Felix Schlag's Jefferson Nickel

The Buffalo Nickel was first struck in 1913, so its 25th anniversary would occur in 1938. The U.S. Mint found Fraser's popular and iconic design hard to fully strike. The San Francisco and Denver Mints especially, had a difficult time creating fully struck specimens. After 25 years without a design change, federal law permitted a new design to be created, without an act of Congress. The Coinage Act of September 26, 1890 permitted the Director of the Mint to change a coin's design, as long as it was approved by the Secretary of the Treasury.

So, in 1938, the Treasury decided to hold a competition to design a new Five Cent coin, honoring the third president, Thomas Jefferson. The prize for the winning entry was $1,000.00, a substantial award in 1938. Three hundred and ninety artists and would-be coin designers entered the competition. The winner selected was a German émigré named Felix Oscar Schlag.

To read the complete article, see:
The Rarities In The Underappreciated Jefferson Nickel Series(https://www.greysheet.com/news/story/the-rarities-in-the-underappreciated-jefferson-nickel-series)

1975 "No S" Proof Dime Sells

A very rare dime just sold for $506,250. According to GreatCollections president Ian Russell, it fetched this eye-popping price in an online auction on October 27. The dime itself is now worth about five million times its original value of 10 cents.

The coin was made in 1975 by the US Mint in San Francisco, California shows President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and is one of only two known coins that exists without a distinctive "S" mark.

The dime was sold by three anonymous sisters in Ohio who inherited the dime when their brother passed away. He had kept it stored in a bank vault for over 40 years. According to the Associated Press, the sisters told Russel that he and their mother bought the first error coin 1978 for $18,200-about $90,000 today. Their parents viewed the rare coin as a financial safety net.

To read the complete article, see:
Ultra-rare dime sells for $506,250(https://www.popsci.com/science/san-francisco-mint-dime/)

To read the complete article, see:
Rare coin sells for over $500K after sitting in Ohio bank vault for 46 years(https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2024/11/01/rare-1975-dime-sold-500k-ohio/75987576007/)

Oldest Circulating Currencies in the World

The Haitian Gourde (1813) is the fifth oldest circulating currency in the world. In addition to being very old, it is, along with the Dominican peso, one of only two currencies originating from the Caribbean.

In first place is the oldest currency still in circulation, dating back to the Middle Ages in the 800s. This is the Pound Sterling, the official currency of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and some British Overseas Territories.

The 5th oldest currency ... first circulated as Haitian currency in 1813. Before its introduction, the country used the French colonial pound. The name Gourde is French, but originates from an old Spanish currency called "gordos", a diminutive of "pesos gordos". The name evolved to the current spelling to reflect the French language.

To read the complete article, see:
Haiti - Did you know ? : The Haitian Gourde is the 5th oldest circulating currency in the world(https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-43464-haiti-did-you-know-the-haitian-gourde-is-the-5th-oldest-circulating-currency-in-the-world.html)

People on U.S. Currency

In 1862, during the Civil War, the first $1 legal tender banknotes were issued, featuring the Treasury seal and a portrait of Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase (possibly as a way to advance his own political career). While serving in the role during Abraham Lincoln's administration, Chase was the architect of the national banking system, and he helped design the new paper money authorized under the National Bank Acts, which called for a system of nationally chartered banks and a uniform national currency. The same portrait of Chase that appeared on the $1 banknote was later used on the $10,000 banknote, the largest denomination ever in public circulation. Though currencies above $100 are no longer circulated, Chase National Bank, founded in 1877, was named in the former treasury secretary's honor.

To read the complete article, see:
6 People You Didn't Know Were on U.S. Currency(https://historyfacts.com/us-history/article/6-people-you-didnt-know-were-on-u-s-currency/)

Mystery Tipped Bitcoin

A server was left puzzled after a customer left a restaurant without paying the bill and instead left behind a mysterious gold-colored coin.

Reddit user u/Martoshka shared the experience on a subreddit called, "mildly infuriating," where it gained 42,000 upvotes. They explained they work in an upscale steakhouse, and the bill totaled $35.

"A guy left this on the table of the restaurant I work in and left without paying," they wrote.

Alongside the post, they included a photo of the coin left by the diner, which is gold with an engraved Bitcoin "B." Text around the coin reads: "Bitcoin. Digital. Decentralized. Peer to peer."

To read the complete article, see:
Server Left Perplexed After Customer Leaves Mystery Coin Instead of Paying(https://www.newsweek.com/mystery-coin-customer-leaves-restaurant-1978050)

Horrors! New-York Historical Society Loses Its Hyphen

From our 2012 article;

The New-York Historical Society has secured a lead donor for its forthcoming new wing dedicated to American democracy-and is simplifying its name to become the New York Historical.

The museum, founded in 1804, announced these big changes as part of its 220th anniversary celebrations, the day before it was set to host a naturalization ceremony for 75 new citizens.

The $175 million construction project, which broke ground in 2021 and officially started construction a year ago, will be completed thanks to a major gift from H.M. Agnes Hsu-Tang and Oscar L. Tang. Officially dubbed the Tang Wing for American Democracy, it will open in 2026, just in time for the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the founding of the United States of America.

To read the complete article, see:
A New Wing-and Name-for the New-York Historical Society(https://news.artnet.com/art-world/new-york-historical-society-new-wing-name-2560342)

To read the earlier E-Sylum article, see:
THE NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY: RESPECT THE HYPHEN!(https://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v15n23a13.html)

Less Time for Bad Books

Reading a bad novel when you are approaching pensionable age... is like taking the time left available to you and setting it on fire.

To read the complete article, see:
Nick Hornby: The Older You Get, the Less Time You Have for Bad Books(https://lithub.com/nick-hornby-the-older-you-get-the-less-time-you-have-for-bad-books/)