Notice of Meeting

The next general meeting of the PEINA will be held on Monday evening, February 19, 2001, at 7:30 p.m. in the Library of Colonel Gray Senior High School, Charlottetown. Don't hesitate to arrive at 7 pm for a chat or to browse through the month's accumulation of mail and magazines. We'll have the latest Canadian Coin News on hand as well as printed material from clubs and dealers.

In case of bad weather we will meet in the school one week later, on Monday the 26 but let's hope that won't be necessary. If in doubt don't hesitate to call Mark at home, at 566-5837, but if schools are shut down then you can be sure that Colonel Gray is closed and our meeting postponed.
 

Dues for 2001

If you have not already done so, please join the two dozen or so names on our list. Don't forget to bring along cash or a cheque to cover your PEINA dues for the calendar year 2001. If you can't make it to the meeting then please send your payment via Canada Post to the above address and I'll make sure it is passed on to our Treasurer.

Remember: $10 for a student, $15 for ordinary members and $20 for a couple.

Those who were at the January meeting and paid their dues received membership cards on the spot. If you were not at the meeting but sent in a cheque then you'll find your 2001 membership card enclosed with this letter.
 

On our agenda:

This should be fun! We need a design, or a suggestion for a design, for the 2001 Spring Show medal for our gathering in May. We talked about this in January, and decided to give ourselves a month for some creative thinking. Bring your suggestions and sketches to the February meeting and we'll see what happens next!

And: March 20 is the first day of spring, and April 1 sees us adjust the clocks forward. Let's get ready for spring and the May APNA event with some spring cleaning of our collections. Let's aim to have an evening devoted to buying, selling and trading. So, between now and the February meeting, check over what you have and do not need and bring it along.

Notice, too, that because Colonel Gray is closed on March 19 for the school's March Break, we'll do as we did last year and meet in March one week later than usual, on March 26.
 

APNA Spring 2001

A major decision must be made soon regarding the design of the medal we shall issue to mark the occasion of the Spring 2001 APNA meeting. We'll also have a report on Rodd's and a decision made -- we should have a formal motion for this -- on table prices ($25 last time, as I recall) and admission (free last time). Anything else?
 

The January Meeting

It was a nippy evening, but a very good crowd was on hand to begin the new year with a very pleasant gathering. Discussion concerned mostly the APNA event in May, the design for the show medal, and some housekeeping matters.

When the formal part of the meeting was over, members watched a video, "The Bank of Canada; Not Your Average Bank" which profiled the activities of the Bank including its responsibility for Canada's currency, and the Currency Museum which the Bank maintains at its headquarters in Ottawa.

This was followed by having some coins and tokens passed around and this provoked many discussions as well as the comment, made by a number of people, that we should have more evenings spent looking at and talking about and buying/selling/trading coins. So....get ready for the 19th.

Token of the Month

Your editor has been busy at his day job, especially with first semester final exams. Marking of these exams has taken up gallons of his time. Coin buying has been limited to four new Wellington pieces -- three North American and one Irish -- and a Wellington medal from England, and I'm sure you don't want to hear more about old Wellington.

That being the case, there isn't anything ready for this column this month but we'll aim to have something next time.

If you have a token you'd like to write about, please contact the editor right away.
 

Book Review:

The Coin Atlas; a comprehensive view of the coins of the world throughout history. London: Little, Brown & Company, 1999. 338 pages. ISBN 0-316-84821-2 First published in 1990 by Macdonald & Co.

I am reminded to review this useful book thanks to a flyer received the other day from Coincraft in England. Coincraft calls it "one of the best general coin books ever published". I am inclined to agree.

I picked up a copy last summer while in England and I must say, it is fascinating reading. There is something new on every page, and the pages are packed with information in the form of text, illustrations, captions, sidebars and a host of maps.

For anyone interested I'll bring along my copy and the Coincraft order form. The hardback edition sells for 19.95 pounds or about 45 dollars Canadian. The book is quickly going out of print....

As I recall, my family and I were having an evening stroll along Regent Street and I seemed to be spending a lot of time cooling my heels while the ladies checked out the clothing stores. When we came across a bookstore I suggested we go in, and I spotted a paperback copy in the antiques and collectibles section. At last, something worth buying! I paid 14.99 pounds, and I would have paid the extra "fiver" had a hardback been available at that time.

The Coin Atlas is a history of coins and currency, divided by continent and then by country. Each country is presented with maps, a few appropriate photographs, reproductions of key representative coins, and an informative text giving an overview of the history of coins in that particular place. To judge by the sample of Canadian coins and tokens used to illustrate our country, the selection is representative indeed. This book does not replace specialized monographs, but it is intended to give the intelligent reader a comprehensive overview. In that task it succeeds admirably. It's a great book to read, and a great book just for looking at the coin reproductions. The photography is excellent, as is the quality of the printing.

I saw this paperback edition several times in Britain, so I assume the book is still available. If you want to follow up on this then contact your bookseller, check Chapters or Indigo on the web, or order from Coincraft if you want the hardback edition. This book will be a good addition to your coin library.
 

Reminder

If the treasurer were here she'd ask me to remind you about paying your dues for our new year 2001.

If the President of the Sou'Wester Coin Club was here, he'd ask me to remind you about the Fall 2001 APNA show taking place in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, October 12 and 13. Look for full details in our September newsletter.
 

Help Wanted

Lyle Garrett of Ontario e-mailed to ask for information on CTC catalogues, 1960 to 1967. If anyone can help him, or offer suggestions, I am sure he would appreciate hearing from you. He can be reached at <scouter57@aol.com>.
 

And, speaking of the Bank of Canada....

It's been in the media, and the Globe and Mail reproduced both sides in colour on the front page. It's the new $10 banknote, and perhaps by the time you receive this you will have come across one in circulation. One of my students brought an example to class the other day and I must say, the image of Sir John A. in front of the old Library of Parliament makes a handsome introduction to our new series of notes.

The reverse of the New $10 isn't quite as successful. Either my eyes are failing me, or the lines from In Flanders Fields appears in terribly small letters. Nevertheless the idea of Remembrance is a noble one and worthy of this project. To include our post-1945 peacekeepers is also fitting. I am puzzled about the memorial arch, and wonder if it is a real arch somewhere or a symbolic one. I keep trying to relate it to the National War Memorial in Ottawa but without success. Perhaps someone can enlighten me on this.

I am sure everyone will have their own interpretation of the series, but let's just say the "modern" design of this banknote is carried off with flair and makes those I have spoken to very keen to see the others.
 

Numismatics on the

Internet

For collectors with access to a computer and the Internet there are dozens, hundreds, of shops and dealers, auction houses and auction sites, available for browsing.

One such site is Cybercoins, at <<www.cybercoins.net>>. This business of over 30 years standing is located in Pennsylvania but that's only a few clicks as far as a computer is concerned. Cybercoins has an extensive selection of coins and tokens available, and most can be seen via colour scans.

Since opening the site in 1995 over 132 thousand visitors have logged in. According to the main page, Cybercoins boasts that have "an awesome stock of coins for you". A browse through the well-organized links bears out that claim. You'll find the usual collection of American and Canadian coins, with the American section being especially plump in numbers. There is also a very good selection of U.S. colonial coins and token as well as paper notes issued by the American colonies/states during the early period. Also available are medieval and early coins, and modern World coins, as well at British, Irish and Scottish tokens and a special section devoted to Conder tokens, organized alphabetically by town. There is also a section devoted to stamps, to various interesting links, as well as banknotes, old newspapers and magazines and miscellaneous items.

So, I'm browsing through and thinking, this would make an interesting piece for the newsletter, and out jumps a Wellington token. For $19 it's hard to resist, so off goes my request to purchase. Not long afterward, the item is in my hands. Postage and packing (very well packed, I might add) added $2.50 to the cost which I thought was very reasonable. Time elapsed: I didn't keep track, but I'd guess not much more than a week.

Any collector who collects, as I do, in an unusual area will like Cybercoins. Their stock is remarkable, for example, French coins issued before the revolution of 1789. One wonders if any of them saw service in New France. And the medieval collection is like wise very extensive. Finally, it goes without saying that if you are looking for an American coin, and that includes the unusual two and three cent pieces, you'll find them here very easily.

However,

when you don't have access to the Internet, you may fall back on Canada Post and keep in touch with collectors and dealers by mail.

Recently I contacted some individuals who advertised in Canadian Coin News. I was very pleased with the result and thought others might be interested to hear about them.

The first is George Manz. He sent me a very large package of lists of coins and I'll bring these along again to the next meeting, along with the others.

Manz is based in Regina, at Box 3626, S4P 3L7. Like the others, he answered my letter promptly. Manz also enclosed a personal letter, a nice touch I thought. Alas, he was all out of Wellington tokens, but his lists....Let's just say they are extensive indeed. His Canadian coins and tokens lists run to a couple of dozen pages with a good selection of all types of coins. This includes Maritime pieces as well as tokens, paper money, commemorative medals, world coins, and a fascinating section of "Odd & Curious Money". There are lots of treasures here, and the prices seem reasonable.

If you have a computer, Manz's material can be accessed and viewed at <www.georgemanzcoins.com> and his e-mail address is <g.manz@sk.sympatico.ca>.

The second dealer who operates via the mailbox is Stan Morash, of Box 24, Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, S6V 5R4. His list is a little more modest than Manz's but certainly no less interesting. He offers for sale an extensive collection of Canadian decimal coins, proof-like sets, Maritime and Newfoundland material, pre-Confederation tokens, official and miscellaneous medals, and Canadian paper money. His list also includes world coins, some RCM products, US state quarters, and many other interesting items. There are some good items here for everyone, including military collectors looking for First World War canteen tokens (he has two) and some Breton tokens you don't come across too often.

Finally, a third dealer with tempting material is Ross D. King, of Box 571, Chesley, Ontario, N0G 1L0. His focus is on British coins and tokens, and he has a wonderful February list of coins from King Henry I [1100-1135] to the present. That covers both hammered and milled coinage, and such delightful coins as groats, farthings, florins and many others not now in use. King also offers Maundy money, gold coins (a spade guinea, 1787 in F-VF is $395), and an extensive range of English, Welsh and Scottish tokens of the 17^th to 19^th centuries. There is also a section devoted to commemorative medals.

If these three gentleman have one thing is common, it is a devotion to the hobby and great care taken to identify and present their material clearly to the collector. I'll bring along all their lists to our next meeting and you can see for yourself. Meanwhile for the collector trying to complete a collection or simply wanting to add to a collection, these lists will repay close attention.

Another Reminder

Next meeting, Monday February 19^th, 7 pm for 7:30 pm and don't forget to pay your dues.
 

And, as Clyde Gilmour used to say, "so long for now". Don't forget dues, ideas for a show medal, and bring along anything numismatic you no longer need and be prepared to join in our numismatic bazaar.