Dentuck
Collector
Posts: 1870
Joined: Nov 2005
|
Tuesday September 18, 2007 12:06 PM
|
|
I just received a copy of Coin Collecting Boards of the 1930s and 1940s: A Complete History, Catalog and Value Guide, by David W. Lange, self-published through his Pennyboard Press.
Not surprisingly, it's an amazing work of scholarship!
Lange has gathered up a thousand strings and woven them into an engaging history of these previously unsung products --- sturdy cornerstones in the foundation of modern coin collecting. He tells the stories of the companies, publishers, personalities, dealers, marketing mavens, journalists, and everyday collectors who fueled a multi-million-dollar business during the Great Depression, taking numismatics out of the exclusive domain of the wealthy and leisured (who could afford an expensive piece of non-essential furniture like a coin cabinet), and bringing it to the living rooms and kitchen tables of workaday America.
The book is written with Lange's signature style, a combination of the best instincts of the journalist, the historian, and the technician. He makes heavy-duty research look easy --- a rare talent --- and tells a good story while sharing huge amounts of information. The subject matter in the hands of a less gifted writer and researcher would have come off dry and dusty. Lange brings it to life, backed up by primary documents, first-person interviews and anecdotes, and a wealth of vintage and modern photographs, illustrations, and newspaper clippings. There's much to learn here, and Lange is a good teacher.
Mary Jo Meade's clean and stylish design is a strong partner in the book's high quality. Meade, the research assistant and graphic designer for Lange's History of the United States Mint and Its Coinage, has delivered another beautiful composition. Her choice of fonts and ornaments lures the reader back in time without being cliched or kitschy, and the page layouts are balanced and inviting.
A foreword by David Sundman and a preface by Lange comprise the front matter, along with a page of acknowledgments that indicates the depth of his research. The introduction explores the historical background and legacy of coin boards. A chapter discusses why coin boards deserve our attention as collectibles, as well as grading, storage, and other aspects of collecting. The book features profiles and sidebars on vendor stamps, the Manthei Collection, J.K. Post, R.S. Yeoman, L.W. Schnelling, the Great Depression, the Ritterbrands, the Trenton Saving Fund Society, and other important topics.
The board-by-board section --- the "Catalog and Value Guide" of the book's subtitle --- offers a detailed study of each type and variety of board published in the decades covered, plus mavericks and select moderns. Each is cataloged by Lange Number. Pricing is indicated for four grade levels, and is rounded out by a handy check list for the collector.
The book's back matter includes a bibliography, image credits, and a select index.
Overall we have a fun, finely detailed, attractively packaged, and interesting book that serves both the casual reader and the enthusiastic collector. It will appeal to anyone interested in the people and products of a classic boom era in American numismatics. Congratulations to David Lange on a wonderful addition to the hobby's literature!
|
|
