Chatter

4 Months until ANA in Chicago

The club will have three meetings in April — each with a different featured speaker! Our meeting at Central States will be on the last of the month; the bourse will have many fine exhibits, so please look them over.

The ANA has not posted their Exhibits Rules and Applications for August yet, but little pieces of information are being found. First, the Application must be received at ANA by early or mid July. Second, we are trying to increase the times for setting up Exhibits — currently, Exhibit setup will be 1-7pm on Monday, August 15, with one hour before the 9am opening of the bourse on Tuesday. (The source for those hours also shows setup during 8-9am during every day of the convention — not sure what was intended there, but that does not seem right: the exhibits must be in place before the bourse opens on Tuesday, and the exhibits cannot be changed or removed until late on Saturday afternoon.)

Minutes of the 1107th Meeting

Session I of 1107th meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was held March 9, 2011 in the Chicago Bar Association Building, 321 S. Plymouth Court, Downtown Chicago. President Jeffrey Rosinia called the meeting to order at 6:45 PM with an attendance of 13 members and 6 guests present: Dennis Gorman, Ricardo Sequeira, and the Rodriguez family of Noel and Carmen Cruz, and their daughters Carmen Noel and Oliva Rose.

A motion was passed to approve the February Minutes as published in the Chatter. Treasurer Steve Zitowsky reported January income of $286.49, expenses $241.02 and total assets of $16,357.47 held in Life Membership $1,910.00 and member equity $14,447.47. A motion was passed to approve both reports.

Robert Leonard, General Chairman of the ANA Convention, reported visiting additional local clubs with member Elliott Krieter and receiving more local volunteers. Committee members were reminded of a March 16th meeting at 6 PM in the offices of Harlan Berk, 77 W. Washington, Suite 1320. Mark Wieclaw and Carl Wolf reported on programs teaching 12 members the “Art of Building a Numismatic Exhibit.”

The Secretary reported a donation made three years ago by the William Pettit family of 12 large photographs, mostly of past ANA Conventions. David Sklow, a respected dealer in this material, estimated the overall value at $2,000+. It was reported that the Board of Directors reviewed the photographs and felt they held no significant Club history and recommended their sale. The membership agreed and passed a motion to consign the photographs to David Sklow’s auction company and earmark the received funds to pay for producing medals for Numismatic Theatre speakers at the August, 2011 ANA Convention.

Second V.P. Elliott Krieter introduced the featured speaker, and member, Robert Weinstein who delivered a program 19th Century Chicago Exonumia. Following a question and answer period, Elliott presented Bob with an engraved CCC speaker’s medal and an ANA educational certificate.

Members were reminded of the Club’s meeting in three days, March 12th held in conjunction with the Chicago Paper Money Expo in Rosemont, with featured speaker Joseph Boling, Indianapolis, Official Counterfeiting of Paper Currency. Jeff Rosinia passed around a sample of the Club’s souvenir card The Traders National Bank of Chicago.

It was announced that Daniel Sedwick would speak on Colombian Republic Gold Coinage at the Club’s CICF meeting, April 16, Rosemont. Robert Leonard announced the CICF souvenir card was finished and titled ’Trade Wind’ (Indo-Pacific) Beads.

Five membership applications receiving first reading: Ricardo Sequeira, Noel Rodriguez, Carmen Cruz Rodriguez and their daughters Carmen Noel Rodriguez and Oliva Rose Rodriguez.

It was announced that member Eric Schmidt had an article published in the recent issue of Numismatic News.

Elliott Krieter introduced the eight exhibitors for the evening. NICK WEISS: a Lincoln Cent collection; MARC RICARD: book Our Paper Currency by Byron N. Rooks published 1891; MARK WIECLAW: two ancient Roman coins, an 1891 CC U.S. dollar in an unopened GSA box and a cut out 1881 Morgan silver dollar; ROBERT FEILER: 1860 Chicago Civil War store card and three pieces of currency marked “counterfeit”; STEVE ZITOWKSY: Chicago merchant tokens and a Papal States testone of Clement VIII; ROBERT LEONARD: six ducats of Venice; ROBERT WEINSTEIN: silver drachm of Indo-Scythian King Azes, a token from Chicago’s Riverview Park and a token LaSalle Opera House; and STEVE HUBER: 2 German thalers;

The meeting was recessed at 8:55 PM, to be re-convened at 1:00 PM at the Chicago Paper Money Expo, Rosemont on Saturday, March 12.

. . . . . .

Session II of the 1107th meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was held March 12, 2011 in conjunction with the Chicago Paper Money Expo, Crowne Plaza Hotel, 5440 N. River Road, Rosemont, IL. First Vice President Lyle Daly called the meeting to order at 1:00 PM with an attendance of 45 members and guests.

Robert Leonard, General Chairman of the ANA Chicago Convention, welcomed everyone and encouraged them to attend the August 16-20 event across the street in the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center. He announced the first publication of the convention newsletter and made a copy available all attendees.

Committee chairmen of the upcoming ANA Convention quickly introduced, including: Charles J. Ricard, Honorary Chairman; Paul Hybert & Marc Ricard, Exhibits; David Simpson, Medals & Newsletter Editor; Mike Gasvoda & Phil Carrigan, Numismatic Theatre; Elliott Kreiter, Transportation; and Carl Wolf, Local Volunteers.

Lyle Daly introduced featured speaker Joseph Boling who delivered a program on Official Counterfeiting of Paper Currency. Lyle presented Joseph with an ANA Educational Certificate and a Club engraved medal. Due to the length of the program there was no time for questions and answers.

Everyone in attendance was presented with a souvenir card created by Jeff Rosinia, showing images of the $5 note from The Traders National Bank of Chicago and telling the story of how the note was frequently counterfeited.

The meeting was adjourned at 2:05 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Official Counterfeiting of Paper Currency

presented by Joseph Boling
to our March 12, 2011 meeting

The war-time counterfeiting of the notes of the other side is a small and unpublicized aspect of moderrn wars. In this program, Joe Boling covered examples from a number of wars, giving both the story behind them as well as the diagnostics to separate real from counterfeit notes. The first example was from probably the most famous counterfeiting effort, Operation Bernhard, the counterfeiting of Bank of England notes during WWII. A major security feature of the original letterpress notes was the linkage between the letter and number in the watermark plate with the serial number printed on the note. Before that linkage was determined, counterfeits could only be made after one note of a block had been acquired; unique counterfeits could be produced once the linkage was determined.

Official counterfeits were not intended to bring down a major circulating currency; it would have been very difficult to produce and distribute enough notes for that. Although localized commerce could have been affected, the main reason was to use the counterfeits in normal commerce. Spy and guerilla forces supplied with passable counterfeits would be able to procure supplies in local markets, simplifying their supply needs. Counterfeits could also be used to buy needed goods on world markets. The next counterfeit was from the other side of the world — a Japanese counterfeit of a 10 yuan note of the Bank of Communications. After capturing the printing equipment and the plate for just this denomination in China, the Japanese moved everything to Tokyo; by the time production was established, the value of the yuan had fallen. Notes with stamped markings have appeared on the marked — they are printer’s waste (imperfect notes).

Two examples from WWI were against the Ottoman Empire and Canada. The counterfeit Ottoman 10 livre, in addition to being on paper that was too heavy and lacked a watermark, had a plate error — the direction of the 10 (denomination) in the left margin of the back is the opposite of that on an original. The counterfeit $100 Imperial Bank of Canada circulated in the Middle East, and became known in Canada in the 1920s. The paper does not feel right on this intaglio item of middle quality — the intaglio is shallow, and all pieces seen in the numismatic market have a Persian bank stamp (the Imperial Bank of Resht in northwest Iran, on the Caspian).

The source of the late 1930s counterfeits against the United Kingdom in Burma has not been identified; but that was the same time as when the Soviet Union counterfeited the US $100. The 5 rupee notes of the Reserve Bank of India had been overprinted for use in Burma; the original note with an overprint is scarce. The counterfeit is of middle quality — good plate work, but the watermark is much sharper than on the real notes. Worn notes separate into two pieces. For years, there had been rumors of US counterfeiting of the Japanese occupation notes for the Philippines. Finally, two pieces (a 50 centavo and a 5 peso) were found in the MacArthur archives located in Norfolk, Virginia. The excellent quality of the counterfeits contrasts with the variable quality of the originals. Small plate differences, isolated over many years, distinguish the orginals from the counterfeits; the 1 peso and 10 peso notes also were counterfeited as part of that effort. Joe showed the marks to us, and they are included in World War II Remembered: History in Your Hands, A Numismatic Study by Schwan and Boling.

The money of Japanese-occupied Burma and Malaya was targeted by both the UK and the US; the original Burmese notes were all lithographed, while the Malay notes had an intaglio face and a lithographed back. In Operation Grenville, the British in India counterfeited the 1 and 10 rupee notes of Burma, as well as the 1 and 10 Straits dollar notes of Malaya. These were middle grade counterfeits without watermarks, but with good intaglio printing on the Malay notes. The Merchandise Project, the US effort, started with the Burmese notes, expanding to include Malaya and Netherland East Indies. There was a lot going on here, as demonstrated by two of the points made by Joe: the first Malay $10 counterfeit used the frame from the back of the Burma 10 rupee counterfeit, and there were actually two separate US efforts (by the OSS and Navy Department, and MacArthur and the War Department) and neither agency’s records shows knowledge of the other’s actions.

A few more areas were covered before the hour was up and we had to leave the meeting room. But Joe still had more items to show us! The official records are spotty at best, and some previously-used records are no longer fully available. But the diligence of observant collectors results in additional knowledge, and we await the second edition of World War II Remembered to bring it all together.

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Show and Tell

Items shown at our March 9, 2011 meeting.

1. Nick Weiss showed a filled album for Lincoln Cents starting with 1909. Made in the early 1960s, and bearing the name of Ticker & Treasure of Chicago, it appeared that each page was made of two solid pieces of clear plastic, and the album’s clear case also was made of solid plastic.
2. Recently acquired by Marc Ricard was a copy of the bank edition of Our Paper Currency by Byron N. Rooks. Printed in 1891 in Portland, Oregon, it details what to look at to determine if a piece of U.S. paper money is genuine; it has descriptions of the points of interest, but no illustrations. Marc noted that the long statement of use at the end reads more like the Intellectual Property claims from a modern computer program than a nineteenth century copyright notice.
3. Mark Wieclaw showed ancients coins and Morgan dollars:
   • A gold ¼ stater of Alexander the Great, weighing just 2.12 grams. A helmeted Athena appears on the obverse of this samll piece, whose diameter is about half that of a Lincoln cent.
   • Three high-grade antoniniani of Roman Emperor Philip I from 248AD, celebrating the thousandth anniversary of the founding of Rome. Mark noted the varying width of the reverse’s central device, a cippus (a short pillar); one narrower than the usual, and one as fat as a barrel.
   • A cutout made from an 1881 Morgan Dollar, with the original reverse design still sharp.
   • An 1891-CC Morgan dollar, but the GSA box is unopened, so who knows what is inside?
4. To complement the evening’s featured speaker, Bob Feiler started with a Chicago piece:
   • An 1860 store card token from F.E. Rigby, Wall Papers, 81 Randolph St.
   • A counterfeit $5 note from the Bristol County Bank of Taunton, Massachusetts, dated Jan 1, 1863, stamped Counterfeit on the back.
   • A counterfeit $1 note from the Traders Bank of Newport, Rhode Island, dated March 3, 1863, stamped “Counterfeit Bank of Mutual Redemption” on the back. The rusted iron ink from the stamp burned holes in the note.
5. Robert Leonard show a subtle design change to the fifteenth century gold ducats of Venice. The only usual change in these coins was the name of the doge (ruler of Venice), but in the middle of the rule of Francisco Foscari (1423-1457), the figures of the standing Saint Mark and the kneeling doge changed to very crude renditions. Robert showed both types from that ruler, as well as examples from his two predecessors (1400-1413 and 1414-1423) that render the two figures very well, and examples from his two successors (1457-1462 and 1462-1471) with the crude renderings. The standard reference for Venetian coins shows both types for Francisco Foscari, but under the same catalog number.
6. Steve Zitowsky also started with Chicago tokens to complement the evening’s featured speaker:
   • 1845 Burbank & Shaw.
   • Pearson & Dana, Boots & Shoes, 184 Lake Street. A good eagle is featured on the reverse.
   • Baker & Moody, Hatters, 186 Lake Street; in silvered brass.
   • Willoughby & Hill, BSD OPC. Those letters stand for Boston Square Dealing and One Price Clothing; Steve explained that, because Boston businesses were held in high esteem by people here, many companies claimed Boston connections even if none existed.
   • An undated silver Papal States testone, from Pope Clement VIII, 1592-1605. The reverse shows Saint Peter in a boat.
7. Robert Weinstein started with some twentieth century Chicago tokens:
   • An aluminum token for the play The Girl I Love at the LaSalle Opera House — probably from 1900-1910.
   • A Riverview (local amusement park) token, for 2¢ Saturdays.
   • A silver drachm of Indo-Scythian king Azes, featuring the king on horseback and holding a spear, and Zeus holding Nike in his hand. The king usually holds a whip — this is only the third piece known where the king holds a spear.
8. Steve Huber showed two slabbed Franfurt 1849 double gulden, issued for the centennial of Gothe’s birth. And then he asked us to grade these two coins having two distinct looks. One was dull due to toning, while the other was proof-like with eye-appeal (it must have been dipped); the dull coin was slabbed as MS66, while the bright coin was in a PCGS MS64 holder. That led to a brief discussion of whether we would, or would not, try dipping the dull coin to see what its surfaces really looked like.

Seventh Meeting of the ANA 2011 Convention Host Committee

March 23, 2011

The March 23rd meeting of the ANA 2011 Convention Host Committee was called to order by General Chairman Robert Leonard with the following in attendance: Mark Wieclaw, Elliott Krieter, Marc Ricard, Harlan Berk, Paul Hybert, and Carl Wolf

Mr. Leonard and all committee members expressed their appreciation to Harlan Berk for providing the night’s meeting place, dinner, and parking vouchers.

FAVORS FOR FRIENDSHIP LUNCHEON:
Mr. Wolf reported on his conversation with Brenda Bishop, former ANA Convention Manager, regarding favors for the Friendship Luncheon. Ms. Bishop said that previous Committees provided items of local interest, particularly the 2010 Boston Committee who included an attractive gift bag with local products including chocolates. Centerpieces made up from bamboo trays with decoration were given as door prizes. According to Ms. Bishop, the Los Angeles Committee gave a regular-sized bottle of California wine and locally-produced candy. Members suggested various local candy items, including Frango Mints, Wrigley’s candy products (Snickers, Milky Way, Mars, etc.), Long Grove Confectionary, Bloomers Chocolate, etc. Since we have no Activities Chairman, the favors will be obtained on an ad hoc basis.

NUMISMATIC THEATRE SPEAKER MEDAL:
Mr. Wolf and Mr. Wieclaw reported that Numismatic Theatre speakers would be given the Standing Lincoln medal, with small details to be resolved by the CCC Board of Governors, such as whether it would be ordered with an integral loop for hanging and whether the speaker’s name would be engraved. Funding would be covered by the sale of photographs donated to the CCC several years ago.

CONVENTION NEWSLETTER:
Mr. Leonard reported that issue 1 of 3 is available and was passed out to collectors at the recent Chicago Paper Money Expo (CPMX) and the National Money Show in Sacramento; copies were provided at the meeting to those who did not receive one. Issue 2 will be published in May; we will continue to use Issue 1 at the Central States (CSNS) convention in late April. Issue 3 is planned for July. These issues will cover news, programs, and education, as they develop. Honorary General Chairman Charles Ricard has submitted an article for the next issue. Mr. Leonard requested that all Committees also submit items for Issue 2.

VOLUNTEERS:
Mr. Wolf reported that 56 volunteers are ready. He was disappointed in the results from the CPMX show. We are estimating that 100 volunteers will be required, so we must recruit an additional 44. The following recruitment goals were set: Chicago International Coin Fair (CICF) 10-20, CSNS 10-15, Will County Coin Club 5, and Lake County Coin Club show 5, for a total of 30-45. An additional 15 volunteers will be sought at other clubs farther from Chicago, including southern Wisconsin and Indiana. Mr. Leonard volunteered to visit these clubs. (It is expected that there will be some decline in confirmed volunteers between now and the start of the convention; the Boston Committee lost two people, and one of our own volunteers has become ill.)

It was mentioned that the Illinois Numismatic Association (ILNA) wished to participate in the convention. Mr. Wolf agreed to pass this information along to Bill Burd (who was out of town and unable to attend the meeting), since Mr. Burd is a Board member of ILNA, to determine how best to recruit additional volunteers from this source.

Mr. Ricard volunteered to approach collectors at the Lake County Coin Club Show on March 27 in Gurnee, IL, and took a supply of newsletters and volunteer signup sheets; Mark Wieclaw felt that he could recruit volunteers at the Will County Coin Club.

When asked for recommended scheduling software, committee members suggested Microsoft Word’s calendar template and Google docs calendar.

ANA AMBASSADORS:
No report.

BRANDING:
Waiting for Sponsorship information from ANA, otherwise no report.

EXHIBITS:
Paul Hybert announced that Exhibit Rules and Applications are not yet posted on the World’s Fair of Money website. The floor layout is posted; it is a long, narrow area. If the exhibit area is allowed 6-foot aisles by the Rosemont Fire Marshall, it will hold 300 exhibit cases. If 10-foot aisles are required, then it can hold only 197 cases. The maximum number of cases per exhibit is anticipated to be 10.

The preliminary set-up schedule for exhibitors is available on the website, a total of only 7 hours, which is insufficient for the number of exhibitors and cases. Mr. Hybert has appealed this and is hoping that later set-up hours will be allowed on Monday, August 15 and earlier set-up on Tuesday, August 16.

Mr. Leonard thanked Mr. Wolf and Mr. Wieclaw for coaching CCC members in the art of building an exhibit. It appears that at least 3 members will be first time exhibitors, and perhaps as many as 6.

MEDAL COMMITTEE:
In Dave Simpson’s absence, Mr. Leonard presented his report. The ANA has not finalized a medal design but is working with two artists who submitted designs. One artist, Jamie Frankl, proposed a series of four medals (for the 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2015 conventions), based on the four events commemorated on the Chicago flag, but not utilizing a common reverse so there would be no cost savings from having a series. The other artist, Tom Cicchelli, proposed several designs for a single medal for 2011; one depicted a Lincoln statue, the Water Tower, and the Hancock Center on the obverse, while a reverse showed a pile of coins and the dates of previous Chicago ANA conventions. The Medal Committee’s own recommendation, submitted in February 2010, is not being considered.

NON-COMPETITIVE EXHIBITS:
Harlan Berk reported that the names and contact information for the Field Museum, the ANS, and collectors offering to loan non-competitive exhibits has been submitted to the ANA’s Tiffanie Bueschel and Douglas Mudd, who will work out appropriate exhibit space.

NUMISMATIC THEATRE:
In the absence of the Co-Chairmen due to travel and other commitments, Mr. Leonard presented their report. They have invited 24 potential speakers and have 12 confirmations, though only four of these have selected subjects. Harlan Berk changed the title of his presentation to An Unsigned Die by Theodotus of Clazomenae (Klazomenai).

OUTREACH/LOCAL TRANSPORTATION:
Mr. Krieter reported on visits to other coin clubs and suggested a second round of visits. Mr. Leonard volunteered to help out with the more distant clubs.

PATRONS:
Harlan Berk reported that the ANA has recently accepted his recommendations for new Patron giving levels, with a new $5,000 level being dedicated to preserving the ANA’s collection and offering a day with Douglas Mudd as a benefit, in addition to the usual recognition. They are preparing a new Patron giving form. As soon as it is published, Harlan will solicit donations. Earlier in the meeting Harlan announced he would donate $20,000 as a local Sponsor.

SCOUT WORKSHOPS:
No report.

ASSISTANT GENERAL CHAIRMAN:
Mr. Wieclaw led a discussion on budget limits and will look into weekly parking passes for convention volunteers. Harlan Berk will call the ANA in an effort to increase the local committee’s budget.

NEXT MEETING:
April 20, 2011, 6 PM, Offices of Harlan J. Berk, 77 West Washington Street, 13th Floor, Chicago.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:35 PM.

Respectfully submitted,
Carl Wolf, Acting Secretary

Our 1108th Meeting

Important Dates

Chatter Matter

All correspondence pertaining to Club matters should be addressed to the Secretary and mailed to:

CHICAGO COIN CLUB
P.O. Box 2301
CHICAGO, IL 60690

http://www.ChicagoCoinClub.org/

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