Happy 400th Thankgiving
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- This coin commemorates the 300th anniversary of the landing of the Mayflower. The image is of a pilgrim carrying a Bible.
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- The image is of the Mayflower, the ship that brought the pilgrims to Massachusetts.
Thanksgiving in the United States is traced back to the Pilgrims’ celebration of their first successful harvest in 1621. The three-day event was attended by 53 Pilgrims and 90 Native Americans that lasted three days. The tradition of giving thanks for successes was a tradition that the Pilgrims brought with them from England. This three-day celebration in 1621 is considered the first Thanksgiving.
Although there is no record of the menu, the meal likely consisted of food from the harvest, venison, and seafood. Legend has it that the local natives killed five deer as gifts for the celebration.
On the 400th anniversary of that event, Native Americans have been working on setting the record straight. One difference from the original story is that the local natives were not invited. The story goes that the warriors showed up when they heard gunshots coming from the European camps thinking that a war was to begin. It was not a war, but the colonists were shooting muskets to celebrate.
Uncovering historical information is similar to using ancient coins to gain a better understanding of history. If we better understand our past, we can improve the future. Let’s improve the future by being thankful and welcoming to all who call this country home.
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019!
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- 2019 Native American $1 coin — American Indians in the Space Program.
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- 2019 Apollo 11 50th Anniversary Commemorative Silver Dollar
Weekly World Numismatic News for December 30, 2018
While considering the news of the past week, the one thing that sticks out is the press release from the Professional Numismatic Guild. The release touts the strength of the high-end, rare coin market with a throwaway line that notes there may trouble for the general collector.
Prices for collector coins are driven by two principles: the spot price of silver and other metals that were used to strike the coins; the ability for the supply to meet the demand.
Primary spot price that drives the general collector coin market is silver. Silver opened on January 2, 2018, at $17.06 per troy ounce. On Friday, December 28, the price of silver was $15.29. This is a decline of $1.80 for the year or 10.55-percent decrease. This is not something that has occurred in the last month as the stock market had problems. Silver reached its highest price on January 15 when it reached $17.325. The spot price of silver dropped below $17.00 on February 5 and has been on a steady decline all year.
There has been a steady decrease in the spot prices of silver in 2018
(chart courtesy of Kitco; this is a static chart and will not update)
But the price of silver alone is not enough to drive collector coin prices down to get PNG’s attention. The problem is the other part of the equation: supply and demand.
The supply of collector coins is not changing. The coin market is relatively stagnant since the U.S. Mint is no longer making Mercury dimes, Walking Liberty half dollars, or Morgan dollars. There may be an increase in those coins coming to the market as collectors liquidate or the families of deceased collectors liquidate, but is this more than usual?
The number of people collecting may not be enough to drive the market simply because numismatics is not as popular a hobby as it once was.
PNG notes that the success of their high-end business may be coming from investors, not collectors:
While it is good that the PNG touts the work of their members in the Top 10% of the market, the general public is not buying. PNG can pat themselves on the back all they want but if they are not helping the entire industry, they are losing the opportunity to turn a general collector into one of their customers.
Further, the American Numismatic Association, which is dominated by the same dealers who are members of the PNG, seem to have a blind spot that prevents them from seeing the general collector as a viable business model to cultivate.
There are only so many times that the industry can claim successes by selling the same 1913 Liberty Head Nickel before everyone, including investors, consider this a market with stale inventory.
This is not to say that the PNG dealers are bad people or have bad intentions. This is saying that the PNG needs to look beyond the top 10-percent of the market to ensure the other 90-percent is just as healthy. Without a market balance and without market diversity, the hobby will be in trouble. Even in the equity markets, low volume low capitalized stocks can cause harm to the market.
And now the news…
December 24, 2018JEDDAH: The Kingdom’s fiscal trajectory in many ways mirrors the tribulations it endured before emerging as one of the world’s foremost trade and financial hubs. Before the Kingdom was unified by its late founder, King Abdul Aziz, the Arabian Peninsula had suffered its fair share of economic woes thanks to war and political strife within tribal factions. 
→ Read more at arabnews.com
December 25, 2018Coinages issued in Maharashtra dating back to 2600 BCE on display → Read more at thehindu.com
December 25, 2018Gold prices advanced for a second straight day on Tuesday and rose Rs 125 on higher demand from local jewellers → Read more at livemint.com
December 27, 2018In a sign of precious metals demand, sales of U.S. Mint American Eagle gold and … → Read more at reuters.com
December 27, 2018Earlier this month, my friend Hugo Salinas Price emailed an interesting story about a single gold coin that that he still holds dearly. As I was shuffling papers in some old files, I came across a slip of paper on which I had written down the price I had paid for a Mexican $50 gold peso coin: 717 Mexican pesos. → Read more at moneymaven.io
December 27, 2018Israel Antiquities Authority, JNF and Border Police stopped a band of thieves from stealing ancient coins from the Hukuk Synagogue archeological site in northern Israel on Thursday. "A quick response prevented damage to the magnificent and important treasures of the site," Nir Distelfeld, the antiquities theft inspector, said. → Read more at jpost.com
December 28, 2018Operators of the historic Coin Press No. 1 inside Carson City's Nevada State Museum began striking silver medallions Friday with a commemorative Abraham Curry design created just for the occasion. On the last Friday of each month, the Nevada State Museum runs the coin press, which now mints unique collectible medallions. → Read more at carsonnow.org
Good bye my sweet prince!
The day Boomer fell into our hearts: December 2, 2006.
Boomer was far more intelligent than he originally let on. As many puppies do, he explored his limits he began to not only understand what he could or could not do, but how to pull at his new mommy and daddy’s heartstrings.
A cross between a pug and a beagle, Boomer showed more of the personality of the beagle but had the snuggle ability of the pug. Boomer was a snuggler, always wanting to sit on the couch or crawl into bed to snuggle with us.
Like the beagle, Boomer could bark and howl with the best of them. He was our storm warning system. When the thunderstorms were off in the distance, Boomer would warn us and howl right through the storm. We nicknamed him Thunder Boomer.
When we brought home Tessa, he was tolerant of her mishegas. She was much more active than the laid back Boomer but I think they grew to like each other. Tessa was really attached to her brother.
This is our last picture of Boomer taken the morning of December 24, 2018. Good bye sweet prince!
Of all things, Boomer was a kind, sensitive, and loving dog who loved to be around us always wanted to snuggle and loved the attention. Since my wife and I could not have children, Boomer was our son.
At 5:25 am on December 25, our baby Boomer left us for his next adventure. He was a beautiful and smart boy. Always loved and always loving. Goodbye to our sweet prince.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS 2018
“10 Zuz” Silver Hanukkah Gelt — ca. 19th Century from Eastern Europe (Image courtesy of Moreshet Auctions)
FDR dime struck on a nail (stand in for Festivus Pole) (Imaget courtesy of Heritage Auctions)
Reverse of the 2009 Latvia 1 Lat coin with the Christmas Tree on the reverse (Image courtesy of Latvijas Banka via Numista)
1999 Angola 1 kwanza as a stand-in to help celebrate Kwanzaa (Image courtesy of the Currency Wiki)
On a personal note, my wife and I just left Boomer at the vet hospital. Boomer is 12 years old and celebrated his 12th anniversary with us on December 2. Since we were never able to have children, Boomer was our first four-legged child. It will be hard to imagine life without Boomer so we are hoping for the best.
Weekly World Numismatic Newsletter for December 23, 2018
Imperial Russian Government, 1917 Specimen 4% Savings bond sold at auction for $12,810 (Image courtesy of Archives International)
This past week, Archives International announced that a 1917 Imperial Russian Government 4% Savings Bond Specimen that was estimated at $400-600 sold for $12,810 with buyer’s premium. It was a record for Russian Specimen bonds.
Archives International is not the standard numismatic auction house many have come to recognize. They specialize in all types of financial paper from around the world. From 2007 to 2011 the firm handled American Bank Note Archives Auctions, Parts I through VIII, which included their entire archives of samples and other financial paper ephemera from the worldwide customer base of ABN through history.
Recognizing this accomplishment is not only good for Archives Internation but for the numismatic industry. It shows everyone that there is more to collecting numismatics than coins. It shows that you can take an interest in collecting currency, bonds, stock certificates, and other scripophily and still be a numismatist.
Somewhere in grandpa or grandma’s belonging may be a stock certificate for The Haloid Photographic Company, Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company, or Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company that may not be worth anything financially, but what a wonderful piece of history would be added to your collection!
And now the news…
December 16, 2018KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday issued Rs50 commemorative coin with regard to International Anti-Corruption Day, ARY News reported. The federal government had authorised the central bank for issuing the coin, which was made available at the exchange counters of all the field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation. → Read more at arynews.tv
December 17, 2018(ArtfixDaily.com) FORT LEE, N.J. – Archives International Auction’s “50th Milestone Auction” held on December 3rd & 4th, 2018 was highlighted by a 1917 Imperial Russian Government 4% Savings Bond Specimen estimated at $400 to $600 and hammering for $12,810 smashing all previous records for Russian Specimen bonds on December 3rd, 2018, the first day of a two day sale, held at the historic Collectors Club in New York City. → Read more at artfixdaily.com
December 17, 2018Editor's Note: Kitco News has officially launched Outlook 2019 – Rush To Safety – the definitive reference for precious metals investors for the new year. We chose this year's theme as financial markets face growing uncertainty. → Read more at kitco.com
December 18, 2018NATIONAL Police warn the public to keep an eye out for coin scam going around Europe once again. → Read more at euroweeklynews.com
December 19, 2018A Tudor coin hoard found in Shropshire which features Henry VIII and all his children is on display at Ludlow Museum. → Read more at shropshirestar.com
December 21, 2018CBK lauded over new currency that is friendly to the blind → Read more at standardmedia.co.ke
BONUS
I named three very significant companies above. If you have not guessed who they are today and have read this far:
- The Haloid Photographic Company
- Founded in Rochester, NY in 1906 as a company that manufactured photographic paper and equipment. In 1938, Chester Carlson invented a process for using an electrically charged dry powder that could be transferred to paper by pressing it on a roller. It took nearly 20 years to perfect before it became a product. The company coined the term “xerography” from two Greek words meaning “dry writing.” In 1961, the company was renamed Xerox.
- Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company
- Formed in 1911 to be the holding company for four companies: The Tabulating Machine Company, International Time Recording Company, Computing Scale Company of America, and the Bundy Manufacturing Company. The four companies made a range of products from time-keeping systems, scales, meat slicers, and punch card equipment. Thomas J. Watson Sr. was hired by CTC in 1914 after he was fired from NCR. He became company president in 1915. In 1924, Watson renamed the company the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM).
- Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
- The company was founded in 1902 in Two Harbors, Minnesota to attempt to mine corundum in Minnesota and provide manufacturing support. When the mines turned out to be a failure, the company moved to Duluth and began to manufacture sandpaper. Over the years, the company found new products to manufacture and diverged from its mining roots. The name was too cumbersome to put in packages so they used the trade name “Three-M.” Later it was shortened to 3M and in 2002, the company officially changed their name to 3M.
As Paul Harvey used to say, “Now you know the rest of the story.”
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