This is the MCCC ARCHIVE – for the CURRENT Montgomery County Coin Club see https://montgomerycoinclub.org
November 2002 Bulletin - Early Web Edition
MC3 = Numismatics!
Next Meeting: Tuesday, November 12, 2002
The Montgomery County Coin Club will meet on the second
Tuesday of the month, 12 November 2002, at the Silver Spring Senior Citizens Center
(1000 Forest Glen Road, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA).
Doors open at 7:00pm, and the meeting begins with the Pledge of Allegiance
at approximately 7:20pm. The featured speaker this month will be
Henry Adler.
On 8 October 2002 the MCCC was called to order
at 7:21pm. This month approximately
40 people were present, including at least 3 YNs (Young Numismatists).
Three new visitors to the MCCC announced
themselves:
- Paul Wright, a collector of coins for more than half a
century, now happily retired and turning again to his hobby;
- Mike Ruggiero, relatively new to numismatics; and
- John Robert, age 7, son of Lt. Col. Leon Robert and a
Lincoln cent collector
Welcome!
Announcements
Ken Swab told of the passage of H.R. 4005 by the
US House of Representatives on Monday 7 October. This bill would
extend the popular commemorative quarter program and would
authorize the issuance in 2009 of coins honoring the
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the
US Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands. The US Senate
has yet to take action on the bill, and so its fate remains
uncertain. "Stay tuned!" was Ken's advice.
Librarian Wayne Mitchell reminded MCCC members to contact him
if they wish to check out books from the Club collection. He also
mentioned the Bowie Coin Club's special 10 October meeting featuring
guest speaker Clifford Mishler. (His colleague Chester Krause
has reportedly been ill and may not be able to attend.)
Vice President Ed Russell still has a few copies of the 2002
Red Book on sale for $7 (pb) and $8.50 (hb).
A portion of the proceeds flows into the MCCC treasury.
Treasurer Simcha Kuritzky reviewed the Club's financial status. Simcha then reminded members of the Baltimore coin show to be held on
8-10 November, and the ANA Convention which will be in Baltimore in
2003. Simcha also awarded a 2002 US silver eagle to Bert Marks
for his volunteer work at the MSNA (Maryland State Numismatic
Association) convention a few months ago.
Exhibits
The September MCCC display case was rich in specimens. Among the
MCCC members who made presentations:
- John Huffman displayed a 1933 (chocolate!) "$20 gold piece"
which he plans to donate to the MCCC Charity Auction (to be held
in December; President Jack Schadegg will keep it refrigerated until then).
John also exhibited a copy of the Certificate of Authenticity which
the US Mint issued in connection with the recent sale of an actual
1933 double eagle. He got the autograph of the Director of the
Mint on this certificate, making it particularly unusual. In addition,
John displayed an ancient Greek gold coin which he acquired recently,
a Stater of Croesus, described as the first true gold coin and issued
ca. 550 BCE. John finished his presentation by discussing a new
collecting interest of his: materials connected with Robert Lewis
Stevenson's classic book Treasure Island. John displayed a
Spanish gold doubloon, a silver "piece of eight" dollar, and a
1550's vintage silver bar recovered from a shipwreck.
- Willy Massey exhibited the "spoon ring" which he had begun
working on a couple of months ago. It turned out quite nicely; several
of the inscriptions on the half dollar which
he began with are still visible
inside the ring. Willy estimated that it took a total of approximately
10 hours of work to fabricate the ring by tapping on the edge of the
silver half with a spoon. See the September
2002 MCCC Bulletin for additional details.
- Ken Huff displayed an 1849 Hungarian Fund Note, redeemable
one year after Hungarian independence, associated with Hungarian
patriot Lajos Kossuth; unfortunately, the series of notes were never
paid. Ken also showed an article from Numismatic News, 5 March
1996, titled "Hungarian Fund Notes Chronicle Struggle" which had
interested him in this topic. He had not noted the author --- but
the article turned out to have been written by MCCC past President
Ken Swab, who was present at the meeting. Small world!
- Wayne Mitchell reminded MCCC members that they can still
find interesting coins, particularly half dollars, in bank rolls; his
neighbor recently discovered a silver 1976-S, for example. Wayne also
showed a New Hampshire state commemorative quarter and a Virginia
specimen both of which have only a "ghost" of a mint mark, an interesting
type of error coin.
- Robert Hickox exhibited several Civil War vintage notes:
an 1862 $1 "greenback", a February 1864 $20 Confederate States bill,
and an April 1864 $20 Georgia state note. He also showed a 1923 large
silver certificate.
- Ed Russell displayed a Presidential Scholar Medal, undated
and probably never issued to an individual (it has no engraved name)
from the Richard M. Nixon administration. The reverse side is the same
as on a Presidential inaugural medal.
- Jack Schadegg presented two recent discoveries which he made
with a metal detector in northwestern DC: an 1811 half cent, probably
lost in the 1820s, and a Tiffany & Co. bean pendant. Both were in
surprisingly good condition for having been in the ground for so long.
- Simcha Kuritzky discussed "Magical Medals" based on
published mystical works. He displayed pieces which included magic
square designs, an engraved British penny (of the 1810-1860 era)
with a Sun symbol, and a Jupiter talisman, a copy of a pocket piece that
Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon Church (aka Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter Day Saints), was reputed to carry. Simcha described several
of the books which were sources of the magical designs and showed
additional tokens with varied names of God, pentacles, and other
symbology. Simcha also displayed pewter talismans associated
with Tarot card imagery.
- Gerry Grzenda showed gold strikings of British crowns,
including a 2 pound 1986 piece honoring the Commonwealth Games and
a 2 pound 1995 for the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II.
Gerry also exhibited a 50 pence piece of 1998 for the British
entry into the Common Market and a 1994 coin commemorating the
50th anniversary of the Normandy Invasion.
- Bruce Longyear displayed a brockage wheat cent,
created in the mint when a previously-struck coin remained lodged in the
press and a new planchet was struck through (and with) it. Bruce
also exhibited some lovely early gold type coins, including an
1814/13 $5 gold piece (in EF condition or better), an 1810 "small
date large 5" half eagle, and an 1801 $10 in EF condition.
Door Prizes & Gold Raffle
The raffle and door prizes this month were distributed by Willy Massey.
The door prizes for October included:
- a 1903 Indian head cent
- a 1906 "V" nickel
- a 1943 steel cent
- an engraved MANA 1992 souvenir sheet
The gold raffle prize this month was a 1996 Chinese 5 yuan "Unicorn"
containing 1/20th ounce of the precious medal.
Door prize winners for July were Norman Brand,
Ken Huff, Herb Hall, Robert Hickox,
and YN Rachel Schadegg.
The Gold Raffle was won by Jack Schadegg.
Herb Hall's name was drawn for the Bison Chip;
this is his second "leg" toward the three needed to win.
Remember, you must be present when your name is called in
order to win a Bison Chip.
Special Announcements
The MCCC October meeting had no guest speaker, but Vice President
Ed Russell did make two important special announcements:
- The MCCC Charity Auction will be held at our December 2002
gathering. Please bring in your donations at the November
meeting!
All proceeds from the Charity Auction go to support the Silver Spring
and Wheaton Boys and Girls Clubs.
- Officers are needed to serve the MCCC in 2003. Please contact
Ed as soon as possible to volunteer! The duties of an MCCC
officer are not onerous, and the more people who help, the easier
and better it is for everyone in the club. This is a great way to
keep the Montgomery County Coin Club a healthy, productive
organization. Newer members are especially encouraged to join in
and serve.
Further Notes
The September 2002 MCCC meeting adjourned at 9:13pm.
The auctioneer this month was Ken Swab.
Comments and Feedback
MCCC reporter/webmaster Mark Zimmermann has rehosted the MCCC online archives at
http://www.his.com/~z/MCCC/ where
they are available for reference.
Please send bug reports and suggestions for improvement to
"z (at) his.com" (see also http://zhurnal.net/).
The MCCC Bulletin is copyright © 2002 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.
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