This is the MCCC ARCHIVE – for the CURRENT Montgomery County Coin Club see https://montgomerycoinclub.org
May 2001 Bulletin - Early Web Edition
MCCC: A Collector's Club for the New Millennium
Next Meeting: Tuesday, 8 May 2001
The Montgomery County Coin Club will meet at 7 p.m. on the
second Tuesday of the month,
8 May 2001, at the Silver Spring Senior Citizens Center
(1000 Forest Glen Road, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA).
The featured event was not yet determined as of press
time for this Bulletin.
The April 2001 MCCC meeting had no guest speaker; the key
attraction was a rich array of Display Case items placed there
by MCCC members.
In this online Bulletin, therefore,
the Featured Article is a
Numismatic Showcase that describes the material
on exhibit.
MCCC President Jack Schadegg called the Club
to order at 7:21pm on the warm, humid spring evening of 10 April 2001,
during a time of high solar activity, sunspots, and flares.
About 38 MCCC members were present,
including three Young Numismatists (YNs).
Two first-time visitors were welcomed with a round of applause:
John Erzen and his son Matt Erzen.
(Next month, please invite your friends and relatives, especially
YNs, to come with you to the MCCC meeting.)
News & Announcements
- President Jack Schadegg reminded MCCC members
that the Club will have numismatic information table at the Glen
Burnie Mall on Saturday 21 April, as part of National Coin Week
celebrations. The table will feature volunteer exhibits, and anyone
who can come to help answer questions from passers-by is welcome.
Simcha Kuritzky noted that there
will be five coin-related tables set up, from the Maryland State
Numismatic Association (MSNA), the Bowie Coin Club, and other
Maryland clubs. The event is scheduled to run from 10am until 4pm.
- Librarian Kermit Smyth invited members to
check out books from the Library, offered mylar hard plastic flips for
safe storage of coins, warned of the risks of PVC damage, and
asked for suggestions of new books to purchase. The MCCC Library
fund is strong and can afford even some relatively expensive items.
- Treasurer Simcha Kuritzky announced that Club
finances are solid. He reported that he had bought $500 worth of
Gold Raffle prizes at an excellent discount from a dealer going out
of the business. These gold coins include some beautiful Chinese
1/20th ounce proofs, a limited-edition design from about five years
ago showing unicorn motifs and cataloging for sale at ~$80.
(Simcha's mention of China was met with a round of boos and hisses
from the audience; American military personnel were at that time
still being held by the Chinese on Hainan Island after a
US aircraft was damaged by a collision with a Chinese plane.)
Simcha reminded everyone
of the MSNA Convention and "Mid-Atlantic Rarities" Show to be held
14-17 June 2001 in Baltimore; volunteers are still needed for the
MCCC table there. Helpers who work at least four hours get free
parking and possibly a 1 ounce American Eagle coin. The MSNA show
conflicts with a major West Coast coin show, unfortunately, and
in Simcha's judgment that may reduce the number of dealers present.
Simcha also reported that the 2003 ANA Convention will be in Baltimore,
that the ANA Convention this August will be in Atlanta (where he will
be both exhibiting and judging), and that he has forms available for
any MCCC members who wish to help Boy Scouts earn a Numismatic Merit
Badge --- an easy and fun way to get more young people involved in
our hobby.
- Ed Russell has only one (1) Red Book left for
sale at the special MCCC Member's Price of $8. This is the 2001
hardback edition which lists for $14. Contact Ed if you wish to snap
up this bargain.
- Ken Swab announced that the 9 April 2001
Washington Post newspaper carried the obituary of
Frank Annunzio, member of the US House of Representatives and
Chair of the Subcommittee on Coinage for many years. Ken noted
that Rep. Annunzio was responsible for bringing back the US
commemorative coinage program in 1982; that program had been
suspended in 1954 after many years of abuse.
MCCC members are encouraged to submit brief announcements for
inclusion in the Bulletin --- for-sale notices, numismatic
wish-lists, summaries of recent coin events, or anything else
appropriate to this publication. Please pass your submissions
to a Club Officer or send them directly to C(l)ub Reporter
Mark Zimmermann via
z (at) his.com.
Note that you must be a member in good standing to take advantage
of this free service --- so pay your dues!
Drawings & Prizes
Willy Massey announced the free door prizes, all silver
coins this month:
- a 1944 Netherlands 25 cent piece (probably minted in the Dutch
East Indies, Simcha Kurtizky suggested, since the Netherlands itself
was occupied by the Nazis during that WWII year);
- a 1949 US Roosevelt dime; and
- a 1966 Swedish 1 Kroner.
There were also free MSNA elongated cents for all who wanted them.
April door prize winners were Rob Hickox, Wayne Mitchell,
and Don McKee.
The Gold Raffle Prize was a Canadian 0.1 oz Maple Leaf. It was
captured by Ed Russell.
The Bison Chip drawing named A. C. Hansman ---
his first "leg" of three needed to take that prize, a nice
1 ounce silver round.
Remember, you must be a member, and you must be present when your
name is called, in order to win a leg toward the Bison Chip.
Congratulations to all the prize winners!
Featured Attraction:
Numismatic Showcase
This month the MCCC display case held a wide variety of
items, each with a fascinating context as told by its exhibitor:
- In honor of the centenary of Queen Victoria's death,
Jeff Crockett displayed four British coins,
each with a different portrait of the Queen, plus a medal
issued to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee in 1897. Victoria
was born in 1819 and began her reign in 1837; she died in January 1901.
- Mark Zimmermann exhibited an article
from the Austin American-Statesman newspaper dated
25 March 2001. The article depicted potential designs for the Texas
commemorative state quarter as submitted by local readers. Some
were serious, featuring a "Lone Star" motif, bluebonnets, etc.
Other designs were definitely tongue-in-cheek and revolved around such
themes as guns, prisons, the large size of the state, and the
letter "W". (One proposal
depicted the south end of a longhorn steer facing north.) The newspaper
article was sent to Mark by his Mother, Minnie Merle Zimmermann, who
resides in Austin.
- Herb Hall showed a National Hockey League (NHL)
All Star limited edition hockey puck for 2001, accompanied by six
silver medallions for the All Star players, plus a silver ingot.
- Rob Hickox told of his visit to Sweden a few
years ago, where he saw coins being struck by hand in the style of
strikings several centuries earlier. Rob displayed a copper replica
of a 1542 Swedish dollar. Planchets for these pieces were heated in
a wood oven to soften them.
- Simcha Kuritzky showed two medals issued by
the British government at the end of the First World War. These were
the equivalent of a Purple Heart and carried the name of a soldier
with the legend, "He died for freedom and honor." They were given
to next of kin. The medals are large, about 5 inches in diameter,
and show a lion (England) attacking an eagle (Germany),
plus two other lions and porpoises along with the traditional
Britannia design. They are uniface and appear to be made of bronze.
- Given recent events in the Far East, Jerry Grzenda
was inspired to display coins, medals, and other objects with an
Asian/Pacific theme. He showed items from the two Koreas:
- old Imperial cast coins from before ~1910, including some scarce
silver ones
- Korean milled coins, issued ca. 1900, with a dragon motif
- Republic of Korea coins, such as a 1959 100 wan with the
head of Sygman Ree on the obverse
- a few Democratic People's Republic of Korea coins, including
a commemorative
- several 1988 Seoul Olympics commemoratives: 5000 and 10,000 wan
pieces with 1/2 oz. or 1 oz. of silver, and 20,000 and 50,000 wan
gold 1/2 oz. and 1 oz. pieces
- two lucite-embedded replicas: a model of a Korean "Turtle Ship",
the first ironclad vessel to sail (1591), and a miniature replica of an
ornate fifth-century Korean crown
- a silver medal awarded at the Seoul Olympic games for the
women's bantam weight class Tai Kwon Do competition
Jerry also discussed major elements of Korean history including the
Japanese annexation, the Korean independence movement, the provisional
government in exile, the partitioning of the country after WWII, and
the Korean War.
Bravo to all exhibitors!
Activities, Auction & Aftermath
Refreshments during March included a special kosher for Passover
table. The MCCC Auction was a big one, with 57 lots for sale
and spirited bidding on most of them. Don McKee and
Ken Swab were the affable auctioneers.
The meeting adjourned at 9:11pm.
MCCC Web Comments and Feedback
Please send bug reports and suggestions for improvement to
Mark Zimmermann via
z (at) his.com.
The MCCC Bulletin is copyright © 2001 by the Directors of the
Montgomery
County Coin Club --- who thank the American Numismatic Association (and especially Ms. Susie Nulty)
for help in sharing the MCCC Bulletin with numismatists everywhere.