Berlin, Howard M., aka The Numismatourist
Following his retirement as a college educator as an electrical engineer, Howard M. Berlin had both the time and the good fortune to travel. He has visited 75 countries, averaging about 60,000 miles annually, as the extra page inserts and immigration/exit stamps in his passports verify. Some of these destinations, which have numismatic institutions of one kind or another, were first described in his semi-monthly column, “World Destinations,” that appeared in WorldWide Coins magazine. Prior to the column’s debut, Wayne Homren, the editor of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society’s electronic newsletter, The E-Sylum, dubbed him, the “Numismatourist.” He also writes travel articles for the Jewish Federation of Delaware’s Jewish Voice as part of the “Jewish Traveler” column.
In 2014, Howard M. Berlin published his now famous travel guide “The Numismatourist: The Only Worldwide Travel Guide to Museums, Mints, and Other Places of Interest for the Numismatist.” It spans 410 pages and covers more than 150 museums, mints, and central banks on five continents. Almost 100 of these institutions are described in depth with pictures.
Howard M. Berlin had been a collector for many years of coins and banknotes of the British Mandate of Palestine, along with National Banknotes of towns with the name of “Berlin” or its variation. Many times, he exhibited parts of his collection at national and regional shows, often being awarded the “Best of Show” prize. Over the years, his articles on coins and banknotes have appeared in numismatic publications such as Coin World, WorldWide Coins, Paper Money Values, The Banknote Reporter, The Shekel and in Coin World’s monthly World Coins and Paper Money supplements.
In addition to his writings about coins and bank notes, Howard M. Berlin is a writer with varied interests with more than 30 published books on electronic circuit design, financial markets, and the cinema. Some of his books, articles, photographs, web sites, and columns have won “best of” awards by both the Delaware Press Association and the Numismatic Literary Guild. He is a member of the Authors Guild, Delaware Press Association, and the Numismatic Literary Guild.
When not writing or traveling, in his spare time he enjoys playing folk guitar and 5-string bluegrass banjo. He has been a ham radio operator for over 60 years since age 14 with the call sign W3HB.
Howard M. Berlin received five academic degrees: 2 bachelors degrees; 2 masters; and a doctorate. He has been elected to several honor societies and has been awarded several U.S. patents.
Howard M. Berlin is the first honorary Coin Scout of CoinsWeekly’s Numismatic Directory.