After spending a week in Philadelphia, I returned from the ANA convention, the "World’s Fair of Money," with many nice memories. This was far and away the most dynamic, most active ANA convention in many years.
First off, the Stack’s Bowers Galleries Auction, which crossed the $40 million mark, set many records, including $4,560,000 for the 1913 Liberty Head nickel, not to overlook countless other scarcities and rarities. The Joel R. Anderson Collection of Paper Money set records left and right, topped by an 1861 $50 Interest Bearing note that sold for $1,020,000, with the event realizing over high estimate. From the John Herzog Collection of federal bonds and related documents I captured the 1840 Dahlonega Mint receipt document—the first I have ever seen or heard of. Now, to figure out what do with it after I take it out of my bank vault. Perhaps ideal for the office wall?
I spent most of my time on the bourse floor, at Stack’s Bowers Galleries, and mainly at the Whitman Publications booth. At the latter place I must have talked with 500 or more people, including many of our clients, and signed hundreds of books. In fact, this was the most active Whitman sales event I have ever seen at an ANA show!
Among other activities I was a panelist on the "Ask the Experts" symposium as part of the Money Talks ANA series of programs held on Thursday afternoon. It played to a full room, probably the best attendance of any such event. In fact, we could have run overtime, there was so much enthusiasm. Because of this, moderator Susan Trask had already made arrangement for the ANA convention in the summer of 2019 to have a repeat performance, but lasting two hours instead of one!
I also enjoyed Bob Evans’s great presentation on the second (2014) recovery of treasures from the S.S. Central America, lost at sea on September 12, 1857. At the show itself, the California Gold Marketing Group headed by Dwight Manley and with Bob Evans greeting visitors was busy nonstop. I am now in the process of doing another book on the S.S. Central America due for publication later this year. This will be in the same format as the 2002 book, but smaller in size, about 300 pages, but of the same general appearance. This will detail the many coins, ingots and other items recovered in 2014.
The 1857-S double eagle is a unique case study in American numismatics. Over 7,000 mint-fresh coins were recovered from the treasure. Quite a few people only have one gold coin—an 1857-S $20. Those found in the first recovery in the late 20th century are long gone, and Dwight tells me that the lesser number retrieved in 2014 are selling like hotcakes.
Beyond that, I had the opportunity at the show to spend some time with incoming Mint Director David Ryder, a veteran in the position as he had held the post briefly a number of years ago. David is well-informed numismatically, which is a good outlook for all concerned. I also attended various meetings, including that of the Civil War Token Society. I am an advocate for specialized societies, and note that within the field of tokens and medals, the Civil War Token Society has about 800 members, the Token and Medal Society about 650, and Medal Collectors of America slightly over 200. There is, of course, some overlap and duplication. This probably nets to about 1,500 people in the wide world of numismatics who have become members. This field is one in which a modest budget can go a long way. If you have just a few thousand dollars to spend, you can form a memorable set. Of course, there are rarities as well. Perhaps this should be kept secret, for if the number of collectors doubles, prices may double as well!
Looking forward to the future, my next convention is planned to be the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo in Baltimore in October. If you plan to attend I look forward to seeing you there.
