VAMWorld 2.0

Hmmm...does that make next year the "81st Anniversary Convention" or do they get two "81st Anniversaries?" Will they continue to discourage educational exhibits by charging a fee?

The most recent two boxes uploaded to NNP are: RG104 E-229 Box 123 and Box 124. I have no others being processed. The balance of 1900 will have to wait NARA reopening.

Central Stated is dead for this spring. EAC is likely to follow. Having a coin or stamp show in the US right now is like setting up a "Virus Buffet." The most vulnerable age group, in close quarters, etc. I's like doing a quilting show for the old ladies. Now one option is to combine coin/stamp and ...

Yesterday, at NARA, the staff had a person leave, then did a scrub down of a large area around where he had been working. The fellow was coughing a lot and I presume that made others uncomfortable. FYI - Our local media (Washington DC area) has also reported that several people who had the virus hav...

Several members are using NNP's recently posted research materials for projects. As of today NARA has closed all research rooms and facilities until further notice. I have E-229 Boxes 123 and 124 to process and post. Nicole in Philadelphia has at least one E-1 box to process. I do not expect to rega...

Hmmmm....I think that's the even rarer "Daddy squirrel got kicked out of the nest by Mommy squirrel" variety. Although, your coin photo there looks a little "baggy" to me.

I'm searching for the very rare "Spitting Squirrel" variety, myself.

Gold bullion contaminated with iron, etc. was a persistent problem until the complete Mint Bureau switch to electrolytic refining. Even after that, it remained a problem with gold bars coming from Europe or from melted foreign coins. During the 1850-1880's there were intermittent arguments between t...

If all the detail of a normal Peace dollar die were brought up during striking, it would look like the very best satin proof -- but maybe with luster from prior die use -- ? (None are known, however.) It would also have nearly square rims that were flat on the upper surface. Note that a "fin" result...

1) Reeds cut into the collar are the raised bits on a coin' edge.
2) By the time of Peace dollars, reeds were cut using a drift tool, not a knurling tool. Drift overlap would only occur if the wrong tool were used then "overcut" with the correct one.

Localized die fatigue. Might have been caused by dies not being exactly parallel and thereby creating excess pressure and stress at one side of each (near rim). If there was any sinking of the reverse die it would be masked by the steel stress.

Brittle gold & silver from impurities – 1900 The US Mint system included both coinage mints and assay offices. All accepted deposits unrefined gold and silver for use in coinage, but only mints and the New York Assay Office routinely refined precious metals into fine (0.999) bars. The physical chara...

We don't see many Morgan or Peace dollars with a fin rim, but here's an explanation of one cause direct from the Engraver. Near the end of the letter the word "edge" refers to what collector call the "rim."

Hope you find it useful! Be sure to use the CD to search for any word or phrase - subjects are not necessarily grouped close together due to interactions of technological changes.

Two common causes of defective coinage strips and cracked or brittle silver blanks were the presence of small pieces of cupric oxide in the ingot and minute gas bubbles. Oxide accumulated whenever metal was melted or raised to a high, but not melting, temperature. Fluxes, acid dips and scraping remo...

The initial group of "1921 Proof Morgan dollars" were documented by T.L Comparette in letters to George Goddard. You can read the correspondence in Renaissance of American Coinage, also Girl on the Silver Dollar. But, they appeared 3 months after production began.

It's a "schmear of cream cheese" from George Morgan's morning bagel.

The previous poster provides some very useful information based on direct experience with a steel die. The key phrase is: "The acid frosting looked too matte, although if I had struck enough tokens from the die there would eventually be some luster on the portrait. The frosting via bead-blasting is ...

I do not see anything indicating more than a cursory guess about the cause(s). Also, no acid, abrasive or anything that removes metal will "enhance detail" - it is simply impossible. It is possible to create the illusion of texture that the human eye can blend into existing detail, but that is not "...

If a written reference to an expedient method of restoring die detail that had been ground away by overly aggressive basining does surface, I will read it with great interest. I'd love to see a first person account of hand engraving to touch up voids on the 78-S reverse dies. And yes, I'd love to k...