The Flipside with Robert R. Van Ryzin

eaf mute, who reputedly gold-plated thousands of the first Liberty Head nickels and passed them as gold $5s, probably didn't exist. But Variety 1 1883 Liberty Head nickels were definitely plated by shysters and tendered as gold $5s. There are numerous contemporary newspaper reports of attempts to pass the coins as gold $5s. Today collectors call these coins Racketeer nickels.

A quick search of the New York Times archives turned up an 1883 story datelined from Baltimore of a jeweler who had a tray of gold-plated Liberty Head five-cent pieces in his store window that he was selling at 35 cents each. The jeweler claim

ed the coins were being sold as charms to wear on watch chains.

What made the plating of the coins attractive to fast-buck artists was that the first 1883 pieces carried only a Roman numeral "V" for the denomination. Once it became evident that this was leading to the plating and passing of the coins at 100 times their real face value, the Mint redesigned the coin by placing the word "CENTS" below the Roman numeral for five. These Variety 2 1883 coins actually bring stronger prices than the Variety 1 1883 coins.

My piece on Tatum, part of a segment called "Collecting Type and Beyond," can be listened to at www.coinchatradio.com. The show will air beginning at 11 a.m. Central on Thursday, May 15th. It repeats on the main player at the top of each hour.

That show and previous installments of Coin Chat Radio's weekly "Collecting Money" show can also be accessed under the Archives tab at the site to play at your convenience or to download.

Friday, May 09, 2008 3:05:35 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

A pressing concern
Posted by bob

I ran into this interesting little tidbit that appeared originally in the Oct. 16, 1873 issue of the Philadelphia North American, while doing some research. Apparently the introduction of the new Trade dollar, which had been authorized earlier that year by the Coinage Act of 1873, warranted the building of a new, more powerful press for use at the San Francisco Mint:

We were shown yesterday at the works of Messrs. Morgan & Orr, No. 1219, Callowhill Street, the new coining press, just built by them for the purpose of coining at the San Francisco Mint all denominations of silver and gold coiange, but especially the new silver trade dollar ordered by the Department of the Mint.

This new machine weighs eighteen thousand pounds, and is made entirely of the best steel, iron, and brass produced in Philadelphia. The steel plate above the coinage stamp is home-made, and equal, if not superior, to the finest English, a fact that speaks well for our Philadelphia steel industry. The beautiful heavy brass beam was cast seven times over to secure its accuracy and exactness, as well as finish and strength. The large fly-wheel is cast hollow, and loaded with base metal so as to give it additional weight to counterbalance the heavy brass beam. This fly-wheel was cast in sections and securely united. In the front of the machine is a finely made brass cylinder to hold the unstamped coin, which as the wheel revolves, slip down one at a time upon the sliding bed-plate of iron with apertures made to receive a single coin, then drawn into the machine, the stamp descends, and the new trade dollar is carried out complete by an interior inclined plane. The heavy brass beam referred to of course controls the stamp. Perfect simplicity characterizes the machine, which is two and a half times beyond the capacity of any other coining machine that the firm ever made for the government. It is capable of striking eight twenty-dollar gold pieces, equal to $1,600, per minute, or twenty silver trade dollars in a minute.

Thursday, May 01, 2008 10:12:29 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)

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Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Atrocious designs?
Posted by bob

You can't please everybody, and if you're a coin designer you're sure to attract your share of critics. Today, James Earle Fraser's Buffalo nickel is considered a classic, but at the time of its release, in 1913, not everyone was on the Fraser bandwagon.

The New York Times, for instance, complained its March 2, 1913, issue that

"The new 'nickel' is a striking example of what a coin intended for wide circulation as small change should not be."

The paper noted that the coins, which had been released the day before by the sub-treasury, were bringing 10 to 15 cents on the street, "but there will be no great eagerness to get them hereafter in preference to the old five-cent coins."

In fact, the New York Times preferred the Liberty Head nickel. With its large "V" and the word "Cents," it served its purpose well, the newspaper reported, as those unfamiliar with the coin could easily tell its denomination. Whereas, on the new nickel, the lettering was so small that "it can only be deciphered by strong eyes in a bright light."

More amazingly, perhaps, was the paper's statement that until this new nickel arrived, the latest "atrocities" from the U.S. Mint were the new gold $5s, $10s and $20s, or the designs of Bela Lyon Pratt (gold $2.50 and $5) and Augustus Saint-Gaudens (gold $10 and $20), now highly thought of by collectors. "These are bad coins in design and execution," the New York Times related.

In its March 5th issue, the newspaper ran a letter from H.P. Nitsua of Connecticut, who also disliked the new nickel. "Numismatology can hardly be congratulated on the new recruit to its ranks," he proclaimed.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008 8:56:42 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)

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Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Artists needed—please report for duty
Posted by bob

Recently, U.S. Mint Director Ed Moy said, “We want to spur the highest level of artistic excellence in American coin design.” He made the statement along with the announcement of the Mint’s plans to recreate the 1907 Saint-Gaudens ultra high relief gold $20. It will be quite the chal

lenge and one that promises to produce a popular collectible.

It was the dream of President Theodore Roosevelt, along with the help of noted sculptors such as Augustus Saint-Gaudens, James Earle Fraser, Adolph Weinman, Hermon MacNeil and others, to dramatically improve the look of U.S. coins.

Roosevelt went so far as to envision a U.S. coin with the same high relief as found on some ancient coins, thus leading to the experiments with the height of the relief on the Saint-Gaudens gold $20 issued in 1907. It was argued, however, that such a relief, which took some press time to achieve, wasn’t suited to high-speed coinage. So, the plan was shelved, and the gold $20 took a much lower relief.

It was a shame, and, as I said, the new effort should prove a noble one—at least from the technical side. Plus, if I can afford one, I’d like to have one in my collection. I’ve written about Sa

int-Gaudens and his design in the past, and it is one of my favorites.

However, I have one little concern. If we’re really striving for artistic excellence in U.S. coinage design, why do we need to return to the past (and in this case a century ago) to spur this on? Don’t we have artists who could produce a representation of Liberty that could compete with Saint-Gaudens, Weinman, or MacNeil?

Frankly, it looks to me like we’re running out of designs to bring back. First we recreated the Saint-Gaudens gold $20 obverse in low relief on the gold American Eagle in 1986. That same year we added a silver American Eagle with Weinman’s obverse from the Walking Liberty. In 2001, we brought back Fraser’s design from the Buffalo nickel. It is now also available on a gold $50.

About all we’ve got left to recreate from circulating coins from that period of artistic excellence is MacNeil’s Standing Liberty, Weinman’s Mercury dime, Pratt’s gold $2.50s and $5s, and Saint-Gaudens’ gold $10. Are they next?

Again, where are the artists? I like all of the prior mentioned designs and applaud Moy’s efforts to improve U.S. coin design. I’m just wishing for more originality and wondering where our generation of artists of the same ilk as Saint-Gaudens, MacNeil, Weinman and Fraser are hiding out.

We need you! Please report for duty.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008 2:20:38 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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Friday, March 14, 2008

It's show time
Posted by bob

Coin Chat Radio goes live today at 11 a.m. Central at coinchatradio.com

Give a listen.

I think we have some interesting features in our first show. Future broadcasts will at 11 a.m. Central on Thursdays.

Friday, March 14, 2008 1:11:50 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Rats evicted from Old SF Mint
Posted by bob

Well, the rats have been cleaned out of the Old San Francisco Mint. No, these weren't disreputable people. Rather, they were real rats, according to a report datelined Feb. 18 from the San Francisco Chronicle by Anastasia Ustinova.

Ustinova quotes Erik Christoffersen, executive director of the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society, as noting that since the beginning of the Chinese Lunar Calendar's Year of the Rat, there have been no more rats spotted in the historic building at Fifth and Mission streets.

The Old Mint, famous for having survived the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, has now apparently withstood an invasion of furry four-footed creatures that have been entering the building through small holes.

The Chronicle notes that although the Old Mint has had rat problems for a number of years, more have moved in over the past year "after employees stopped using rat poison during some interior demolition work and a nearby vacant building was rehabilitated." Therefore, a team of professional exterminators was brought in to rid the facility of the unwanted guests.

Renovation of the Old Mint, which was built in 1874, is currently underway. Plans call for the structure to house a cultural museum, details of which are highlighted at www.themintproject.org.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008 8:02:23 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Back from the exhibit
Posted by bob

I'm back from my trip to Minneapolis and the opening of the Anders Zorn (see prior posting for details) at the Swedish American Institute.

It was fun, and I was able to snap shots that will come in handy in the future. Among Zorn's subjects, which ranged from common folk to U.S. presidents, was Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

Saint-Gaudens designed the gold $10s and $20s that circulated in the United States in the early part of the 20th century. Shown here is detail from one of Zorn's etchings of Saint-Gaudens that is currently on exhibit.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008 10:08:39 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Zorn etching a key
Posted by bob

February should prove to be a busy and fun month for me. On Feb. 5 I head to Minneapolis for the opening of an art exhibit titled "From Peasants to Presidents: Sweden's Greatest Etcher" and later that month my wife and I have tickets to see Blues legend B.B. King in concert at the Fox Valley Performing Arts Center in Appleton, Wis. Then it's off to the Wisconsin Coin Expos show in Oshkosh, which is always fun and enjoys a good attendance.

The art exhibit for which I am attending a reception for is of the Hagans' family collection of etchings by Swedish artist Anders Zorn. During his prolific career, Zorn sket

ched many citizens, including Augustus Saint-Gaudens, designer of the early 20th-century U.S. gold $10s and $20s so popular with collectors today.

The interesting thing about Zorn's etching, which shows Saint-Gaudens with a nude in the background, is the identity of the model. She was Hettie Anderson, a cousin of William Hagans.

William Hagans has found that Hettie Anderson was posing the day of the Zorn etching for Saint-Gaudens's "Victory" figure at the head of the Sherman Monument in New York.

Over the years, few have doubted that "Victory" was the inspiration for figure on the gold $20. It's just that several different models were named as likely to be the real model employed by Saint-Gaudens for the coin. Among these

were an Irish lass named Mary Cunningham and Saint-Gaudens' mistress, Davida Clark.

Even Saint-Gaudens's son, Homer, chimed in that the model could have been a "woman supposed to have negro blood in her veins." That was Hettie Anderson, who was African-American. Hagans has written extensively on the topic, including his feature, titled "Saint-Gaudens, Zorn, and the Goddesslike Miss Anderson," which appeared in the Summer 2002 edition of American Art, the journal of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and is reproduced at Hagans' Web site about Zorn (linked below).

Zorn did etchings or oil paintings of other important Americans, including President Grover Cleveland and Mrs. Grover Cleveland, President William Howard Taft, President Theodore Roosvelt, Andrew Carnegie, and Mrs. Potter Palmer of Chicago (the force behind the 1893 Isabella commemorative quarter).

You can learn more about Zorn and his subjects at the Hagans' Web site on the topic: www.zorninamerica.com. They also have a section on Zorn and his dealings with Saint-Gaudens. And on the the opening page, you can see the etching of Saint-Gaudens with Hettie Anderson in the background.

Info on the exhibit, which runs from Feb. 6-June 1 at the Amercan Swedish Institute, can be found at: www.americanswedishinst.org/exhibits.htm

Tuesday, January 29, 2008 2:09:17 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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Thursday, December 27, 2007

I'll take it in Trades
Posted by bob

Much of my collecting lately focuses on drafts, checks, receipts, etc., related to the Comstock Lode, in Virginia City, Nev., and the Bank of California.

Although I have acquired items of value pertaining to famous personages active on the Comstock during its heyday, my favorites in the collection are some that didn't cost much but have interesting backgrounds.

This draft from the Agency of the Bank of California at Gold Hill (on the Comstock Lode) is one such item. It only cost me $11, and you can see that a portion of the draft is missing. So it is certainly not a high-grade specimen.

However, what's unusual about this draft is what it was payable in. Many of these drafts indicated they were payable in gold. This one, however, goes out of its way to designate payment in U.S. Trade dollars. And it does so in four different places.

One appears in parenthesis, next to "One Hundred & Fifty." Another is at the lower left, after the numeric designation of $150. And it can be found twice in red ink, vertically across the draft, as "Payable in Trade dollars."

What further interested me is that the draft is dated June 17, 1876. A little more than one month later, the Trade dollar's legal-tender status was revoked by Congress.

Originally intended for u

se in the Far East, shortly after issue, the coins became a nuisance in the United States, where they were legal tender only in small amounts. Silver had by then begun to fall in value, and by 1876 the silver in the Trade dollar wasn't worth a dollar, even though the coin was still being paid out at full value—at a loss to most who took it.

That same year (according John M. Willem Jr.'s The United States Trade Dollar: America's Only Unwanted, Unhonored Coin), the Aug. 3 issue of the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise reported that there had been a meeting of area saloon owners, at the Delta Saloon in Virginia City, to discuss the fate of the Trade dollar. Only 24 of the businesses (or a scant one-seventh of those in this hard-drinking town) were represented.

Some barkeeps called for total refusal of the Trade dollar in payment for liquor. Others suggested taking the coins at 90 cents or as low as 87-1/2 cents.

Considering the obvious problems with Trade dollars (and their shameful lack of acceptance even for basic necessities such as fine two-bit liquor), it's probably a wonder you could have found anyone who wanted payment in Trades rather than gold.

Thursday, December 27, 2007 9:27:09 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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Friday, December 14, 2007

Mind your Ps, Ds, and Ss
Posted by bob

With silver above $14 an ounce, it is a good time to check any old coins you may have lying about. Most people know that even common-date dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 and prior have most of their value tied to their bullion content.

I recently had the opportunity to go through a hoard of coins. Unfortunately, there were no rarities, but there was considerable value just from the bullion. Included were silver dimes, quarters, half dollars, 10 or 11 silver dollars, and one common-date gold $5.

Up until 1964, dimes, quarters and half dollars were being minted in 90 percent silver. What's lesser known by many in the general public, and the reason some silver can still be found, is that although 1964 was the last year for 90 percent silver halves, they continued to be coined in 40 percent silver through 1970 and still show up in searches of rolls at banks.

Another coin to watch for is the silver war nickel. These were issued during Wor

ld War II to save on copper for the war effort. Thus, the normal 75 percent copper/25 percent nickel composition of all nickels before and since was changed to one that featured 56 percent copper/35 percent silver/a

nd 9 percent manganese.

Fortunately these are easy to identify. I should say that they were easy for most to identify, with the exception being one ill-fated counterfeiter—Francis Leroy Henning. In the 1950s, Henning decided to produce counterfeit Jefferson nickels. Noted for being overweight, of poor quality and color, and sporting a defect in the "R" of "PLURIBUS," some of Henning's nickels had a more glaring error. He failed to observe that genuine wartime silver nickels (1942-1945) displayed a large mintmark above the dome of Monticello on the coin's reverse (see the color photo).

It was the first time the Mint had used a mintmark to identify coins struck at Philadelphia. Up until that point, Jeffersons from Philadelphia had no mintmark, while those from Denver and San Francisco showed a small D or S mintmark on the coin's right side, next to Monticello.

Hennings, who turned to producing other non-silver dates as well, before being arrested in 1955, was eventually sentenced to a few years in jail and fined $5,000.

The black and white photo here is of a Henning's counterfeit.

Friday, December 14, 2007 4:42:35 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)

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