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Is Walter Breen's Encyclopedia of U.S. & Colonial Proof Coins any good?
stinkinlincoln
Posts: 2,733 ✭
Im guessing this book contains imaginary information like his other work? Am I correct in this assumption?
What parts of this book should be looked at with biased eyes?
Was it worth the 22 minutes it took to download it?
What parts of this book should be looked at with biased eyes?
Was it worth the 22 minutes it took to download it?
0
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Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Not really. I just like reading true information. Im not saying all of his work is questionable, but some of it certainly is. Thats a fact.
Heres where one can download it if they so wish...
6th download down
Oh boy, where has this world gone....
Dennis
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It just seemed like a lot of good info in there, but Im not sure on whats real and whats not. The pictures are lacking, but for it being produced in 77 its not bad.
Is there any other book like this for proof coinage?
After it came out Walter complained that we switched the pix of the 1843 and 1845 $10's. I think that was the only ones we got wrong.
TD
<< <i>Im guessing this book contains imaginary information like his other work? Am I correct in this assumption?
What parts of this book should be looked at with biased eyes?
Was it worth the 22 minutes it took to download it? >>
The book is generally much more accurate than the encyclopedia.
TD
Thanks Capt. Thats what I was looking for. I just didnt want to spend a day or two reading it all, just for it to turn out false.
Thanks again.
Im guessing this book contains imaginary information like his other work? Am I correct in this assumption?
What parts of this book should be looked at with biased eyes?
Was it worth the 22 minutes it took to download it?
There is one point not raised in the above message –
Why would any author go to the trouble to spend years writing a book and then have
someone post it for free to those unwilling to pay for a copy?
If sites like this continue in operation it is bound to have a chilling effect on scholarly work.
Denga
Why would any author go to the trouble to spend years writing a book and then have
someone post it for free to those unwilling to pay for a copy?
If sites like this continue in operation it is bound to have a chilling effect on scholarly work.
Denga >>
Good point, but I am willing to pay for a copy. Just havent came across one recently. So I came across this and downloaded it. And as for the author, he is not really my concern. Ive never met him, and he has never bought me a beer.
No sense in letting it sit there, not downloaded, and unused. Thats sad.
Breen is dead and gone... So Who is lossing money on this? The publisher? If so, thats NOT my concern in the least.
<< <i>I think it is a terrific book but like all reference sources it requires updating and ongoing validation. Learning is an ongoing process. No encyclopedic work is free of errors; many of which were not apparent at the time of publishing. >>
While it is true that Breen's work may in many cases disagree with subsequent research, I think the pendulum has swung too far in terms of discounting his work and branding all of it as questionable. Breen's reference texts are always a good place to start for a wealth of detailed information. Like any reference source, the information must be viewed with a critical eye and corroborated by reference to other sources.
Sunnywood
Sunnywood's Rainbow-Toned Morgans (Retired)
Sunnywood's Barber Quarters (Retired)
here we go again, another character assissination of Breen, but what else is new.
certainly he included some opinions in his Encyclopedia, but given the scope of the work they are very minute. for every false piece of information he gave there are many more pieces of valuable insight and tireless research which was correct. also, time has a way of making things look bad, that's why many works of this type are followed by editions which update or change things to give a truer, better understood picture. given an unbiased view of Breen's book, i bet it resulted in a lot of the future work which tends to undermine its importance.
``https://ebay.us/m/KxolR5
No. Thats not correct at all. Is there not FALSE information in his books? Im not doing anything to that mans character. Im simply asking, what information should be looked at more closely.
I never once called his character into question. His character is not relevent here in the least. What information he chose to include in these books is.
Interesting thread and quite timely. The Newsletter, "The Asylum", which is the quarterly Newsletter of the Bibliomania Society...aka..the Numismatic Book Collector Society just released in their April-June 2009 issue the listing of the "The One Hundred Greatest Items of Numismatic Literature". In the listing, which was developed by a voting of members, they rank Breen's Encyclopedia as THE NUMBER ONE all time greatest work. Here is how they describe it:
"Revered and reviled, Breen's magnum opus remains the first reference of choice for American Numismatics. Although justifiably maligned for technical faults and lack of supporting documentation, Breen's breadth is staggering. Nowhere else is so much information packed into a single volume. Pre-federal, territorial, commemorative, it is all here. Allowed only one book in an American numismatic library, this would be the expected choice. With copies on the secondary market selling for hundreds of dollars and no competitors in sight, this reference will endure as the standard comprehensive guide for the foreseeable future."
Best,
novacaesarea