The term Dog Days goes back to ancient Roman times when calendars were measured by the stars. While trying to measure time, the hottest part of the summer would coincide with the brightest star, Sirius, being dominant in the sky. Sirius is part of the constellation Canis Major (big dog).
During the period from about 20 days prior to the height of Sirius to 20 days following, Canis Major would only appear with the sunrise and sunset. Because ancient Romans thought Sirius contributed to the heat and humidity, this period would be called the Dog Days.
Today’s society has attached many meanings to the Dog Days of Summer. In baseball, it is the jockeying for position to get ready for the pennant races. Football begins training camps, politicians warm up to run for office (sometimes a year early), and the temperatures are rising with the east getting too wet and the west not getting wet enough.
These contrasts illustrate a congress that sometimes looks like they are really trying to do something and then really trying to put the “fun” in dysfunctional!
In July, it looks like congress really tried to do some work. Here are the coin-related legislative actions from our from our representatives on Capitol Hill:
It’s the law!
H.R. 893: Boys Town Centennial Commemorative Coin Act
I think I covered all of the options. If I have not or you want to add more commentary, even (especially) if you disagree with me, then leave a comment. Remember, the only comments I reject are for bad language and spam. Keep it clean and it will appear as soon as I can get to them.
Are you going to buy the new 2015 American Liberty High Relief Gold Coin?
Yes, I cannot wait! (50%, 36 Votes)
No, because the gold coin is too expensive (25%, 18 Votes)
Yes, but I also do not like the design (11%, 8 Votes)
No, because I am not interested (7%, 5 Votes)
No, because I think the coin is ugly (7%, 5 Votes)
What is going on at the U.S. Mint? For an organization whose actions are micromanaged by law seems to be finding a way to get around those rules to make some real questionable decisions.
2015-S Saratoga National Historical Park Quarter
First, the U.S. Mint begins production of uncirculated San Francisco struck America the Beautiful Quarters in 2012 leaving the coins of the first two years of the program out. Collectors of the entire set will have two uncirculated options for 2010 and 2011 but a partial set for the rest of the program. Why start something like this in the middle of the program?
Just before the release of the S-mint quarters, the U.S. Mint changed its branding and changed the design of the Presidential $1 Coin Cover. Those of us who collect the coin covers now have two different formatted designs that shows when you show your 2010 Abraham Lincoln cover followed by the 2011 Andrew Johnson cover. And the change puts a thick black bar across the bottom forcing the portrait to be reduced making it an ugly design.
2010 Lincoln First Day Cover (before branding)
2011 Andrew Johnson First Day Cover (after branding)
Although I love the reverse proof coins and do not think including them in special sets, such as the 2015 Reverse Proof Roosevelt Dime as part of the 2015 March of Dimes Special Silver Set, but there are persistent rumors of a Presidential dollar reverse proof set. Why add a reverse proof set in the middle of a series? What is the U.S. Mint thinking? Adding a reverse proof to an existing series is as wrong as the S-mint national parks quarters.
2015 American Liberty High Relief Gold Coin
Allegedly, there is “excitement” being made over the new 24-karat $100 Liberty gold coin. First, there was a lot of industry discussion on the $100 face value, which is irrelevant to the issues. What difference does the denomination make on a non-circulating coin? But am I the only one who thinks the image of Liberty looks like an anorexic weakling?
Look at some of the past images of Liberty and they have a stronger look. Two of the most famous by Augustus Saint-Gaudens and Adolph A. Weinman has a striding Liberty that shows character. George Morgan’s Liberty had a regal look and Anthony de Francisi’s Liberty on the Peace dollar is just a marvel of beauty. This image is so uninspiring that I would buy the coin only because it is the first year of issue and has some investment potential. Otherwise, if I were to invest in 24-karat gold coins I would continue to buy the American Gold Buffalo.
2015 American Liberty High Relief Gold Coin Reverse
The appealing feature of the coin is the eagle on the reverse. While there have been flying eagles on Christian Gobrecht dollar, James B. Longacre’s Flying Eagle cent, and Saint-Gaudens’ $20 gold coin, the new design brings forward the strength of the eagle gripping an olive branch to symbolize peace. Although the eagle depicted on Official Seal of the United States includes arrows in one of the eagle’s claws, modern sensibilities will prevent the symbolism that the arrows would depict.
I know that the designs were approved by the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts. But, as usual, their motivations and sense of design is really in question. Maybe it is time we drop one of these committees and streamline the process.
Expanding collecting options from the U.S. Mint is good for the hobby. However, adding options to existing series and ugly coins should be discouraged.
Saratoga Park quater image courtesy of USACoinBook.com All other images courtesy of the U.S. Mint.
With the court ruling against Joan Langbord and forcing her to surrender the ten 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle gold coins she claims to have found, there remains only one legally to own 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle coin.
Currently, there is only one example of this coin that is legal to own. Dubbed the Farouk-Fenton 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle, researchers traced the coin was legally exported to Egypt for King Farouk.
In 2002, the coin sold at auction for $7,590,020 to a private collector. As part of the settlement that made the auction necessary, the proceeds were divided between the United States government and British coin dealer Stephen Fenton. The FBI arrested Fenton trying to sell the coin at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in 1998.
The sale price stood as the most paid for a single coin until the sale of the 1794 silver dollar sold for $10,016,875 in January 2013. While the 1794 silver dollar had a great story, nothing compares to the sale of the coin known as the Farouk-Fenton Double Eagle.
The coin’s colorful history is documented in two books that span the coin’s history from the conditions of their beginning to the auction sale, including being removed from storage at the World Trade Center before its destruction on September 11, 2001.
It is not a coin that an ordinary collector can own. Rather than owning the coin, why not own the auction catalog from that sale?
Stack’s partnered with Sotheby’s to auction the coin. It was the only lot in the auction held at Sotheby’s New Yor headquarters at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, July 30, 2002. The highest bid was $6.6 million when the hammer fell. A 15-percent buyer’s premium made the sale price $7,590,000. To monetize the coin, the government required the $20 face value payment that the Federal Reserve would have paid in 1933.
I purchased the auction catalog from Kolbe & Fanning during a recent sale. It is a special hardbound edition with over 50-pages about the coin, this sale, and its history. Most of the contents were written by David Tripp, who was then the director of Sotheby’s coin, tapestry, and musical instrument departments. Tripp later expanded on what he wrote for the catalog and published Illegal Tender: Gold, Greed, and the Mystery of the Lost 1933 Double Eagle.
It was a beautifully produced auction catalog. Even though the catalog is a summary of Tripp’s book, it is a piece of numismatic history. And since I cannot afford the coins, I bought the book instead of the coin.
I will admit to having grown up watching Bugs, Daffy, Porky, Tweety, and all of their friends on the weekend morning cartoons. I spent many mornings in my bedroom before my parents woke up watching on an old black and white television wondering if Wile E. Coyote would ever catch the Road Runner? Would Sylvester ever learn that he should not eat Tweety Bird? Or will Pépé Le Pew ever figure out why he could never find a girl to go with him to the casbah? Of course, at that age, I didn’t know what the casbah was!
I guess I also have to admit that I am intrigued by some of these coins. Not the ones that seem to be enameled for the design because I have this thing about using paint for the design of the coin. But there are some coins that are going to be really engraved coins that are somewhat affordable. Apparently, if I examine my own preferences, I do not mind enhanced color that enhances the designs but not just splashing paint on the metal disks.
$100 Looney Tunes 14-karat Reverse
For this series, the Royal Canadian Mint is producing a series of $10 coins that are all struck from engravings. These are fun designs based on the characters by Tex Avery and Chuck Jones and voiced by the man of a thousand voices, Mel Blanc. There will be eight different silver coins that will include a special presentation case, if you subscribe to the series. The presentation case will also include a space for the Royal Canadian Mint’s “20 for $20” silver coin that will feature Bugs Bunny. The Bugs Bunny “20 for $20” coin went on sale May 12, 2015.
For those not familiar with the Royal Canadian Mint’s “20 for $20” program, they provide a limited mintage silver coin with a $20 face value for $20 (note that all prices are in Canadian dollars). These coins are 7.96 grams of .9999 silver and available for direct purchase to buyers in Canada and the United States.
As I type this $20 Canadian is worth $16.49 USD. A U.S. resident buying directly from the Royal Canadian Mint will have their credit card charged in Canadian dollars. Your credit card company will pay the Royal Canadian Mint at the rate at the time of the transaction plus an exchange fee. Exchange fees differ between credit card issuers.
Other options include:
Bugs Bunny $20 Silver coin reverse, part of the Royal Canadian Mint 20 for $20 program
A $20 “Merrie Melodies” silver coin featuring Bugs Bunny and the gang in a design that is reminiscent of the Looney Tunes’ end credits. The coin is cleverly packaged in a box that mimics the ACME crate.
A $20 silver four-coin set featuring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Tweety. If you buy the set as a subscription it will include a free Looney Tunes wrist watch.
A 14-karat gold Bugs Bunny and Friends coin featuring Bugs Bunny, the Tasmanian Devil, Wile E. Coyote, Daffy Duck and Marvin the Martian. The Royal Canadian Mint claims that there is a “hidden surprise design element” in this coin. If you buy this coin you will also receive an “exclusive” pocket watch.
Finally, the Royal Canadian Mint will issue one kilo gold and silver coins. The gold coin will have a face value of $2,500 and the silver will have a face value of $250. The design will feature every major Looney Tunes characters. The design of both coins features selective colored enamel applied by hand to Bugs Bunny who serves as the central focal point. He is surrounded by the entire cast of Looney Tunes characters.
As this posting was saved as a draft for the last few days, I have been contemplating what I wanted to do. With my new found nostalgia and admitted mid-life crisis, I look back at the Looney Tunes fondly. Where I grew up, Bugs Bunny sounded like he could have been one of my neighbors! Mel Blanc, who gave Bugs his voice, wasn’t even from New York yet nailed the accent, cadence, and attitude perfectly. I will probably order the Bugs Bunny “20 for $20” silver coin and take some time before I decide on others. if I do decide to do the whole series, I would probably buy the silver $10 coins because they are coins without painted on designs.
All coin images courtesy of the Royal Canadian Mint.
The ten 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagles confiscated by the government from Joan Lanbord, daughter of Israel Switt.
News out of Philadelphia that an three-judge appeals panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has overturned a lower court’s ruling and order the U.S. Government to return the ten 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle gold coins originally seized by the government after being certified as genuine by the U.S. Mint.
The verdict left a lot of question about the legality of pattern coins. One example cited was the 1974-D Aluminum cent. However, on April 6, a federal judge in California ruled that the coin could have legally left the Denver Mint. This does not end the battle for the cent. All it does is dismisses the government’s claim for summary judgement against the plaintiffs Randall Lawrence and Michael McConnell.
This case is different since it is further along and about what was to be a circulating coin.
The ruling, written by Judge Marjorie O. Rendell,† centers around the government’s use of Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act of 2000 (CAFRA). CAFRA was passed as a “eact[ion] to public outcry over the government’s too-zealous pursuit of civil and criminal forfeiture” and as an “effort to deter government overreaching.” The government said that the Langbords did not file their suit within the 90-day time period. However, the ruling says that it does not imply because “Congress has specifically enumerated theft or embezzlement of government property as one of the crimes to which CAFRA applies.” Since the government called the assets stolen and then ignored the Langbords’ claim for the government to return the coins, they did not prove that the assets were embezzled and CAFRA does not apply.
In the areas where CAFRA did apply, the government did not respond to the Langbords’ request for return of the assets within the 90-days required by law. “The Langbords are correct in urging that we reject these arguments. The Government was required either to return their property or to institute a judicial civil forfeiture proceeding within 90 days of the Langbords’ submission of a seized asset claim.”
The three judge panel concluded “he Langbords are entitled to the return of the Double Eagles.” The appeal overturns the lower court’s ruling and the Appeals Court “will remand for the District Court to order the Government to return the Double Eagles to the Langbords.”
This may not be the end of the story. The government can ask for a temporary stay of the order in order to file an appeal. At that point the government attorneys can either appeal the ruling by the three-judge panel to the full Appellate Court (a full 9 judge panel) or directly to the Supreme Court.
My opinion: considering how the government has behaved throughout the saga of these coins, I think they will try to appeal this ruling to the full Third Circuit. It drags the case out longer and allows the government to put its considerable heft against the the Langbords. I do not think the government will settle this suit in a similar manner that the King Farouk coin was settled. However, if I understand the procedures correctly, the Langbords can claim that the case has significant public interest and ask for it to be heard by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court then will decide to hear the case or let it be heard by the Third Circuit first. Regardless, I think the next stop is the Supreme Court where the most fascinating story in U.S. numismatics will be settled.
Or will it?
† Judge Rendell was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1997. She was also the First Lady of Pennsylvania during the term of her then husband Ed Rendell (2003-2011). The Rendells have since “amicably separated.”
Image of the 10 Double Eagles courtesy of the U.S. Mint. Image of the Aluminum cent originally from the Smithsonian Institute.
March saw the sales tax come under attack as states are looking to the federal government to lift the restrictions on collecting taxes on interstate sales. The senate re-introduced the Marketplace Fairness Act with lifts the restrictions on all interstate sales, not just those made via the Internet.
In March, the Supreme Court ruled that a challenge to Colorado’s so-called “Amazon tax” can proceed in federal court, Justice Anthony Kennedy suggested that that the court should re-examine the physical presence rules. As part of the court’s opinion on the Colorado case, Kennedy wrote that the ruling “now harms states to a degree far greater than could have been anticipated earlier.”
Remember, the overwhelming majority of coin dealers are small businesses. All of these attempts by the states to squeeze every last cent out of you will put a heavy burden on small businesses. If it costs too much for small businesses to manage these sales tax rules it could impact coin shows all over the country.
This one is going to get dicy. stay tuned!
In February, there was only one bill that saw any action:
S. 301: Boys Town Centennial Commemorative Coin Act
Sponsor: Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE)
• To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the centennial of Boys Town
• Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent on March 24, 2015
• Sent to the House of Representatives for consideration (held at the desk) on March 24, 2014
The following two bills were introduced right before congress adjourned for their spring break and have not been published. While the Coast Guard commemorative is pretty self explanatory, H.R. 1698 is intriguing.
H.R. 1683: To require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in commemoration of the United States Coast Guard
Sponsor: Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT)
• Introduced on March 26, 2016 (106 co-sponsors)
• Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services
Friday was an important day for bullion buyers and buyers of collector coins whose prices are strongly tied to the price of gold. It was the day that the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) launched its new electronic-based gold benchmark system, London Gold Price, replacing the century old London Gold Fix. It ends an era when the bullion traders and refiners created a market to set the price in 1919. From the beginning, the market was hosted by Nathan Mayer Rothschild & Sons by the members of The London Gold Market Fixing Ltd. The market was moved to Barclays when NM Rothschild exited the bullion market in 2004.
The move to an electronic system followed the revelation that in June 2012 an employee of Barclays Bank manipulated the gold fixing process. Unfortunately, it was not an isolated incident. When Barclays was investigated, it was revealed that there were such system and control failures that members of the bank had been manipulating gold prices since they started hosting the market. In May 2014, the Financial Control Authority, the British equivalent Commodity Futures Trading Commission, fined Barclays £26 million for not properly managing the market.
What made the old system susceptible to manipulation was that it was still widely a human controlled process with bidding arbitrarily controlled behind then scenes. Even as the market moved toward a more technological approach, it was as if the technology was being used as the proxy with a human still doing the arbitration. Think of it as if the computers would provide the bidding but there was still an human auctioneer managing the bids.
The new market is electronically run and monitored in cooperation with the LBMA. Rather than a single source being responsible for all of the benchmark prices, the LBMA Gold price auctions are held twice daily by the ICE Benchmark Administration (IBA) at 10:30 AM and 3:00 PM London time in U.S. dollars. IBA is an independent subsidiary of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) responsible for the end-to-end administration of benchmark prices. They do not buy or sell commodities but manage the transactions and setting rates based on market forces.
To further diversify the market, the LBMA Silver price auction is operated by the CME Group, a Chicago-based market maker, and administered by Thompson Reuters. The London Metals Exchange administers the platinum and palladium price market. Silver auctions are held once per day at noon London time.
Proponents of the new market system touts its stronger oversight and detailed audit trail capabilities to support the new regulations as making this market more trustworthy than the previous system. Detractors wonder if the new electronic system could create market inequities that was seen in U.S. markets with programmed trading.
News reports suggest that the new market operated without problems on its opening day. In fact, the market saw a rise in all metals by the afternoon auction.
Snapshot of the bullion market on March 20, 2015 (static image, will not update)
Since the U.S. Mint sets its price based on the London market, they sent the following note to Authorized Purchases of bullion products on March 18, 2015:
This is to inform you that on Friday, March 20, 2015 the U.S. Mint will start using the LBMA Gold Price (PM) to price and settle all of its gold bullion coin orders. The new gold price replaces the London Gold Fix and will be managed by the ICE Benchmark Administration (IBA). We do not anticipate any transition issues. Moving forward all gold bullion transactions with the United States Mint will utilize the new LBMA Gold Price (PM) in place of the (PM) London Gold Fix.
While the move will make the markets more transparent and possibly open it to more participants, it is uncertain how this will affect the price of metals in the long term. For that, my crystal ball does not compute!
London Metals Exchange market images courtesy of Mining.com London gold price snapshot courtesy of Kitco.
Reverse of the 2015 US Marshal Service 225th Anniversary Commemorative Coins
One of the problems many of us have with congress is the complete lack of common sense its members show. Even though most of the people have a better understanding of the issues, congress appears to represent the least common denominator of knowledge. Case in point was the three bills introduced in January.
Time and again, we hear that congress wants the government to save money. They want agencies to reduce costs and build efficiencies. How can agencies save money when members of congress introduce legislation that is counter to those goals?
Congress has been told that the U.S. Mint could save money if they standardized gold coins to 24-karat coins and silver to at least .999 fine quality. Aside from making the coins more attractive to more buyers including investors, the U.S. Mint does not have to pay more for someone to “dirty” the metals to create planchets that contain 90-percent of the metals.
Modern manufacturing methods are geared to process mined metals to create purer metals. In order for the gold or silver to be used to make the 90-percent alloy, it has to be dirtied with another metal, such as copper, before creating the planchets. While it makes the metals cheaper, the process increases the costs per planchet because of the extra work involved.
Congress exasperates this problem by not listening to the U.S. Mint and doing a virtual copy-and-paste from previous bills that says $5 gold commemoratives be made from 90-percent gold and silver dollars from 90-percent silver.
Rather than listening to the U.S. Mint, Rep. Sean Maloney (D-NY), or a non-responsive staffer in his office, did a copy-and-paste of previous commemorative bills to introduce the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act (H.R. 358) that calls for a 90-percent gold $5 coin and a 90-percent silver dollar.
Regardless of how one feels about the use of commemorative coins for fundraising, if congress is going to authorize a commemorative coin, why not allow the U.S. Mint to take advantage to more efficient manufacturing and stop making them dirty the metals?
It is possible that if the U.S. Mint could create commemorative coins worthy of being on par with investor grade coins, not only could they save money in the manufacturing process which could lower the costs of the coins, but they could sell more coins. If the U.S. Mint sells more coins they could collect more of the surcharges to benefit their intended causes.
If congress really cared about saving money and increasing efficiency in the government, members like Rep. Maloney will look beyond rhetoric and actually do something, no matter how simple it is.
Up next, why some members of congress should leave well enough alone!
The Numismatic Crime Information Center is reporting that two suspects have been arrested for selling fake Suisse PAMP gold bars. The NCIC report is as follows:
Traveling Suspects Arrested
Two suspects have been arrested for selling fake Suisse Pamp carded gold bars (2.5gm, 5gm,10gm and 1 ounce) at a coin shop in Greenwood, Indiana. Search of the suspects vehicle revealed multiple identification cards, business and pamphlets from different coin shops and an additional 250 fake gold bars and coins. Based upon receipts located in the vehicle the suspects had been selling the fake gold to shops in Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Indiana since September, 2014.
The suspects were driving a silver Ford Focus with Missouri license plates. The suspects are being held for Theft by Deception.
Aaron Taylor Western Union, IL
Second suspect was identified as Nelson Hernandez (No photo available) alias Benjamin Wade.
Anyone having been in contact with either of these subjects should contact:
The term Dog Days goes back to ancient Roman times when calendars were measured by the stars. While trying to measure time, the hottest part of the summer would coincide with the brightest star, Sirius, being dominant in the sky. Sirius is part of the constellation Canis Major (big dog).
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March saw the sales tax come under attack as states are looking to the federal government to lift the restrictions on collecting taxes on interstate sales. The senate re-introduced the 
