Very Sad News: H. Joseph (Joe) Levine Of Presidential Coin & Antique Has Passed Away.
tokenpro
Posts: 886 ✭✭✭✭✭
I just received the news that my long time friend Joe Levine died within the past couple of days (no obituary found yet). Joe had been in frail health the last couple of years and had ended his much anticipated email offerings of interesting and unusual medals & tokens at that time. Previously he had issued 85+ quality mail (and floor) sale catalogs between 1969 & 2016 offering the best of the best in tokens & medals. They are a basic research tool in exonumia and luckily for all are available on the Newman Portal.
Joe was extremely helpful and welcoming to me when I started dealing in tokens and medals in the 1970's; in fact I modeled my business after his (on a much more basic scale). He was always a source when I needed something and steered more than a few consignors my way whose collections better fit my scheme. His extensive knowledge, auction records and advice were available to everyone just by asking. Anytime I was in the District I tried hard to make time for a trip through the hell of Seven Corners to his shop in Alexandria, Va - it was always worth the effort. He was especially keen in the areas of political collectibles, medals of all types and countries (especially Inaugural medals) and so much more.
I could go on for a while as the good memories come cascading back but I'll wait for now. I'm sure that the E-Sylum will have more information tonight on Joe's passing. I know that many of you on here were customers & friends of Joe - I would love to hear your memories.
Comments
That is very sad! I was hoping he'd be with us much longer. He's had a great and oversized impact on the hobby, especially for material I collect.
Rest in Peace Joe. My condolences to Gail along with his friends and family.
This is a PCAC Blaine & Logan store card I have and will always treasure.
I dealt with Joe during the 1980's. He handled the auction of my medal collection in the mid-1980's. His passing is a loss to the hobby.
I bought a large chunk of my Thomas Elder collection from Joe. A great guy to work with.
Good to know.
Would you recognize your Elder collection pieces if you saw them? I see a lot of pieces but few have any provenance. It would be great to attribute some to Joe and yourself!
Very sad news... I have known him for years...actually decades. He was always helpful and just a wealth of information especially with Presidential inaugurals and campaign items, medals, tokens and just about anything else in between. A huge loss for us all and there really is no one to fill his shoes. He will be missed.
My condolences to his family.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Very sorry to hear this news. My condolences to his family and friends.
An authorized PCGS dealer, and a contributor to the Red Book.
RIP.
Joe was one of top exonumia dealers in the country. His auction sales were the best source for really rare tokens and medals. In later years his email offerings were something I always looked forward to seeing. He will be sorely missed.
Sad news and a huge loss.
I had a few dealings with him over the years.
The latest one was for one of the 2017 Ohio inaugural medals that served as the closest thing to official since none were formally authorized by the campaign.
The maker of the medals used packaging that resulted in a very slight rub to the high points (nose and hair) on the medal, and when I pointed that out Joe L. shipped me a new medal minus the box, and included a check to cover the return of the "defective" medal.
I ended up keeping the 2nd medal, returning his check, and sending a few dollars to cover the cost of sending me the box for the 2nd medal.
Joe obviously decided long ago that life was too short to worry about stuff like that and he just did what he could to try to make it right. So, I returned the favor.
I'm sad to hear the news, and my condolences to Gail and his family.
I always looked forward to Joe's auctions and emails. Looking through his catalogs was always a great learning experience, and I was lucky to be able to purchase a number of lots from his sales over the years.
Joe was a leader in the field and his catalogs were great resource material. RIP, Joe.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Oh no... So sorry to hear about Joe!
His medal and token catalogs were top-notch. A great loss to his family and the numismatic community.
I was just thinking about Joe this week and wondering how he was doing. It’s very sad to hear of his passing.
What a great guy — When I lived in Northern Virginia, Joe was always very gracious about letting me drop by his home to pick up my auction winnings and sometimes even look at raw exonumia he had available for sale. I purchased many items from him and through PCAC over the years. RIP Joe. 😞
ANA LM
USAF Retired — 34 years of active military service! 🇺🇸
We honor him by carrying his love of numismatics onward and upward. Sadly but with peace. Roy
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I did a lot of business with Joe back when I collected Lincolniana. A real gentleman with a wealth of knowledge. Not many like him. I know he will be sorely missed in the numismatic community. RIP.
Numismatics was made richer with your kind and respectful demeanor, we will miss your unique items for sale and your knowledgeable posts on this forum. Rest In Peace Joe.
Joe was a class act and I used to love his annual Baltimore auctions. His wife told me that his family wanted him to be a lawyer but once his got interested in coins there was no turning back for him. I think he made the right choice.
RIP to a reputable, knowledgeable, regular guy, who was always willing to inform a collector on the particular nuances of an unusual piece.
Tom
Some years ago, I purchased Nathaniel Green medal in one of Joe’s auctions that turned out of a modern piece that had been messed with. Four years later, he returned my money with not questions asked.
Condolences to family and friends. Certainly a significant loss to the hobby. Cheers, RickO
RIP
I will add that he was not just a dealer or collector. He was a contributor to the body of knowledge in his field.
Sorry to hear this. RIP. He helped me with the Rufus Youngblood medals and I helped him with the auction description of a few Eisenhower appreciation medals. He also provided me an auction listing of the Eisenhower appreciation medals he sold over the years.
https://money.org/collector/drdarryl/blog/u-s-mint-medal-documenting-the-pedigree-of-a-potus-sgm
Does anyone know if he made any other store cards?
I'm actively collecting them if anyone knows of any.
Even in the internet era, his auctions were the only place to acquire certain material. Pick up any one of his auction catalogs now, and you are likely to find something that sparks an interest, even if you don’t collect exonumia. The breadth and depth of his knowledge was unmatched by any other single person!
He was always kind to me with my many questions about so calleds and other medals. He loved what he did and was a great promoter. He will be missed. My thoughts go out to his family.
I will always remember Joe as someone who was just plain fun to be around.
Very sad news for the hobby and of course, his family.
His catalogs were always something to look forward to.
May he rest in peace.
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
Very sad to hear. I never had any dealings with him but he was a legend in the field. He was a past board member and served as legal counsel for the Civil War Token Society in the early years of the society. I believe he was an attorney before becoming a dealer and was responsible for getting the non profit status for the CWTS. A great loss to the hobby. Rest in peace.
ANA-LM, CWTS-LM, NBS, TAMS, ANS
So sorry to here this. I’m working FT on a project and been very busy. Sad news to read.
Best place to buy !
Bronze Associate member
Terrible loss to the hobby... and a personal loss to everyone who knew and cared about him. Thank you Joe for all you have done for us. God Bless.
A So-Called Dollar and Slug Collector... Previously "Pioneer" on this site...
With the aide of Wayne Homren, Joe recently donated much of his library material to the Fairfax Coin Club. We have been actively distributing it to interested club members. Alot of great exonumia reference material, including his auction catalogs, and a bit more of it in my basement yet to go. His knowledge is still spreading.