As a cash-strapped student at Purdue University, Robert W. Julian decided to write his first magazine article about collectible coins to earn money to buy $100 worth of books on U.S. coins.

The books weren't even for himself. He intended to mail them to coin museum curators in Leningrad, Russia, in exchange for microfilm documenting the history of certain Russian coins.

Now 73, Julian has written more than 1,300 articles for coin magazines and journals and published one book on rare coins in 1977. The American Numismatic Association named him its Numismatist of the Year at its annual convention in Philadelphia last month.

Julian is the 17th recipient of the award, which was established in 1995.

During the nomination period, Julian received a phone call from a coin-collecting friend, he said, asking permission to nominate him for the award.

"He has spent hundreds of hours at the National Archives, extracting information that he then passes to the collecting community," wrote Joseph E. Boling in his nomination, quoted in the Aug. 28 issue of Numismatic News. "His carefully researched treatises, most based on primary sources, have changed our common knowledge."

Although Julian thought he had "zero" likelihood of being chosen, he gave Boling the go-ahead and thought little more about it.

"And I got it," said Julian. "I was very surprised."

Julian has received more literary awards from the association than any other author, including induction into the association's Numismatic Hall of Fame in 1998 and a joint award from three prominent numismatic associations in 2002, according to an article published in Numismatic News, a publication to which Julian contributes. He also writes for The Numismatist.

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