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  • Feminism at the Fair: The Isabella Quarter
  • Exhibits
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Chatter

2017 CCC Dues are Due

Although we are sending out the dues notice a few months earlier than usual, the dues cycle remains on a calendar year basis. Your 2016 dues are good through December, 2016 — please pay your 2017 dues before the start of 2017.

Check the outside of your printed Chatter. A slip of yellow paper stapled outside the cover indicates that, according to our records, you have not paid your dues for 2017. Please mail the dues to the address on that slip, or bring them to our next meeting. For members who are notified by email when a new Chatter issue is available, the email stated if you have not paid your dues for 2017.

Minutes of the 1173rd Meeting

The 1173rd meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was held September 14, 2016 in the Chicago Bar Association Building, 321 S. Plymouth Court, Downtown Chicago. President Elliott Krieter called the meeting to order at 6:45 PM with 23 members and 1 guest, Craig Teichen.

A motion was passed to accept the August Minutes as published in the Chatter. Treasurer Steve Zitowsky gave a detailed financial report for August showing $1.44 in revenue and $1,849.00 in expenses, total assets of $26,509.89. A motion was passed accepting the report.

The members stood for a moment of silence honoring the memory of Chester Krause (1923-2016), founder of Krause Publications. It was announced that members Mark Borckardt and Leonard Augsburger received Numismatic Literary Guild Awards at the recent ANA Anaheim Convention. Marc received NLG’s highest honor, the Clemy Award. Leonard received Book of the Year Award on Truth Seeker: The Life of Eric P. Newman which he co-authored with Roger W. Burdette and Joel Orosz.

The Secretary gave the first reading to the application of Craig Teichen. Announcements were also made on the upcoming Illinois Numismatic Association Convention and possible upcoming programs. A motion passed approving the Board’s decision to produce and make available 5-piece process sets of the hexagonal speaker’s medal. The sets can be ordered thru the October 12th meeting, and preorder only at $100 per set.

President Krieter announced the formation of the Nomination Committee of William Burd, Robert Feiler and Jeff Rosinia.

First VP Richard Lipman introduced featured speaker Jeff Rosinia who gave a talk on Feminism at the Fair: The Isabella Quarter which was his award winning exhibit at the recent ANA Anaheim Convention.

Second V.P. Marc Stackler announced the exhibitors. MELISSA GUMM – Columbian Exposition elongated nickel and magazine article with a woman’s perspective of the Fair. DAVID GUMM – 1816 US Large Cent. RICHARD HAMILTON – two international commemorative coins honoring felines. DALE LUKANICH – satirical political tokens and currency. RICHARD LIPMAN – Canadian Star Trek $200 gold coin, US currency sheets, and brochure on Chinese coinage. MARK WIECLAW – silver certificate, elongated coins issued by The Elongated Collectors for the ANA Anaheim Convention, and two ancient hemi drachms. STEVE ZITOWSKY – complete nine coin set of Colonia Eritrea coins. ROBERT FEILER – collection of elongated cents, box dollar, and Civil War patriotic token. LYLE DALY – a collection of ancient coins, and current US banknote with political counter stamp. DEVEN KANE – five ancient Roman coins showing empresses. ROBERT LEONARD – three electrum coins of Lydia (630-550 BC). JEFFERY ROSINIA – memorabilia from the ANA Anaheim Convention, and a Kennedy half dollar in a special holder honoring the birth of his granddaughter.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:15 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Wolf, Secretary

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
Feminism at the Fair: The Isabella Quarter

by Jeffrey Rosinia,
presented to our September 14, 2016 meeting,

Coins reflect the people, places, and events in a nation’s history. The Isabella commemorative quarter, issued during the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, is a tribute to Queen Isabella of Spain, but also to the advancement of American Women at the turn of the twentieth century.  The World’s Columbian Exposition ranks as one of the greatest tourist attractions in all of American history, standing out for its innovations, attendance, and historical importance. At the time when the total U.S. population was estimated at 61 million, the fair drew over 27 million men and women visitors during six months.

The event showcased electrical lighting, and introduced millions of Americans to household sewing and washing machines. These new machines allowed women to free themselves from the time intense household chores traditionally considered “woman’s work.” These technological advancements paved the way for major cultural advancements. The Isabella quarter dollar reflects these changes.

The 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition was a fair of firsts. The U.S. Mint introduced its first commemorative coins, and the first US coin to honor a woman. Elongated coins were first produced, seen, and made popular at the fair. The US Post Office offered its first picture postcards and commemorative stamps. A number of commercial products made their debut at the Chicago World’s Fair including Juicy Fruit gum and Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.

As the Chicago lakefront was being prepared for the World’s Columbian Exposition, the national stage was being set for change. The construction of a Woman’s Building, and the planning of the Isabella Quarter, reflected the building of a new culture in America towards the appreciation and recognition of women’s contributions. The Board of Lady Managers had been formed at the insistence of famous suffragist Susan B. Anthony, who was determined that women should be represented in the administration of the World’s Columbian Exposition.

The Board of Lady Managers was chaired by Bertha Palmer, a wealthy and influential socialite. Allowing women to manage the project was a revolutionary idea at the time. Women were selected to manage the entire Woman’s Building project. As one of the few women architects of the time, Sophia Hayden designed the 80,000 square foot, two-story Woman’s Building at the World’s Columbian Exposition as her first professional project. Candace Wheeler supervised the interior decoration. Chicago art curator Sarah Tyson Hallowell worked closely with Palmer on the art exhibits and the large murals painted by impressionist Mary Cassatt.

The importance of the Woman’s Building project was the fact that for the first time the United States Congress had officially approved and funded a building designed by women, devoted to women, and managed by women at a national event. Or as a quote attributed to Berha Palmer wryly put it, “Even more important than the discovery of Columbus, which we are gathered together to celebrate, is the fact the General Government has just discovered women.”

Many women’s rights activists were featured speakers at the “World’s Congress of Women” held in the Women’s Building. Susan B. Anthony gave the opening address. Lectures and exhibits on women’s progress from primitive to modern times in the arts, crafts, sciences, education, and labor were included in 47 languages.

In August, 1892 Congress authorized the production of five million half dollar coins for sale during World’s Columbian Exposition. The Columbian Half Dollar was the first commemorative coin to be minted by the US Government. The first Columbian half dollar was struck at the Philadelphia Mint in November 1892. A total of 950,000 coins were minted in 1892. The Mint also struck 1893-dated Columbian Halves — a total of 4,052,105 1893 coins were produced, but 2,501,700 of the 1893 coins were later melted by the mint.

There were no initial plans to issue a souvenir quarter, but interest in the Columbian half dollar prompted the Lady Board of Managers to request that Congress authorize $10,000 in the form of a commemorative coin. The Board of Lady Managers wanted to have female motifs with a design by a woman. Eventually the final design was completed by Mint Engraver Charles Barber with influence by a female artist, Caroline C. Peddle.

The Isabella Quarter issued at the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893 was the first US coin to feature the portrait of an actual female, the first US coin to depict a foreign monarch, the first and only non-circulating commemorative quarter dollar, and the first US coin to depict a woman on both sides. The obverse depicts a crowned bust of Queen Isabella of Spain, who had funded Columbus’ voyages to the New World. The reverse contains the legend “Board of Lady Managers” and the image of a kneeling female working a spindle to represent women’s industry. The Isabella quarter’s design, approval, and introduction demonstrate the changing role of women in American society.

Both the commemorative half and quarters were struck by the Philadelphia Mint and were sold for $1.00 at the fair, and in banks and stores across the country. Because the half and quarter were sold for the same price, the Columbian Half outsold the Isabella Quarter. Of the 40,000 coins produced and provided to the Lady Board of Managers, 15,809 unsold coins were ultimately returned to the US Mint to be melted, leaving a net distribution of only 24,191 Isabella quarters.

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Show and Tell

Items shown at our September 14, 2016 meeting,

1. Melissa Gumm had 2 exhibits to share:
   1. An 1884 Columbian Expo elongated V nickel. A number of elongating dies are known, but she has not yet determined which die produced this elongate.
   2. World’s Fair Notes: A Woman Journalist Views Chicago’s 1893 Columbian Exposition by Marian Shaw. This is a collection of 12 magazine articles by a woman who attended the 1893 fair. This was just acquired on Saturday at a local show that concentrates on fair memorabilia, and the more Melissa reads it, the more she appreciates what a great find this was.
2. David Gumm brought an 1816 Large Cent, of the N-1 variety. He showed a page, from a book by Noyes, that illustrated the three die states of the N-1 variety, and he pointed out the differences. His coin is an example of the first die state, before small pieces fell off from near the rim of the dies. David had been looking for a nice example of this variety for a number of years.
3. Richard Hamilton recently acquired two commemorative coins that feature cats.
   1. An Isle of Man 1 Crown, dated 2000, one ounce of .999 fine silver and featuring a Scottish Fold kitten. This series of cats on coins started in 1998, and it will end this year.
   2. A 2016 Canadian Cougar $5 coin, on ounce of .9999 fine silver.
4. Dale Lukanich had some politically-themed items.
   1. An 1896 Bryan / McKinley mechanical dollar (gold-plated brass), Zerbe 134. It was for the 1896 election, and featured a slogan lauding the McKinley / Hobart gold standard ticket (gold means 100 cents for a dollar). If you rotated the knob on the rim, the slogan changed to one denouncing the Bryan / Sewall pro-silver ticket (free silver means 50 cents for a dollar).
   2. Two pieces of $1000 “Absolute” money from 1880. This piece of political satire made fun of the Greenback Labor Party; it has many sayings, such as “redeemable nowhere in nothing,” and drawings, such as a cartoon showing Uncle Sam pulling paper money from a printing press fed with rags. The Greenback Labor Party held its 1880 convention in Chicago.
5. Rich Lipman talked about several items he recently acquired.
   1. An uncut currency sheet of 50 $1 bills, acquired at the recent ANA show, will the bills arranged in five columns of ten bills each. This new arrangement is first used with the $1 denomination, but all denominations will be printed in 50-subject sheets. This arrangement will allow for 25-subject and 10-subject sheets to be offered; the prior 32-subject sheets allowed for 32, 16, and 8 bills to be on one sheet.
   2. A Canada 2016 Star Trek $200 gold coin, in the shape of the Federation insignia. Each piece contains about half an ounce of gold.
   3. A souvenir “Texas $2 Step” folder containing two 2016 $2 notes printed at the Ft. Worth BEP facility. Rich noticed the two notes have the same repeater serial numbers of 20162016 — one serial number is followed by the B control letter, while a C follows the serial number on the other note.
   4. A brochure from the Shanghai museum on the history of Chinese coinage.
6. Mark Wieclaw displayed a range of items:
   1. A 1953A $5 silver certificate received in change at the Farmers Market in Madison, Wisconsin.
   2. Four elongated coin medals issued by TEC (The Elongated Collectors) for the recent ANA in Anaheim, California. TEC has issued a regular medal since the early 1970s, and an enameled medal since 1989. Also, this being their 50th anniversary, an additional medal was created to celebrate the event, in both regular and enameled versions. The ANA issues are on California Statehood quarters, and the 50th anniversary issues are on 1966 dated quarters.
   3. Two ancient silver Hemidrachms from Thrace, Cherronesos (circa 350-300 BC), one normal strike and the second a reverse brockage that was restruck with the obverse die.
7. Steve Zitowsky brought in a complete set of Colonia Eritrea coins issued between 1890 and 1918, all silver, as well as a couple of counterfeits of this series. He completed this set with a purchase at CICF. He gave us an overview of this Italian colony’s history, and he pointed out such design features as King Umberto on the obverse, and a Savoy eagle on the reverse along with inscriptions in Italian, Arabic, and Tigrinya,the local language. The set consists of 9 coins total:
   1. 50 Centesimi - 1890M (Milan)
   2. Lira - 1890R (Rome); 1891R; 1896R
   3. 2 Lire - 1890R; 1896R
   4. 5 Lire/Tallero - 1891R; 1896R; 1918R
8. Robert Feiler displayed examples of collecting on a budget.
   1. A collection of 117 “rolled out / elongated cents” obtained gratis from various coin and currency shows over the years. He recently flattened them, holdered them, and organized them into plastic sheets for a ringbinder.
   2. A recently obtained 1863 Civil War Patriotic Token. The obverse has an American flag with the inscription “The Flag of Our Union.” The reverse inscription is “If Anybody Attempts to Tear it Down, Shoot him on the spot.” Bob mentioned what an inexpensive Civil War collectible these little tokens can be for those on a budget.
   3. An 1877-S Trade Dollar made into a “box dollar” containing a photo of a middle aged woman with a somber expression. Bob demonstrated how to open this delicate piece, and explained the workmanship to make it open and close. Because not all mechanisms are the same, he includes a card with opening instructions in each piece’s flip.
9. Lyle Daly discussed several different items, starting with some ancient coins he had cleaned after acquiring them as uncleaned and unidentified things.
   1. Two coins from the Roman province of Moesia, (mainly modern Serbia). The capital Viminacium now is an ongoing archeological site about 90 miles south of Belgrade.
      1. In poor condition, the bronze coin features a radiate bust on the obverse, while the reverse has a female figure interpreted as the personification of Moesia Superior, who is flanked by a bull next to the right leg and a lion next to the left leg. These animal represent Legion VII (Claudia) and Legion IIII (Flavia) that were stationed in Moesia Superior. Lyle suspects this coin is from either Gordian III or Phillip I, as the AN V indicates the last or first year of rule. If an “I” were to follow on this off center coin it would be under Phillip, but the year seems to be centered. So date it to 243/244 AD.
      2. The second coin is a follis of Phillip II, and provides a better visual of what the reverse should be. The ANNO VIIII dates it to 247/248 AD.
      The city of Viminacium was destroyed at the middle of the 5th century during the Hun penetration. The town was never rebuilt, but Justinian reestablished a military outpost upon the ruins of Viminacium in the 6th century.
   2. Lyle previously brought in the 40, 20 and 10 nummi (or follis, half follis, and quarter follis). He is building a denomination set of Justinian, and he showed us four recent additions (dating from 527 to 565AD).
      1. Pentanummi of Justinian is a Sear 170 and attributed to the mint at Constantinople. This was highly encrusted and cleaned up nicely.
      2. 8 nummi of Justinian is a Sear 189 and attributed to the mint at Thessalonica.
      3. 16 nummi of Justinian is probably a Sear 175–186, but is clearly from the Thessalonica mint.
      4. A solidus of Justinian, Sear 140. The characters CONOB were employed at the mints of Rome, Ravinia, and Thessalonica. The standing figure on the reverse seems to wear a space helmet with antennas — send this to “Ancient Aliens” on the History channel.
   3. Lastly, a circulation find: 2006 Series $5 FRN counter stamped with “NOT 2B USED 2 BRIBE POLITICIANS, Amend the Constitution [a blank space] StampStampede.org” — Lyle wanted one of these stamps but discovered they want you to register with a unique identification code to put on the stamp. The source of the stamp is Bernard Von Nothaus, who was found guilty of counterfeiting and is now a convicted felon. Lyle decided not to get a stamp.
10. Deven Kane showed 5 coins of Roman Empresses:
    1. A Roman Sestertius from AD 145¬146 featuring a bust of Faustina the Younger. On the reverse, Diana is standing and holding an arrow and bow(?). Annia Galeria Faustina Minor was the daughter of the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius and Faustina the Elder. She was the maternal first cousin and wife of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius and the mother of the Emperor Commodus. Her great uncle Hadrian had initially betrothed her to Lucius Verus, but that engagement was broken by Antoninus Pius on his accession. Verus eventually married her daughter Lucilla. Her marriage to Marcus Aurelius appears to have been close and they had 13 children together. She accompanied her husband on campaign and was held in high esteem by the soldiers. She was deified on her death and her husband never remarried. The Sestertius was a large brass coin worth one quarter of a denarius.
    2. Three coins of the doomed Empress Plautilla, wife of Caracalla, each with a different hair style:
       1. A silver denarius from Rome, AD 202. The reverse has the legend CONCORDIAE AETERNAE, and shows Plautilla and Caracalla standing with clasped hands.
       2. A silver denarius from Rome, AD 202¬205, with her hair coiled in ridges and fastened in a bun. The reverse has Concordia standing, holding patera and sceptre.
       3. A silver denarius from Rome, AD 202¬205. The reverse has Pietas standing, holding sceptre and child.
       Publia Fulvia Plautilla was the wife and paternal second cousin of the emperor Caracalla, one of the underappreciated sociopaths in the Roman Imperial Tree. Her father was the maternal first cousin and praetorian prefect of the Emperor Septimius Severus, and effectively ran the internal affairs of the Empire for a major part of Severus’ reign. The father arranged the marriage — it was a disaster. Caracalla despised his wife and hated her father, promising to execute him when he became sole emperor. This appears to have goaded her father into a plot that resulted in his eventual downfall and execution. Plautilla was banished into exile and executed by Caracalla on his accession in 211.
    3. Aelia Flaccilla has an elaborate hair style or call it a head-dress) on this large coin from Constantinopolis, AD 383¬388. Victory is seated on a throne, inscribing a christogram onto shield. Aelia Flavia Flaccilla was the first wife of the Roman Emperor Theodosius I. She was of Hispanian Roman descent. A fervent supporter of the Nicene creed against the Arians, she is recognized as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. She died about six years into her husband’s reign. Her more lasting legacy was bearing Theodosius two imbecilic sons — the future Emperors Arcadius and Honorius — who somehow managed to die peacefully in their beds in possession of their throne (though Honorius lost about half of his in addition to witnessing the sack of Rome).
11. Bob Leonard started by speaking of the late Chet Krause, Chet’s work with the Rawhide Boys Ranch, and Bob gave them a plug. He then presented 3 electrum coins of Lydia, circa 630-550 B.C.:
    1. An electrum 1/24 stater with a lion’s paw with claw, as seen from below. There is an incuse punch on reverse of this small piece weighing only 0.59 grams.
    2. An electrum 1/12 stater with the head of a roaring lion facing right, with a knob on its forehead. There is an incuse punch on the reverse of this piece weighing 1.13 grams.
    3. An electrum 1/6 stater with the head of a roaring lion facing right, with a knob on its forehead. There are two incuse punches on the reverse of this piece weighing 2.28 grams.
    All these coins are attributed to the Lydian king Kroisos (Croesus), his predecessor Alyattes, or an earlier king. The 1/12 and 1/6 staters have multiple banker’s marks, among which is a mark consisting of a circle flanked by two semicircles, which is present on both coins. Though purchased from different dealers in different years, this means that both coins were held by the same man over 2500 years ago! (However, Bob suspects that they may have been included in the same hoard, broken up in recent times. But who knows?)
12. Jeff Rosinia showed some items from the 2016 ANA, including elongates, brochures, and a pamphlet by Women in Numismatics. There were pictures of the Rainbow (as in toning) Lincoln cent and Morgan dollar Collections. Lastly, he showed a Kennedy Rosinia half dollar in honor of his recent grandchild.

Our 1174th Meeting

Important Dates

Unless stated otherwise, our regular monthly CCC Meeting is in downtown Chicago on the second Wednesday of the month; the starting time is 6:45PM.

Chatter Matter

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CHICAGO, IL 60690

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