The E-Sylum:  Volume 10, Number 9, March 4, 2007, Article 6

BOOK REVIEW: COINAGE OF SAINT-GAUDENS ILLUSTRATED BY THE MORSE COLLECTION

This week I had the pleasure of reading a new book by Ivy Press:
"The Coinage of Saint-Gaudens as Illustrated by the Phillip H. Morse
Collection", by James Halperin, Mark Van Winkle, Jon Amato and Gregory
J. Rohan.

The 253-page 9" x 11 1/4" hardbound is lavishly illustrated with full
color images of an extraordinary collection of 214 gold coins assembled
by Morse, a Boston Red Sox executive.  The collection was sold November
3, 2005, by Heritage.  The collection realized $19.2 million, with three
of the coins bringing over $1 million each.

Books documenting a single collection are an interesting and valuable
subgenre of numismatic literature.  They are part book, part auction
catalog, part vanity press, yet quite important as historical records
and sometimes groundbreaking in their own right.

As acknowledged in the Foreword by Van Winkle and Halperin, "Any work
dealing with a series as popular as Saint-Gaudens's tens and twenties
must, by necessity, be derivative.  This book leans heavily on
scholarship performed by others in the past."  Yet the Morse book also
draws upon the most recent scholarship on the topic - I was delighted
to read in the Foreword that the authors had enlisted the help of Roger
Burdette, author of the recent works on "The Renaissance of American
Coinage."  Roger's contributions were evident throughout the book, but
especially in the sections summarizing the genesis of the coins and
the various patterns, special pieces and production trials of each
denomination.

Each coin is illustrated larger than life-size, obverse and reverse,
in full color on a separate page.  The photography and printing (on
heavy, high-gloss paper) are marvelous.  Viewing these images is
(almost) better than seeing the real coins in person.  The authors
devote at least one page of text for each coin.  The 1933 double eagle
section is one of the longest at three pages. The text describes the
mintage and rarity of the coin, condition census, known hoards, etc.
Pricing information from recent sales of the coin is included as well.

As wonderful as the collection was, there were still a few gaps, and
the authors have nicely filled these gaps with images of several Indian
Eagles from the John Kutasi collection.

A special section on the "Experimental 1907 Large & Small Letters Proof
Double Eagles Incorrectly Omitted from Judd" is illustrated with nice
edge-lettering photos clearly showing the difference between the
lettering sizes.

As a bibliophile I appreciated the illustration of all three pages of
a November 11, 1907 letter signed by Theodore Roosevelt about the new
coinage and the decision to not place the "In God We Trust" motto on
the coins.  The letter realized $43,125 in the Morse sale.

Here's a piece of trivia about the Morse sale that E-Sylum readers may
appreciate: The auction was originally planned to be held in Palm Beach,
FL, but just five days before it was scheduled to take place, the sale
was moved to Dallas because of the approach of Hurricane Wilma.

In summary, the Morse collection book is a beautiful tribute to a
beautiful collection of the nation's finest coins.  Saint-Gaudens
died before his masterpiece could be distributed to the public, but
this book is solid proof that his creations are rightfully cherished
and will be for generations to come.

Jim Halperin adds: "The book is available from us for $75 postpaid.
We only have 150 first edition copies left out of 1000 printed, but
since it has been more popular than we expected we will probably reprint
as a second edition at some point. The HA.com/Morse web page
is expected to be operational by Wednesday, but in the meantime, orders
can be called in to Juliet (800-872-6467 Ext. 362) or emailed to
Julietg@HA.com."

  Wayne Homren, Editor

	coinbooks.org Web

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