeth I to the earlier debased coinage of Henry VIII.

 

Sea Salvage: Coins that have been recovered from shipwrecks. The S.S. Brother Jonathan, S.S. Central America, and S.S. Republic are only recent examples of shipwrecks that have been salvaged, but money has been known to go down with the ship ever since it was first brought on board. Saltwater does not tend to treat silver and copper coinage well; however, the gold coins and bars from some of these recently discovered shipwrecks can be professionally conserved and brought up to very high standards. Most known 1857-S Double Eagles, for example, are from the S.S. Central America, and this date is common in MS63 to MS65 grades.