Archive: People and Markets

The coin shows two emperor penguins standing on the ice showcased in an extraordinary inverted relief.

Pobjoy Mints the World’s First Inverted 50 Pence Coin

Pobjoy Mint celebrates World Penguin Day with the world’s first inverted 50 pence coin. It features two emperor penguins.

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Lars Emil Bruun (1852–1923): From the Local Inn to an International Enterprise

The auction of the exceptional Bruun collection, 100 years after the collector’s death, has attracted a great deal of attention. But who was Bruun as a person? What inspired him? On behalf of Stack’s, Ursula Kampmann went in search of Bruun’s personality and compiled a short biography.

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CIT’s Topography – Grand Canyon

Those who take this Grand Canyon coin in their hands for the first time, will find it hard to believe how detailed it replicates the relief of the Grand Canyon. With this issue, CIT and B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt demonstrate that an ultra-high relief can also be turned into an ultra-low relief.

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Gilded silver plate, Iran or Afghanistan, probably Parthian or Early Sasanian, probably 2nd–3rd century. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

“Luxury and Power: Persia to Greece” at the British Museum

Over centuries the Persian empire and the Greeks had many conflicts. But nevertheless they influenced each other in many ways, as coins and works of art document. A major exhibition at the British Museum explores the relationship between luxury and power in this time.

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Archive: Coins, Medals and more

L. E. Bruun: A Collector in His Time

On the occasion of the upcoming auction of the second part of the Bruun Collection, Ursula Kampmann set out again to explore the story of the person behind this collection on behalf of Stack's. This time, she took a close look at Bruun's career as a collector. Read on to learn about the coin trade and the world of collecting before the Second World War.
Railway tunnel under Surami pass near the village Tsipa, Chkherimela valley, Georgia 2014. Image: Karel61 via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0. In front: Silver medal commemorating the opening of the Suram Tunnel in 1890 by L. Steinman. Künker auction 408, No. 234.

For Railroad Fans: The Suram Tunnel

Railroad history is linked to numismatics in many ways. Fascinating large-scale projects were often celebrated with medals and commemorative coins. Our example takes us to Georgia: A medal that will be offered for auction by Künker commemorates the opening of the Suram Tunnel.
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