• Contents of this Issue
  • Minutes of the 1234th Meeting
  • The Story Behind the “Official” 100th Anniversary Medals of the Chicago Coin Club
  • Exhibits
  • Minutes of the Chicago Coin Club Board
  • Upcoming Meeting
  • Important Dates
  • Chatter Matter
  • Share This Issue!
• Other Chatter Issues
  • Prior Issue
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• Contact Editor

Chatter

Minutes of the 1234th Meeting

The 1234th meeting of the Chicago Coin Club was called to order by President Lyle Daly at 6:45 PM CST, Wednesday November 10, 2021. This was a hybrid in-person and online meeting. Attendance was 18 members in person (in a room at the Chicago Bar Association Building in downrown Chicago) and 22 members online.

Club Meeting Minutes and Treasurer’s Report

The October 13, 2021, meeting minutes were approved as published in the November Chatter, both in print and on the CCC website.

Treasurer Elliott Krieter presented the Treasurer’s report for the October period. It reported income of $1,586.00 (dues, banquet, medal sale, gift to club) and expenses of $2,354.54 (Chatter expense, medals & engraving, banquet deposit), giving the period a total of -$768.54. The report was approved.

New Members

Secretary Scott McGowan performed the second reading of the member application for Dan Shemwell, calling for a membership vote which approved Dan as a member. Scott announced one invited guest, Josh Rossow, who was a guest of John Kent.

Old Business

1. December banquet review: Ticket price is $64 until November 19, then $74 thereafter. Tables will be set for only 6 seats at tables for 8, to allow for better social distancing. The banquet is Wednesday December 8, 2021, at Maggiano’s in Oakbrook, Illinois.
2. Board Meeting announcement – the last CCC Board Meeting of 2021 will be on November 17, 2021. Club members with issues they wish to raise to the Board should communicate with a Board member.
3. Next ANA 2022 WFoM Host club committee meeting is January 19, 2022.
4. Chicago Coin Club member video project is working with Newman Numismatic Portal (NNP) for assistance in video editing and finalizing.
5. The Medal of Merit (MoM) committee is finalizing nominations for individuals through the November club meeting. Contact Mark Wieclaw, Bill Burd, or Jeff Rosinia.
6. Mark Wieclaw announced the CCC Polo shirts are in. Members who purchased should arrange pickup/payment with Mark directly.

New Business

1. Bob Leonard announced the International Numismatic Congress will be held September 11-16, 2022 in Warsaw, Poland. Sessions on Greek, Medieval, and Baltic should be featured.

General Announcements

All club members are encouraged to send feedback on the hybrid meeting technology to club board members.

First V.P. John Riley introduced the Featured Program: Mark Wieclaw on The Story Behind the “Official” 100th Anniversary Medals of the Chicago Coin Club.

Second V.P Melissa Gumm announced the evening’s seven exhibitors. Exhibitors were both in person and online.

The next meeting will be the Annual Banquet on December 8, 2021, at Maggiano’s Little Italy in Oak Brook, Illinois. The Banquet will not be presented online. Banquet attendees are required to wear masks when not seated at a table.

Lyle Daly adjourned the meeting at 8:33 PM CST.

Respectfully Submitted,
Scott A. McGowan, Secretary

Speaker’s Wor[l]d
The Story Behind the “Official” 100th Anniversary Medals of the Chicago Coin Club

presented by Mark Wieclaw,
to our November 10, 2021 meeting.

The official 100th Anniversary medals of the Chicago Coin Club are oval medals struck in copper, silver, and gold – this program tells their story. These medals are not to be confused with the round banquet medals struck for the 100th anniversary banquet held in August, 2019.

The 100th anniversary committee first met in March, 2018, and several topics were suggested as a central design on the medal. By the committe’s May meeting, the choices had narrowed down to Buckingham Fountain and the Chicago Water Tower. A suggestion was made that both of these iconic landmarks be used to create an oval, bidirectional medal. The obverse (with the medal oriented horizontally) features the Clarence F. Buckingham Memorial Fountain, the Club’s name, the dual anniversary date of 1919-2019, and the Centennial motto “A Century of Sharing Numismatic Knowledge.” The reverse (with the medal oriented vertically) is simple and elegant, with the Chicago Water Tower surrounded by 100 stars, one for each year of the Chicago Coin Club.

The stars that surround the Water Tower on the medal are not just any star – they are Chicago six-point stars, designed by poet Wallace Rice, who was commissioned to create the city’s first flag in 1917. The first flag had two stars, symbolizing the Chicago Fire of 1871 and the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. The third and fourth stars were added in 1933 and 1939, symbolizing Ft. Dearborn (built in 1803) and the Century of Progress exposition of 1933-1934.

While the design sketches were going through a number of revisions, efforts were made to find a mint. Medalcraft Mint of Green Bay, Wisconsin had been used for some prior club medals, but their staff turnover seemed to result in a slow response to club queries. The decision was made to use a local company, Mint Masters of Franklin Park, Illinois, which had been founded in 1989 by German-born artist Hermke Timm. When Timm decided to retire and open an Art Studio in Door County, Wisconsin, he sold the business to his daughter, Kerstin Mourar. The Company is well known for their quality die-struck medals, and proudly promotes “Made in the U.S.” in their product information. Over the years, Mint Masters has been commissioned to strike the official “Coins” used in the opening coin toss at several NCAA Football Bowl games. Also, five U.S. Presidents have commissioned Mint Masters to strike Challenge Coins for official presentations.

MichaelAngelo Pantaleon has been employed by Mint Masters as an artist and die engraver since 1992. His work has been nominated multiple times for industry awards. Starting from the sketches provided bt the club, MichaelAngelo Pantaleon developed his preliminary design work for both the obverse and reverse of the medal. After removing background items (such as buildings and trees) and altering the perspective and view of the tower and fountain, the final designs were obtained; then the dies were made.

Twelve pairs (obverse and reverse) of lead trials were struck for the committee chair who presented one to each member of the 100th Anniversary Committee and the Club’s archives.

Finding a company to manufacture the gold and silver blanks also was a challenge; either the order did not meet the minimum quantity or the price was twice the bullion value. Thankfully, Morvillo Precision Products of Providence, Rhode Island made an exception; they provided the rectangular blanks, from which Mint Masters punched out the oval blanks, leaving the Chicago Coin Company to handle the resulting excess metal. Unfortunately, the name of the company that applied the gold and platinum highlights to the copper medals was not revealed to the Club. Also, when asked about the amount of striking pressure necessary for each of the various metals, Mint Masters declined to answer.

A chocolate brown antique finish (AF) was applied to the copper medals to simulate what a medal struck in the year 1919 would look like with a century of natural toning. The copper medals that were embellished with gold and platinum highlights (WHL) were left in their natural state because highlights would not adhere to the antique finish.

Since neither the Chicago Coin Club nor Mint Masters had ever attempted a medal of this shape, size, or thickness, it was a great learning experience. The thickness of a ¼-inch, which is twice the normal standard, proved to be the main concern since the striking pressure had to be increased. The reverse die (Water Tower) sustained damage after just six strikes. With nearly 300 more medals to be struck, there was concern that the project could not be completed. Fortunately, the damage occurred outside of the design portion and was repaired in short order. The striking process was slowed down and dies were inspected regularly.

There was a miscommunication with Mint Masters on the amount of copper medals to be struck. The Club ordered a total of 200 of which 50 of those were to have highlights added. Mint Masters struck 200 copper (AF) and an additional 50 for highlighting. In addition to the above, five sample strikes (Specimens) of the Copper (WHL) medals were sent in advance for approval. Each of these, like the regular strikes, is sequentially numbered on the edge. The medal committee purchased these, keeping one each. One Specimen was donated to the Club’s annual auction, where it realized over $300. Copper (AF) medal #1, along with Specimen #1, were placed into the Club’s Archives as has been the tradition for decades.

Each of the medals measures 82 mm x 61.5 mm x 6.3 mm thick, and were struck in the following order: Copper, Silver, Gold. All copper, silver, and gold medals were sealed with jewelry lacquer to prevent fingerprints and future toning, while the lead strikes were left in a natural state. The informational insert packaged with each medal was printed before the medals were struck, explaining why some mintage figures are inaccurate and weights are approximations.

Background on Fountain and Tower

Clarence F. Buckingham Memorial Fountain

Located in the center of Chicago’s Grant Park, Buckingham Fountain is one of the largest in the world. It has five pool or basin levels, with the bottom pool being 280 feet in diameter. Kate S. Buckingham, a wealthy art collector, provided the funds for the fountain as a gift to the city and a monument to her brother Clarence, a former trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Architect Edward Bennett designed the fountain and French artist Marcel Francois Loyau produced the sculptural elements. The fountain is composed of pink Georgia marble with some granite elements, and was completed in 1927. The Buckingham Fountain represents Lake Michigan and the four sets of bronze Art Deco style sea horses represent the four states that border Lake Michigan.

With a capacity of 1.5 million gallons, the pumps can displace 15,000 gallons of water per minute, attaining a maximum height of 150 feet. From 1927 to 1979, the pumps were manually controlled. In 1980 they were computerized and were actually monitored in Atlanta, but operations returned to suburban Chicago in 1994. The evening light show is quite spectacular with 820 lights located within the five pool levels.

The Chicago Water Tower

One of the few structures not destroyed by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, the tower anchors what is now known as the “Magnificent Mile” of Michigan Avenue. Constructed between 1867 and 1869 of limestone from nearby Joliet, it was built to protect the 138 foot tall standpipe used to balance the water pressure created by the city’s adjacent water pumping station. It brought in clean water from nearby Lake Michigan, helping to reduce the threat of cholera to Chicago.

Architect, William W. Boyington, designed the 182.5 foot tall structure using a gothic revival style with a fairytale feel. It features arched windows and doors, along with pinnacles and cupolas. In 1916, the exterior was replaced with new limestone for a fresh look. While most admire the architectural style, some, including the famous Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde, thought it looks like “a castellated monstrosity.”

In fact, the castle-like style inspired the design of some White Castle restaurant buildings. White Castle is a regional chain of restaurants known for its small, greasy burger referred to as a “Slider” – a true Chicago delicacy along with deep dish pizza, Italian beef sandwiches, and breaded steak.

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Show and Tell

Items shown at our November 10, 2021 meeting,
reported by Melissa Gumm.

1. Bill Bierly showed two of the new 2021 Morgan dollars that were specially minted for the 100th Anniversary of the elimination of the Morgan dollar and introduction of the Peace dollar; these two have “mintmarks” of CC and O. Bill did not have a great interest in these coins, however he did have a good story to go with them. He is friends with a member of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee who lead the efforts to bring this idea to Congress and got approval for a limited issue of the Morgan and Peace dollar silver commemoratives of 2021. As with many US Mint issues of the recent past, the ability by collectors to actually buy items on the US mint website is difficult and Bill’s friend was not even able to purchase them on the day of issue.
2. Lyle Daly began by making a correction to his October show-and-tell: the coins were quinarius, which are half the value of denarius and smaller than a modern dime, from 100-50 BC, they are from Aedui and not from Sequani. Aedui was a Celtic tribe of the Burgundy region north of the Sequani. The Reverse of the coin featured a horse galloping left with a wheel below. Lyle finished by showing 2021 P Morgan and Peace silver dollars – he was able to acquire three of each.
3. Mark Wieclaw showed an Antoninus Pius tetradrachm of Alexandria, an overstrike that is also a double strike: first struck by a reverse die of Roma standing facing left with victory and a spear, then struck by a reverse die of Serapis wearing a Kalathos, a mask in the form of a hat. Colin Kraay is credited as the first to recognize overstrikes of this type, bringing one to believe two reverse dies were being applied alternately with the same obverse die by two different teams.
4. Dale Lukanich showed a 10 pound counterfeit note, a product of Operation Bernhard which began in 1942 during WWII. The operation was named after SS Major Bernhard Kruger who had 142 counterfeiters working in concentration camps, beginning at Sachsenhausen and including Auschwitz. This operation is known for making some of the most perfect counterfeit notes – they are hard to distinguish from the real ones. The process included making engraving plates, developing paper with the correct watermark, and breaking the code to generate valid serial numbers. Of the features to be recreated, the hardest was the figure of Britannia – a counterfeit give away is that she does not have an earring in the right ear.
5. Not to break with tradition, Deven Kane showed three coins for his annual Halloween “special”, each featuring someone who ended badly.
   1. A Greek coin of the Seleukid Kingdom, an Antiochos III tetradrachm of Antioch of the Orontes mint. Featuring a diademed head right and Apollo seated left on an omphalos, testing his arrow and placing a hand on his grounded bow. On this coin there is a test punch in the ear on the obverse and minor surface lamination on the reverse; the coin is a scarce variety. He was killed by irate locals in Elymais, who were ticked off that he was looting their temple to raise money.
   2. A Roman dupondius of Nero featuring a radiate head to right on the obverse, and Victory advancing to left while holding a wreath and palm branch on the reverse. Fearing that approaching horsemen had been sent to drag him to the forum for execution, he chickened out on suicide and had his loyal freedman Epaphroditus do the deed for him. The soldiers who arrived failed to stop the bleeding.
   3. A silver commemorative medal minted around 1728 to commemorate the 1535 Anabaptist rebellion of Munster in the name of Jan van Leiden. One side featuring a portrait of Jan in a decorative cap and orb. The other side inscribed with the following “the year 1534 on the first day of March the City of Müat;nster in Westphalia was besieged and with God’s help twenty-fourth day of the month June in the year thirty five it was overcome.” Jan was publicly executed with two other rebels, after which their bodies were placed in three iron baskets and hung from the steeple of St. Lambert’s Church; the remains were left to rot for 50 years. The bones were removed, but the baskets remain to this day.
6. Bob Leonard showed a partial “type set” of larins of the Persian Gulf area, circa 1501 to 1775, most from the Opitz Collection. In 1854, an English merchant described them as a strange piece of money that were valued at six to a ducat. The silver was hand drawn into wire then bent in half, without cracking – two steps that worked only with silver of good quality. Bob also showed two works, by Howland Wood and Michener, that dealt with larin.
   1. Persia, Safavid Dynasty, heavy larin struck from coin dies, 1501-1666.
   2. India, Bijapur, ‵Ali ‵Adil Shah II, 1656-1672, date missing, struck from special larin dies.
   3. Ceylon, privately made larin in fishhook shape stamped with larin die imitating coin of Sri Vijaya Bahu IV, 1275-1277, circa 1500-1655.
   4. Ceylon, privately made larin in fishhook shape stamped with larin die with imitation Arabic inscription, circa 1500-1655, ex Dave Henkle, Chicago, circa 1985.
   5. Ceylon, original Safavid straight larin, circa 1501-1578, obverse struck from coin die, later bent to fishhook shape in Ceylon circa 1501-1665.
   6. Hofuf Mint, Hasa Province, Arabia, under Ottomans, straight larin of billon (“toweelah of Hasa”), unread inscription each side, circa 1703-1775.
   7. Hofuf Mint, Hasa Province, Arabia, under Ottomans, straight larin of billon (“toweelah of Hasa”), traces of inscription each side (very worn from long usage), circa 1703-1775, ex Fred J. Jeffries, England, 1960s.
7. John Kent showed a selection of Central States Numismatic Society (CSNS) medals and tokens which had been donated to him. CSNS was organized in 1939 and covers 13 states in the central US. Each year the design of the convention medal / badge changes. The medal from 1953 was done in a limited quantity of 400; a medal of 1956 featured the state of the show on the ribbon; in 1961 the medals began to feature the building where the show was held. John also showed a silver round designed, by a fellow McHenry Coin Club member, based upon his design for the unfortunately not-held 2021 CSNS show this past April.

Reminders:

• You can email to Melissa a description of what you will show at a meeting, to give her a start on this write-up.
• Send it to mjg513@yahoo.com.
• After a meeting, all members who viewed the meeting should email her their scoring sheet – a listing of each exhibit number followed by a score is all that is needed.

Minutes of the Chicago Coin Club Board

November 17, 2021

The Chicago Coin Club Board met November 17, 2021, via web hosted video conference. President Lyle Daly called the meeting to order at 6:00pm CST with the following Board members present: Lyle Daly, John Riley, Melissa Gumm, Paul Hybert, Rich Lipman, Scott McGowan, Carl Wolf, Bill Burd, Deven Kane, Mark Wieclaw, Elliott Krieter, and Steve Zitowsky. Not Present was Jeff Rosinia.

Old Business:

1. Clarification that the December Banquet meeting will not be online.
2. Progress of CCC WebEx type account – Secretary Scott McGowan was tasked with reviewing and purchasing this software. The club re-approved the maximum expense of $200 for this. Scott indicated the software will be purchased in January, 2022 before the January CCC meeting.
3. Clarification by the Board that the January Chatter, which is mailed in late December, should not be mailed/emailed to members dropping from membership as of January 1, 2022.
4. Discussion of individual who paid CCC dues at August, 2021 club meeting was found to never have submitted a membership application. He attended the 100th anniversary banquet in 2019 but no membership application was submitted. Treasurer Elliott Krieter to contact the person, asking that he complete and submit an application per CCC membership requirements.
5. Regarding CCC members who pay dues in arrears, the Club treasurer is to send email communication to the Club Secretary and Chatter publisher noting such.
6. The Dues announcement for 2022 will be sent with the January Chatter. The board discussed annual dues and when they are, or should be, paid. Mark Wieclaw recommended we have a cut off date for Dues. The date of May 1st each year was agreed to be the new due date for Club dues.
7. Secretary Scott McGowan showed a dues reminder and payment email from another organization – that of a digital dues bill with a Quickbooks link for online payment. Treasurer Elliott Krieter to investigate this, and indicated he had ideas about this.
8. CSNS ad in the Chatter requires renewal and updated information. All Chatter ads require invoicing and updates. Scott to work with Carl on the process. Ads are a June-May billing cycle. The board clarified that CCC volunteers for the CSNS convention is on an individual basis.
9. Mark Wieclaw reported the Medal of Merit award winner has been chosen and submitted for medal production.

New Business

1. ANA Committee Medal – Medal committee Bill Burd, Bob Feiler, and Mark Wieclaw issued a report to the board that they found no reason to justify a CCC Medal for the 2022 year during the ANA World’s Fair of Money. 2022 is not a key anniversary year to justify a medal. The report indicated that March 2023 is the 1,250th club meeting and the 130th Anniversary of the Columbian Exhibition, and as such could be considered as reason for a future medal.
2. President Lyle Daly asked for feedback on the Club member video histories renamed as “The Legacy Project.” Board members were asked to view the video of Chester Poderski prior to the meeting. Feedback was:
   1. All-caps should be changed to proper text.
   2. Font (type) size for questions is too large.
   With these changes, the video can be submitted to the Newman Numismatic Portal (NNP) who had requested CCC Board approval, which was given, before they publish it online.
3. Hybrid Meeting Feedback on the November 10th Club meeting: Club will return the BOSE small speaker/microphone and buy a case for the club iPad at a cost of about $90.00. Decision to use Lyle Daly’s large speakers that were used at the 1200th meeting. Tech committee wants to do a test in the CCC meeting room prior to the January meeting.
4. December banquet is at 32 two days prior to the early bird deadline. Club Secretary to send reminder to club membership. Donation from the Blockers covers YN’s cost, so Board authorized CCC to cover cost for one parent for any attending YNs. Discussion on Covid protocols for the banquet indicated that vaccines will not be mandated but Masks required when individuals are not eating.
5. Discussion on General CCC meeting Vaccine requirement: The Board does not feel we can mandate vaccines for in-person meetings, but masks are mandatory as per Chicago Bar Association requirements (our meeting room is in their building). If CCC members and guests attending club meetings are not vaccinated, it is recommended they take a self-test before the meeting out of respect for their fellow members.
6. Hall of Fame Committee: Reported they have made selections and keep them in line with the 2020 selection format of one current and one former member.
7. Club Annual Auction: Decision made to hold the club auction in April 2022. Discussion of a November, 2022 auction was deferred until after the April auction, to review material.
8. December Banquet Program: Lyle Daly asked if we should or could have a printed program for the December Banquet. Board agreed it would be a great idea. The club secretary agreed to work on one.
9. Medal for ANA Host Club Committee: The board discussed history and future of Medals for the Committee chairs. The Board indicated that it is Nice and Reasonable to give committee chairs a medal for their year of service to the committee. Started in 2011, these medals were part of the first speaker’s medals. While it has been a tradition that the host club chair has paid for the medals, ribbons, and engraving, the Board agreed that future ANA WFoM host committee chairs could share a portion or all of the expense but not required. The 2021 ANA WFoM chair medals expense, $382, was paid by the club at time of medal striking. The engraving expense of $230.04 is still outstanding. Elliott Krieter offered to cover this engraving expense.
10. Medals Purchase for 2022: The Hexagonal copper medals for 2022 require club vote. The Board approved the expense of $2,416.00, to be reviewed and voted on by membership. President Lyle Daly will call for an abbreviated meeting at the December banquet to present this to the club membership.
11. Cabeen Award: Vice President Melissa Gumm reported the 2021 Cabeen award votes are being tallied for the awards presentation at the banquet.
12. Lyle Daly asked the Club Secretary to forward an ANA email regarding special ANA membership cost to the Club members who are not already members of the ANA.

President Lyle Daly adjourned the meeting at 7:24pm

Respectfully Submitted,
Scott A. McGowan, Secretary

Our 1235th Meeting

Important Dates

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

Chatter Matter

http://www.ChicagoCoinClub.org/

Contacting Your Editor / Chatter Delivery Option

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Club Officers

Correspondence

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
Payments to the Club, including membership dues, can be addressed to the Treasurer and mailed to the above address.

Payments

Renewing Members Annual dues are $20 a year ($10 for Junior, under 18). Annual Membership expires December 31 of the year through which paid. Cash, check, or money order are acceptable (USD only please). We do not accept PayPal. Email your questions to Treasurer.ChicagoCoinClub@GMail.com Members can pay the Club electronically with Zelle™ using their Android or Apple smart phone. JP Morgan Chase customers can send payments to the Club via Quick Pay. To see if your Bank or Credit Union is part of the Zelle™ Payments Network, go to https://www.zellepay.com Please read all rules and requirements carefully.

• The Club has registered the Treasurer.ChicagoCoinClub@GMail.com address with Zelle™ to receive payments.
• When you send a payment via Zelle™, we will receive a notification.
• Be sure to fill out the “What’s this for?” field – e.g., “Dues 2020 & 2021”
• Once the transaction completes, the Club will receive your payment typically within minutes, and you will know that the payment was received.
• Be sure to have your Location enabled on your phone for the transaction.

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