A Scion Society of The Baker Street Irregulars
Numismatists Do Not Fear Change
Editor’s Note: Abbey National Building Society occupied Abbey House 1932-2005 on the site of what would have been considered to be 221B Baker Street and employed a secretary for many years to answer the correspondence of Sherlock Holmes. After more than three centuries, the humble check is set to become a historic relic after British… Continue Reading
“They were paying a pound a day each…” – A Study In Scarlet (STUD) Hopefully, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman will be filming yet another season of Sherlock for the BBC in 2017. If that is the case, we might get to see one of them spend one of the new 12-sided One Pound coin that… Continue Reading
“She stood grandly defiant, a queenly figure…” – The Adventure of the Second Stain (SECO) Earlier, we had posted that a new portrait of Queen Elizabeth II would be unveiled in 2015 and reviewed the previous four portraits of Her Majesty that has graced British coins since 1952. On March 2nd, the Royal Mint unveiled… Continue Reading
“No living man could tell a Prescott from a Bank of England…” – The Adventure of The Three Garridebs (3GAR) It is Christmas Eve, 1889; Sherlock Holmes becomes totally immersed in a case of the very greatest gravity when the senior partner and master engraver of London’s most eminent security printer begs his aid in… Continue Reading
The Tower of London is never mentioned in the original 60 stories of Sherlock Holmes. However, the Tower would play a key role in two subsequent adaptations of the Holmes stories. Most recently, in The Reichenbach Fall episode of BBC’s Sherlock, the character of Jim Moriarty breaks into the case holding the crown jewels at the Tower… Continue Reading
“Have you dragged the basin of the Trafalgar Square fountain?” – The Adventure of The Noble Bachelor (NOBL) In 2014, the British Royal Mint issued a 4 coin set called Portrait of Britain honoring four historical sites – Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square and Big Ben. These £5 coins are .925 sterling silver and measures 38.6 mm… Continue Reading
“He had no rival?” – The Valley of Fear (VALL) Following up on Simon Monk’s post on the numismatic detective Max Carrados, we have a few related links and comments to share: On December 31, 2014, BBC Radio aired the first episode of The Rivals, a series where Inspector Lestrade works with other contemporary detectives and sleuths… Continue Reading
Sherlock Holmes, Father Brown, Hercule Poirot and Lord Peter Wimsey are all names that readily spring to mind in the field of detective fiction. Less well known, but no less interesting, is Max Carrados, the blind detective created by Ernest Bramah. Not only was the author an expert numismatist, but his creation Carrados was too,… Continue Reading
“I had called upon my friend Sherlock Holmes upon the second morning after Christmas, with the intention of wishing him the compliments of the season.” – The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle (BLUE) In Holmes and Watson’s day, the celebration of Christmas was very different from what we expect in this modern age. It is… Continue Reading
“I should like to see him clapped down in a third-class carriage on the Underground, and asked to give the trades of all his fellow-travellers.” – A Study in Scarlet (STUD) The London Underground, or “tube”, has a few mentions in the Canon. The above quote, from A Study in Scarlet” is Watson’s reaction after reading Holmes’ The Book… Continue Reading