Archive: People and Markets
Lars O. Lagerqvist (1929-2023)
Lars O. Lagerqvist, former director of the Royal Coin Cabinet in Stockholm and FIDEM Honorary President, passed away. He was one of the most important Swedish numismatists and a renowned expert for medals. Marie-Astrid Voisin Pelsdonk remembers her mentor and friend.
Levantine Coins Online (LCO) Now Live
A new digital database is now available online: “Levantine Coins Online” catalogs Achaemenid and Hellenistic period coin typologies from the southern Levant. The database will be continuously expanded with new areas and collections.
Archive: Coins, Medals and more

Gold at Record Highs: Melt Down or Preserve Historic Gold Coins?
Gold is now more expensive than ever. This trend has put many collectors and dealers in a moral dilemma: Which gold coins can be sold or melted down without hesitation, and where do the real treasures lie?

25 Francs in Gold: Swissmint’s New Gold Coin
Since 2022, Swissmint has been issuing 25-franc gold coins. The latest release is a tribute to the history of Swiss gold coinage, combining elements of the first 20-franc piece and the enigmatic 1955 issue, which never entered circulation. And Swissmint also has some interesting plans for the future, as Ursula Kampmann discovered.











Elagabalus’ New Transgender Identity and Its Consequences on the Coin Trade
The North Hertfordshire Museum has pulled off an ingenious PR coup: the institution publicly announced that they will no longer refer to Elagabalus as “he” but as “she”. Ursula Kampmann explores how this might affect the coin trade.
Die Study of the Yehud Coinage
The Israel Numismatic Society published a book on provincial silver coinage of Judah in the late Persian, Macedonian, and early Hellenistic periods. Haim Gitler, Catharine Lorber and Jean-Philippe Fontanille presented their die study recently in Jerusalem.