Archive: People and Markets

The Sundman Lecture Symposium at the 2023 ANA’s World’s Fair of Money will focus on how coinage, paper currency, medals and tokens have been used to create, record and/or modify national identity. Photo: 12222786 via Pixabay.

Call for Paper: Explain How Money Helped Building National Identity

How have coinage or paper currency been used to create or modify national identity in history? That is the topic of the Sundman Lecture Symposium at the 2023 ANA’s World’s Fair of Money. Any ideas? Submit your summary!

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CDN Acquires Whitman: What Does This Mean for the Coin Market?

CDN Publishing acquires Whitman Publishing: who is behind the companies and why will this deal affect the international and US coin markets? A commentary by Ursula Kampmann.

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Numisma – Zoom Seminars of the Australian Centre for Ancient Numismatic Studies

Registration is now open to attend the upcoming zoom seminar series of the Australian Centre for Ancient Numismatic Studies (ACANS). Everyone interested in the study of ancient coins is welcome and encouraged to join the online lecture series. Find the upcoming lectures here.

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One of the coins seized during the police’s Operation Fantail. (Courtesy of Durham Constabulary.) Next to it, a passage from the biography of Alfred the Great written by Asser. The coin presents the prominent 9th-century ruler in a whole new light.

How Two Fraudsters Almost Changed England’s History

Two English metal detectorists attempted to sell off some illegally excavated coins. In a police operation straight out of a movie, the pair were caught and have now been sentenced. The seized coins present England’s King Alfred the Great in a totally different light.

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Archive: Coins, Medals and more

Maria Theresa and Her Persecution of Jews

On 18 December 1744, Maria Theresa adopted a decree that expelled 40,000 Bohemian Jews from their homeland. A medal testifies to the fact that she had to revoke the decree due to financial and diplomatic pressure. The time of Jewish persecution was over for the time being – that is, until the genocide of the Jews in the 20th century.
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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