Saul Teichman Indexes Virgil Brand Ledgers at American Numismatic Society

The Virgil Brand ledgers at the American Numismatic Society (ANS), an inventory of one of the most important American collections, are a frequently consulted resources at the ANS library.The main ledger acts as a summary of the entire collection, while the 23 secondary ledgers provide additional detail on each coin. The Newman Portal and the ANS previously collaborated on thescanning of these ledgers, which, in total, describe over a hundred thousand items. Now that this material is accessible online, Saul Teichman has meticulously created an index that details severalthousand of the most significant pieces listed in these massive, oversized volumes.

The result is eight finding aids, each dedicated to a specific area - Carson City coinage, colonials, early U.S. gold, medals, patterns, proof gold, U.S. rarities, and territorial coinage. Theseindexes illuminate the acquisitive, insatiable nature of Brand, whose middle name might well have been "Duplicate." Why settle for a single 1827 quarter when you can have nine of the 18 known?Teichman has generously made these indices available through the Newman Portal, and collectors and researchers alike may now more easily search for provenance clues that could extend the story of acoin back into the 19th century.

1. Acquisition of 1827 25c listed in the Brand ledgers, #10436, purchased in 1893 at $150.00

2. Same coin offered in the Chapman sale of the Petry collection 5/8/1893 (Chapman bid book copy from Hamelberg library)

3. Virgil Brand identified as winning bidder ("Red"), from the Chapman bid book

Link to Virgil Brand Ledger indices on Newman Portal:
https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/archivedetail/513927?Year=2017&displayAmt=50

Saul Teichman adds:

To read the complete lot description, see:
https://www.archive.org/stream/publicauction142001bour#page/n61/mode/2up