Dr. A. J. Vanderbilt - Former YN
Zoins
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I'm a big fan of YNs and YN origin stories.
Here's an excerpt on A.J. Vanderbilt I just ran across. Click through to see the full article.
- Article: https://www.coinbooks.org/v21/esylum_v21n07a17.html
- Sale Catalog: https://media.stacksbowers.com/VirtualCatalogs/CatalogLibrary/SBG_MarBalt2018_Vanderbilt.pdf
Stack's Bowers blog:
Did you know A. J. Vanderbilt starting buying coins from Stack’s Rare Coins in New York City in 1936, at the age of 15? We are proud to present the A.J. Vanderbilt Collection of U.S. Coins and Currency at our upcoming official auction of the Whitman Coin and Collectibles Spring Expo.In 1926, an emergency appendectomy put a curious, intelligent 5-year-old boy in bed for an extended period of time. His concerned mother wanted to find a way to keep him still so that he could heal from surgery. She had come up with a few ideas, but the one that he seemed to enjoy the most was sorting through a large bag of pennies she had brought home from the bank. He would sit for hours, looking at them with a magnifying glass and categorizing them by date, mint and condition. The seed was planted, and a coin collector was born.
In 1936, at the age of 15, he started buying and selling through Stack’s Rare Coins in New York City. He was their youngest client and worked with them until his death at age 96.
Comments
He was 'bitten by the coin bug' early... and no doubt he utilized the family resources from an early age. Interesting story. Cheers, RickO
A close reading of the article, reveals much more than just the pursuit of coin collecting by Dr. A.J. Vanderbilt. It would appear that one of his children possessed the power of telepathy coupled with x-ray vision. Remarkable!
Most coin people are mutants. What's your point?