Notice of February Meeting

The February meeting of the PEINA will be held on Monday, January 17, at 7:30 pm in the Library of Colonel Gray Senior High School. Please join us for informal conversation beginning at 7 pm.

At our last meeting Pope Morris brought along some lovely cookies; let's all try to remember to follow his example and bring along something for the table.

The meeting will begin at 7:30 with a draw for "valuable prizes" including a choice collection of U.S. $20 "Double Eagle" gold pieces - the ones with a flying eagle on them -- all in Unc condition. This is a mouthwatering collection, and a tasty addition to any collection!

And, we congratulate Gary Woodhouse for picking the winning draw ticket for that Unc Crow-Thiessen $1000 Bank of Canada note (nicely portrayed on a fairly useful coffee mug!) which was the January prize.

Storm Reminder

Our February meeting will be postponed to the following Monday, the 24, should the school close on that day.

On The Agenda

Thanks to our APNA president Doug Shand, we have an underwater adventure on our agenda as we continue our theme of treasure and treasure ships. Produced by A&E Television, we have the super video, "Treasure! The Quest For The Maravilla".

This video details the history of the Maraville from the moment it set sail from the New world to return to Spain, carrying over 600 passengers as well as a treasure of gold and silver bars, coins, jewellery, and precious gems. Also on board were treasures acquired from sources trading in the Far East. How valuable was this treasure? One emerald cross sold at auction in the early 90s for $500,000 U.S.

Super underwater photography, dramatic reconstruction, and enough gold bars to pave your driveway make this a video worth seeing.

At The Last Meeting

We had a busy evening in January with an auction of items donated by Harry Eisenhauer, followed by a video on the Oak Island treasure and an review of plans for the APNA spring show.

Our discussion regarding a show medal brought forward two suggestions, and we agreed to the suggestion from Brian MacKenzie and Ralph Bagnall to feature the new Prince Edward Island arms. The president will check with the Clerk of the Executive Council to ascertain the proper procedure for obtaining permission to use David Webber's new design, and Ralph Bagnall has agreed to guide the project to completion.

2003 Dues

Sincere thanks to members who paid their dues at the January meeting. Look for your receipt with this newsletter. Members are reminded that dues for 2003 are now due and payable, with the amounts unchanged from last year, $15 for a single membership, $20 for a family and $10 for a student.

Spring Show Reminder

The APNA Spring Show is set for Friday May 16 and Saturday May 17 at Rodd's Royalty Inn. We have a block of rooms set aside for the weekend. Anyone contemplating staying at Rodd's should call now to book a room. The special coin club rate is $75 plus taxes, just be sure to mention the coin club, and be specific if you want a room overlooking the Courtyard where the bourse and displays will be presented.

Prince Edward Island Numismatic Association

c/o 10 Edinburgh Drive

Charlottetown, P.E.I.

C1A 3E8

(902) 566-5837

Member of the Canadian Numismatic Association

(# 12576) since 1976 and

the Atlantic Provinces Numismatic Association (# 64)

Club Executive 2002

President

Mark Holton

<holton@islandtelecom.com>

Vice President

Ralph Dickieson

Secretary

Harley Ings

Treasurer

Gloria Houston

Website Manager

Gary Woodhouse

Club web site

www.angelfire.com/art/peina

.

This newsletter

...is published every month except July and August by the P.E.I. Numismatic Association. Submissions are always welcome

New Banknotes!

The front page of the business section of Toronto's Globe and Mail newspaper carried an interesting story on January 14 regarding Dr. Malcolm Knight, the Bank of Canada's Senior Deputy Governor.

Collectors of our modern paper money recognize this name, as it is Knight's signature - along with that of the Bank's Governor, David Dodge - which appears on our newest banknotes. The departure of Dr Knight for the Bank for International Settlements in Switzerland means that a new signature combination should be appearing soon. Advertisements for a successor have appeared already in the business press.

Meanwhile, the Thiessen-Knight and Dodge-Knight combinations, at the end of the old notes and the new $5 (Laurier) and $10 (Macdonald) notes, will almost certainly be less common than the long run enjoyed by the Thiessen-Bonin or Crow-Thiessen combination. This might be a good time to visit your friendly financial institution, if you have not already done so, to ask for some crisp new Malcolm Knight notes for your collection.

Dr. Knight, by the way, made a visit to Charlottetown a year or so ago, to speak to local business groups. He also visited Colonel Gray Senior High School to speak to Economics students. Many questions asked by students pertained to counterfeiting - this topic was much in the news at that time, sparked by the appearance of the new designs - and Knight very patiently reviewed some of the anti-counterfeiting features incorporated into the latest banknotes. When it came to the signatures, Knight admitted that one of the thrills of being at the Bank of Canada in a senior role was to see his signature on the money he handled every day.

Space permitting - for postage rate reasons we try to keep this newsletter to five sheets of paper or less - you will find that Globe article included with this copy of the newsletter.

Belzberg Collection

It's not every day that a collection like this one is offered up on the auction block. The owners decided they wanted the cash to expand their business, and so the coin collection was sold. Quality was the theme and focus of this outstanding collection, and the sale attracted widespread attention not only in the numismatic press but in the national news media as well.

The attached pages from Canadian Press, via the www.cointoday.com website, provide the details. Many of the coins sold were exceptionally rare, and the prices realized were remarkable. The 1911 silver dollar sold for over one million Canadian dollars. In anyone's language, that's a lot of money!

Interestingly, the least expensive lot sold for less than $25 which simply shows that high quality recent coins can still be obtained for "regular" prices.

Backmandy Inc.

We welcome Shawn Russell to the PEINA and wish his new business every success. Shawn's business card lists the areas of sports and celebrity memorabilia, sports cards, and autographed items as his particular area of business interest.

Notre Dame de Deliverance

This name may not be well-known now, but I think it will be once the lawyers get things taken care of. Elsewhere in this newsletter you'll find a copy of a report from the London (England) Guardian, regarding this French ship sunk in a storm off the coast of Florida in November 1755. The ship is in American territorial waters, but the ship was French and leased to Spain to carry goods and people. Who owns the treasure? Based upon estimates of the treasure's market value, that could be the 2 billion pound questions or, in Canadian funds, a cool 4.7 billion loonies. This story is fascinating and worth following in the months ahead.

How much is that loaf of bread?

One subject that fascinates young people - believe it or not - is inflation and deflation. How can a $5 bill not be worth $5 when the value is clearly printed on the note?

To illustrate, I tell my grade 12 Economics students about inflation in 1920s Germany and announce that we're about to go shopping for a loaf of bread. I then begin with the cost of a one-pound loaf of dark bread in Germany in 1914. As we work our way through the years to 1923, I pass around a few examples of German inflation notes picked up at various coin shows. When I say "And this note is for 50 million marks...." I know I have everyone's attention!

The discussion is always lively and informative, and the students leave with a greater

appreciation for what is called a sound currency and price stability. The handout which follows the lesson (included with this newsletter) becomes a useful reminder of our discussion.

Two of my German notes come from a former teacher of mine, who recalled how some people bought up inflationary notes thinking that, if stability returned to Germany and the notes were honoured by the government, they would be rich!

Alas, they were disappointed, although not as disappointed as those frugal Germans who saw years of saving made valueless by this hyperinflation. At the last APNA show in Dartmouth I exchanged a loonie for a 10,000-mark bond of 1922, paying 4% interest. Four marks were once worth one American dollar. That loonie included a sheet of interest coupons plus two plastic sleeve in which to keep them!