THE ANS LIBRARY


Among the purchases funded by the Harry W. Bass Foundation from the Armand Champa Library is a collection of some 50 letters received by Dr. George F. Kunz during the years 1892-1932. Kunz was a vice president of Tiffany & Company and Chairman of the American Numismatic Society's Committee on New Coinage Designs. Among the letters he received was one dated February 14, 1914, from George Roberts, Director of the United States Mint (fig. 46). It pertains to Chief Engraver Charles Barber's difficulties with hubs for San Salvador coinage prepared outside the Mint. Another letter (fig. 47), undated but probably written in 1897, is from Victor D. Brenner. In it Brenner expresses a "desire to cut the dies for the General Grant medal." Brenner's request was obviously rejected since the dies were eventually cut by Tiffany & Company. The Kunz letters complement correspondence of the same period in the Society's archives relating to the selection of coinage designs. The new letters will also augment existing correspondence pertaining to the thirty-five medals issued under the auspices of the Society.

The Champa sales also provided the opportunity to acquire several items written by or relating to Walter Breen. Among these is a telegram (fig. 48) of November 1950 which reads, "Your interview with Raymond for one PM Monday Fourth. Meet me main information booth Grand Central Station 11am Same Day. I will advise Noe. Ford." According to the catalogue description of this item, done by Charles Davis, "After nearly two years in Cushing Memorial V.A. Hospital in Framingham, Massachusetts, Breen's talents were noticed by 'The Numismatist' editor and Smithsonian Curator Stuart Mosher, large cent specialist Ray Williamson, and John J. Ford, Jr., who arranged for an employment interview with Wayte Raymond. Sent to the National Archives in Washington at Raymond's expense, Breen's research filled so many gaps in current knowledge of early federal coinage, that today his efforts are taken for granted."

Manuscripts by Breen which we have acquired include the typescript for his "Encyclopedia of Half Cents," his "Notes on Auction Sales," "Notes on Large Cents," "Notes on Half Cents," "Notes on Silver Coins," and the unpublished typescript of "U.S. Cents, 1816-1857: A Supplement." His annotated typescripts entitled "Trial Piece Designed for U.S. Cent of 1792" (fig. 49) and "Fabrications. Struck Copies of American Colonials" (fig. 50) were also acquired.

Among the individual items of correspondence acquired is an interesting letter written on U.S. Mint stationery (fig. 51). It is dated April 27, 1863, and is from Thomas Pollock to his brother William. Both men were no doubt related to James Pollock, who at the time was Director of the Mint. The letter deals primarily with family matters but toward the end of it Thomas writes, "Fred Eckfeldt leaves today for Denver City as Melter and Refiner of the Denver Mint D He goes by himself." The Act establishing the Denver Mint had taken effect on April 21, 1862, just a year earlier. Instead of erecting a new building, the U.S. government purchased the private mint of Clark, Gruber and Company. This firm remained as agents of the United States government until officers were appointed to conduct the operations of the branch mint. Ownership of the private mint building was officially transferred to the U.S. government in April 1863. Accordingly, this letter of April 27, 1863, provides the exact date on which Fred Eckfeldt headed West to become the first government appointed melter in Denver City, thus expanding the list of Eckfeldt names already associated with the United States Mint.

In the George Kolbe sale of June 1, 1996, the library was able to purchase several items thanks to Joseph R. Lasser, who made a generous contribution to the library fund. Among these was a unique manuscript (fig. 52) of an extensive American coin collection, which bears the handwritten title, "Family Expenses & CÉ.Commencing Sept. 9th, 1834." This item is described as "The earliest such record known to be in private hands." It is almost entirely devoted to the recording of a major American coin collection of the day. The total number of coins, medals, and tokens in the collection is over a thousand including ancient, medieval, and modern. The American coins, medals, and tokens number about 50 items. While the identity and locale of the ledger's owner remain unknown, internal evidence points to its American origin, rendering it an important piece of evidence for the history of coin collecting and the evolution of numismatics in this country.

The Kolbe sale also provided a copy of Okudaira Masahiro's Toa senshi (A numismatic record of Far Eastern coins). According to Arthur Bradden Coole in the 1940 edition of his Bibliography of Far Eastern Numismatics, "This is the outstanding Japanese work on coins of the Far East. It includes a study of the materials used in the making of coins; the terminology used in Far Eastern numismatics; the calligraphy employed on coins; bibliographical and biographical information and a summary outline of the coins of China, Japan and Annam. The coins of each country included are chronologically arranged."

Anthony Terranova of New York City has donated a group of photographs which should prove of great use to the specialist researcher. This gift consists of 67 negatives and contact proofs utilized by Kenneth W. Lee in his work California Gold: Dollars, Half Dollars, Quarter Dollars, published in 1979. The photographs, which were taken by Jack Collins, are of coins in Lee's collection and are grouped by denomination and shape, as are those in Lee's work. Also included are photographs of the Kroll Hoard, a large cache of counterfeit quarters, halves, and dollars which first appeared in the A. C. Nygren sale by Henry Chapman in 1924. Lee included illustrations of these fabrications in his work in order to prevent the unsuspecting from purchasing them as genuine.

Other notable accessions of the past year include Georges Depeyrot, Histoire de la monnaie des origines au 18e siecle 1: Introduction de l'antiquite au treizieme siecle; 2: Du quatorzieme au seizieme siecle, 3: Les dix-septieme et dix-
huitieme siecles. Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum Deutschland: Staatliche Munzsammlung Munchen, 20, Ionien 1 - Nr. 882, edited by Dietrich Klose; Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum Sweden 1, 2: Sammlung Eric von Post, edited by Christof Boehringer; Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum 10: The John Morcom Collection of Western Greek Bronze Coins, edited by Martin Price; Hans J. Colin's Die Munzen von Perge in Pamphylien aus hellenistischer Zeit; Studies in Ancient Coinage from Turkey, edited by Richard Ashton; Blanche R. Brown, Royal Portraits in Sculpture and Coins: Pyrrhos and the Successors of Alexander; Wolfram Weiser, Katalog ptolemaischer Bronzemunzen der Sammlung des Instituts fur Altertumskunde der Universitat zu Koln; Derek Allen, Catalogue of the Celtic Coins in the British Museum 3, Bronze Coins of Gaul, edited by Melinda Mays; Raymond Weiller, Monnaies antiques decouvertes au Grand-Duche de Luxembourg 4; James B Lovette, Biblical Related Coins: Including Both the Old and New Testaments; Leandre Villaronga, Denarios y quinarios ibericos: Estudio y catalogacion; Marta Campo and Bartolome Mora, Las monedas de Malaca; Sylloge Nummorum Romanorum: Italia. Milano-Civiche Raccolte Numismatiche. Res Publica, 3: CRA 285/2-344/4c (nn. 1293-2141); Rodolfo Martini, Monetazione bronzea romana tardo-
repubblicana, 2, Sextus Pompeius. Le emissioni hispaniche del tipo CN AG, le serie di Eppius e gli "assi" siciliani; Michael Harlan, Roman Republican Moneyers and Their Coins, 63 BC-49 BC; Mechtild Overbeck, Romische Bleimarken in der Staatlichen Munzsammlung Munchen: Eine Quelle zur Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte Roms; Kenneth W. Harl, Coinage in the Roman Economy, 300 B.C. to A.D. 700; Y. T. Nercessian, Armenian Coins and Their Values; Jorgen Steen Jensen, ed., Tusindtallets Danske Monter fra Den kongelige Mont-og Medaillesamling (Danish coins from the 11th century in the Royal Collection of Coins and Medals); Lucia Travaini, La monetazione nell'Italia normanna; Heinrich Kalvelage and Hartmut Trippler, Die Munzen der Grafen, Herzsge und Grossherzsge von Oldenburg; D. M. Metcalf, Thrymsas and Sceattas in the Ashmolean Museum, vols. 1-3; Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles, 46, The Norweb Collection, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A. Tokens of the British Isles, 1575-1750, 5, Staffordshire to Westmoreland, edited by R. H. Thompson and J. Dickinson; Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles, 47, Herbert Schneider Collection, pt. 1, English Gold Coins and Their Imitations, 1257-1603, edited by Peter Woodhead; Sylloge Nummorum Arabicorum, Tubingen. Gazna/Kabul XIV d: Hurasan IV, edited by Florian Schwarz; Rafael Frochoso Sanchez, Las monedas califales de ceca al-Andalus y Madinat al-Zahra', 316-403 H./928-1013 J.C.; Samir Shamma, The Time of al-Ma'mun in the Light of Numismatic Evidence; Halit Erkiletlioglu and Oguz Guler, Turkiye selcuklu sultanlari ve sikkeleri; William F. Spengler and Wayne G. Sayles, Turkoman Figural Bronze Coins and Their Iconography, 2: The Zengids; Hans Herrli, The Coins of the Sikhs; Robert and Monica Tye, Jitals: A Catalogue and Account of the Coin Denominations of Daily Use in Medieval Afghanistan and North West India; From Laurens Schulman, b.v., Bussum, Netherlands, we have been presented with D. A. Wittop Koning, De Gelderse Munt te Harderwijk, 1584-1806; W. K. de Bruijn, De nederlandse florijn in al zijn facetten; and Erik van Scheepen, Universiteit op de penning: Penningen van Athenaeum illustre en Universitet van Amsterdam 1632-1992; John Davenport, East Baltic Regional Coinage; Roland Elie, Jetons et medailles publicitaires francais et coloniaux; Commerce et industrie, Artisanat, Professions liberales, Maisons de Tolerance; Jean-Paul Divo and Hans-Joachim Schramm, Die deutschen Goldmanzen, 1800-1930. 3rd ed.; Jens Pilegaard, Sieg's montkatalog 1996; Fabrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre, Cien anos de historia: Fabrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre; Wissenschaftsgeschichte der Numismatik: Beitrage zum 17. Deutschen Numismatikertag, 3.-5. Marz 1995 in Hannover, edited by Rainer Albert and Reiner Cunz; Oscar Marotta and Miguel A. Morucci, Catalogo de monedas de plata columnarias y de busto ceca de Potosi 1767 a 1825, received from Fundacion de los Corrales Viejos, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil, Brazil: History and Money. Permanent Exhibition; Arnaldo J. Cunietti-Ferrando, Historia de la Real Casa de Moneda de Potosi durante la dominacion hispanica 1573-1652; Horace P. Flatt, The Coins of Independent Peru, 4: The Pasco and Arequipa Mints; Howard A. Daniel III, The Catalog and Guidebook of Southeast Asian Coins and Currency, 2, 3, Democratic Republic of Viet Nam Coins and Currency; Richard Lobel, et al., Coincraft's Standard Catalogue of English & UK Coins; 1066 to Date; Sovetskii kollektzioner, 1-29 (1963-93); Robert Weller and Ernie Richards, Shipwrecks near Wabasso Beach: East Coast of Florida; Randolph Zander, The Alaskan Parchment Scrip of the Russian American Company, 1816-1867; Q. David Bowers, Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr.: King of Coins; Edward L. Fletcher, Jr. The Shield Five Cent Series: A Comprehensive Listing of Known Varieties; Robert Friedberg, Paper Money of the United States; A Complete Guide with Valuations; Peter W. Huntoon, United States Large Size National Bank Notes; Charles J. Culleiton, National Bank Notes of Allegheny County, donated by the Western Pennsylvania Numismatic Society, Pittsburgh, PA.

In addition to the accessions already mentioned, Catherine Bullowa-Moore has donated several rare works from the library of the late David M. Bullowa. The numismatic library of the late Charles K. Panish, consisting primarily of works devoted to the coins of the Indian subcontinent, has been presented to the library by his widow, Carol Panish, of Westport, CT. The Library Fund has also received generous cash contributions from David Hendin, Nyack, NY, Fred Kleiner, Boston, MA, Orestes Zervos, Athens, Greece, and Robert Schonwalter, Fort Lee, NJ.

With the introduction of electronic mail to the Society, the library has experienced an increase in reference inquiries, both directly and through its subscription to numismatic lists such as NUMISM-L and BiblioNumis-L. While the time spent in answering these inquiries is not reduced significantly by the use of e-
mail, other computer-related developments have helped reduce time spent in finding bibliographic citations related to these inquiries. The Numismatic Indexes Project (NIP) sponsored by the Harry Bass Research Foundation has made it possible to perform computer searches of the periodical indexes thus far included. As more indexes are added to this project, it will achieve a comprehensiveness which selective bibliographies and card catalogues cannot provide. A recently acquired cataloguing software program, Mitinet/Marc version 5, has enabled our Assistant Librarian, Grace Lin, to print complete sets of catalogue cards in-house on our laser printer. In addition to reducing the time spent on typing cards, this software should enable us to update our card catalogue in a more timely fashion. Previously, we have sent cards off site for reproduction.

On February 24, in conjunction with the annual "Day of the Etruscans" conference, the librarians mounted an exhibit of works from the library's collection of eighteenth to twentieth century materials dealing wholly or partially with Etruscan numismatics. Among the works exhibited were Joann Baptist Passeri's De nummi etruscis paestanorum (Pesara, 1748), P. Raffaele Garrucci's Le monete dell'Italia antica (Rome, 1885), and Ernst J. Haeberlin's Aes Grave; Das Schwergeld Roms und Mittelitaliens (Frankfurt am Main, 1910).

Toward the end of 1995, our long-time Library Assistant, Pablo Arroyo, took a position in the library at Arthur Andersen, Inc. For most of the summer, the library had the assistance of two part-time employees who helped with photocopying, filing, shelving, and other routine duties. These were Alejandra Serrano of Bennington College and Lisa Rosario of Fordham College. The summer also saw the arrival of this year's Graduate Seminar students and the visiting scholar, Professor Andrea Saccocci, University of Udine, who kept the library staff busy with bibliographical queries. With very few exceptions, we were able to provide most of the numismatic references requested. Prof. Saccocci also made extensive use of the library's auction holdings in his research on Paduan coins of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.

Accessions
 Books 911
Pamphlets 370
Periodicals 4,110
Auction Catalogues 1,470
Fixed Price Lists 462

Activity
Materials Catalogued 4,460
Reference Inquiries 3,930

CAMPBELL