Welcome to the latest edition of Dave's Notes. It has been a busy week here at Stack's. Our Schaumburg Sale in Illinois saw a team of staffers conducting an auction that attracted much attention. Many nice items in the American series found new homes -to Internet bidders as well as to those in the auction gallery.

Earlier in the week, I and several helpers were immersed in a currency research project, scanning and studying several thousand obsolete bank notes. Although the Society of Paper Money Collectors and others have issued many great books, usually for specific states, much is still uncharted territory, except as might have been included in James Haxby's 1988 set of books on obsoletes. For some states -including New York, the most prolific issuer- there is no specialized reference.

This is at once good and bad. It is bad for someone who wants instant knowledge, but can't find it. In contrast, a newcomer to numismatics who wants to know all about an 1881-S Morgan dollar can find 173,000 "hits" on Google (I just checked). Allowing for a small percentage of these being gold coins, there are probably over 160,000 places you can check. Start now, and check back with me next year!

In contrast, if you'd like to learn everything there is to know about obsolete bank notes issued in Owego, New York, and about the issuers (who they were, what they did, etc.), you could spend a day on research on the Internet alone! This is bad if you are impatient. It is absolutely delightful if you enjoy numismatics and research in depth!

In the meantime, all eyes are looking forward to our sale in Los Angeles just before the American Numismatic Association Convention. Always a lot going on!

Thinking of selling? You've come to the right place! Right now you can still get in under the wire for our grand auction to be held with the Whitman show in Philadelphia in September, then our always-popular Anniversary Sale in October, then a star-spangled lineup of other events. While any of us and all of us can handle incoming consignments (we could say that we have dozens of "auction directors"), John Pack of our New Hampshire office or Vicken Yegparian at our New York City gallery can bring you up to date with availability, competitive rates, and more.

Ever since our first auction in 1935, Stack's has handled more great collections and rarities than has any other firm in the history of numismatics -and I am referring not just to the United States, but to the entire world.

Issue Number 15 of the Numismatic Sun is well under way, with publication anticipated in July. Watch your mailbox!

In the meantime, I hope you are having a nice summer. If business or vacation takes you to New York City, the red carpet is out for you at our gallery at 123 West 57th Street. And, we're always here, so to speak, by e-mail.

Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. Activity continues apace for our forthcoming Schaumburg Collection Sale in Schaumburg, Illinois, on Thursday, June 25th. This will be a grand event, and you are invited to participate either by in-person attendance, on the Internet, or any other way that you wish. The Mid-America Coin Expo is the venue, with many dealers and collectors on hand, always a fine event.

Also this week Stack's will be represented at the Paper Money Show in Memphis, always a dynamic event. If Memphis is on your schedule, be sure to check in with Bruce Hagen who will be there. Bruce is an old-timer in paper money writing and research, as many of you know.

I have just finished going over with our Auction Director John Pack a great consignment of gold coins from the S.S. New York, a treasure ship that was lost at sea in September 1846. A nice presentation of recovered coins was sold by us last summer, and the present event is an encore, not as many pieces, but still with some delightful Philadelphia Mint and New Orleans Mint gold in very high grades, world gold, and interesting artifacts. If you do not have a copy of my book, The Treasure Ship S.S. New York, check our Internet listing and order one if you would like. I have had many nice comments about it being a "good read." It's that time of year, going into summer, when you might want to take a book, find a comfortable place in the shade under a tree, and enjoy several hours of reading. The text is at once numismatic and historical, giving a "you are there" experience.

All good wishes to you from me and everyone else at Stack's.

Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. As I write these words I am heading off to Baltimore for the Whitman Coin and Currency Show. Also on the calendar is the ceremony marking the opening of a special exhibit of United States coins at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. If your travel plans include the nation's capital this summer, stop by at the Smithsonian and check it out. The staff there is leading-edge in numismatic knowledge and enthusiasm, and their exhibits are always first-class and very interesting.

In the meantime here at the New Hampshire office of Stack's, I am interfacing with our graphic artists, Jen Meers and Christine Metcalfe, to create brochures for several exciting new programs. These will be launched this summer, with Melissa Karstedt working with me on these, and are hoped to be of special interest to collectors who enjoy coins of selected quality and with nice eye appeal.

Our Schaumburg Sale is coming up quickly, is posted on the Internet, and with catalogues in the mail. Be sure to review it, attend if you can, and otherwise bid by Internet or any other means. A lot of interesting items are set to cross the auction block. It will be held in Schaumburg, Illinois, which is near the O'Hare Airport and very easy to get to. The venue is the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and the time is Thursday, June 25th. This will be an interesting sale with varied material in many series. Our sale will be held in conjunction with the MidAmerica Coin Expo, for which we are the official auctioneer. Many dealers will be on hand with displays of interesting and desirable coins, tokens, medals, and paper money for sale.

As we are about to head into summer, here is wishing you and your family a nice vacation experience, if a trip is planned.

All good wishes to you.

Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. I have been busy here at the New Hampshire office creating several new programs, which will be publicized within the next month or so. These involve my working with Melissa Karstedt to build and increase our inventory in certain popular areas of American coinage, including silver dollars, type coins, and gold, carefully checking each piece to acquire coins that we both consider to be of exceptional merit with regard to eye appeal. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, at our main office at 123 West 57th Street in New York City, and at our office here in New Hampshire, we're all busy with our forthcoming auction sales. Several highly important collections have been consigned to us and will be announced soon. In the meantime, if you are thinking of selling, contact our primary auction directors, John Pack (New Hampshire) or Vicken Yegparian (New York), or contact me. We offer an unsurpassed record of auction success dating back to the formation of Stack's in 1933 and our first public sale in 1935.

Beyond this, if your travel plans include New York City -and it is certainly a pleasant time of year there- be sure to stop by and say hello.

Next week I, Chris Karstedt, and others will be at the Whitman Coin and Currency Convention in Baltimore. If your travel plans include this event, you can track me down at the Whitman booth or at the Stack's table. It would be a pleasure to see you.

My congratulations to American Numismatic Association president Barry Stuppler and the entire ANA Board of Governors. The current two-year term, about to end in August, has been one of the most difficult and challenging in the entire history of the organization. You have done a wonderful job against great odds. Again, congratulations.

Working with Whitman Publishing Company, I have been putting the finishing touches on the Whitman Encyclopedia of United States Paper Money. This should be on the market toward the end of the summer. The book will be large, dynamic, and filled with much information that should prove to be a great asset to that collecting specialty. Quite a bit of research and study effort has gone into it at my end, plus much help from leading collectors and dealers. Watch for further announcements.

As June progresses, I hope that you are enjoying your summer. All good wishes from me.