Irregular Postings on Coin Collecting & Numismatics - Both Canonical & Conanical

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Numismatists Do Not Fear Change

Author Archives: Greg D. Ruby

Dr. Benton Wood’s ‘The Game’s Afoot’ Elongated Coins

Dr. Benton Wood’s ‘The Game’s Afoot’ Elongated Coins

” It might be his portrait.” – The Hound of the Baskervilles (HOUN) In a recent post, we talked about The Philatelic & Numismatic Holmes by Benton Wood. In this post, we will talk about the elongated coin that Wood had designed in 1992. From the late 1970’s until his death in 1996, Frank E. Brazzell… Continue Reading

The Philatelic and Numismatic Sherlock Holmes by Benton Woods

The Philatelic and Numismatic Sherlock Holmes by Benton Woods

“… such a dear, kind old clergyman.” – A Scandal in Bohemia (SCAN) In the November 1989 edition of Scuttlebutt from the Spermaceti Press, Peter E. Blau published this nugget: Jan. 6 (appropriately) will be the publication date of Ben Wood’s new THE PHILATELIC & NUMISMATIC HOLMES (40 pp., $5.00 postpaid pre-publication and $6.00 afterward).  The following month, Blau would… Continue Reading

Sherlock Holmes and Scooby-Doo

Sherlock Holmes and Scooby-Doo

“Mr. Holmes, they were the footprints of a gigantic hound!” – The Hound of the Baskervilles (HOUN) Since we having recently been talking about a mystery involving a giant hound, let’s turn our focus onto a giant hound that helps solves mysteries. In 1969, the animation studios of Hanna-Barbera produced the first episodes of Scooby-Doo,… Continue Reading

The 1997 British Tales of Terror Philatelic Numismatic Cover

The 1997 British Tales of Terror Philatelic Numismatic Cover

“Mr. Holmes, they were the footprints of a gigantic hound!” – The Hound of the Baskervilles (HOUN) On May 13, 1997, Great Britain issued a four stamp series with the theme of Tales of Terror.  The four stamps features designs of the Hound of the Baskervilles, Dracula, Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Many… Continue Reading

Sherlockian “Thanks A Million” Fantasy Bank Notes

Sherlockian “Thanks A Million” Fantasy Bank Notes

“… those bundles on the table are two thousand of Prescott’s notes …” – The Adventure of the Three Garridebs (3GAR) For the past two years, there have been appearances of fantasy $1,000,000 bank notes (also referred to as bookmarks) for sale over the internet. These bills are a reproduction of a Series 2003A $1 Federal… Continue Reading

Canada Issues $200 Gold Coin Featuring the Amazon

Canada Issues $200 Gold Coin Featuring the Amazon

“… the derelict Marie Celeste …” – J. Habakuk Jephson’s Statement Almost four years before the name Sherlock Holmes was seen in print, Arthur Conan Doyle had published J. Habakuk Jephson’s Statement in the January 1884 issue of The Cornhill Magazine. Doyle was one of the first to publish a fictionalized version of the mystery of the ship Mary Celeste, which… Continue Reading

U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory Challenge Coin

U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory Challenge Coin

“He is sure to be at the laboratory …” – A Study in Scarlet (STUD)       It is ironic that after spending a week in Anaheim, California and across the street from DisneyLand, that we learn of a challenge coin featuring Mickey Mouse with a deerstalker cap and magnifying glass. The United States… Continue Reading

Dressed to Kill (1946)

Dressed to Kill (1946)

“A printing press – a counterfeiter’s outfit …” – The Adventure of the Three Garridebs (3GAR) Seventy years ago, June 7, 1946 to be precise, the movie Dressed to Kill premiered. This was the last of the 14 films that starred Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes. The last 3 minutes of the film does have a… Continue Reading