ANACS certifies Liberty Dollar medallions

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COIN WORLD
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MARCH 10, 2014
VOL. 55, ISSUE 2813
CCAC considers 2015 designs, artist remarks
.99999
gold coin first of three in series.
See page 4
Walton heirs donate to help
numismatic diploma program.
See page 4
NEWSECUW
Technology aims to strengthen
Canada's gold bullion program.
See page 5
Suggests 2019 Moon Landing commemoration
BY BILL MCALLISTER SPECIAL TO COIN WORLD
When the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee meets to discuss
the designs of new coins and
metals, the U.S. Mint's artists frequently get berated.
But when the CCAC held its Feb.
11 meeting in Washington, it was
Joseph F. Menna, a Philadelphia
Mint-based
sculptor-engraver,
who turned the tables on the committee.
Speaking via a closed circuit TV
link, Menna told the panel that
their ideas threaten to impose too
many restrictions on Mint artists.
If all the committee's ideas are
accepted, U.S. coinage would
"risk becoming the J.C. Penney of
the world," he said.
CCAC members were taken
aback by Menna's allegations and
several later promised to work on
restoring a better working relationship with the artists, most of
whom work at the Philadelphia
Mint.
Michael Bugeja, an Iowa State
University journalism dean, said
that Menna has misunderstood
the committee's efforts to move
away from what the CCAC had
frequently derided as "storyboard"
art for coins and medals.
Menna's complaint was one of
the highlights of a meeting that
saw the committee endorse five
proposed designs for the reversSee CCAC page 34
All design sketch images courtesy of U.S. Mint.
The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee endorsed the above design for
the 2015 Saratoga National Historical
Park with the recommendation that
the inscription SURRENDER 1777 be
changed to BRITISH SURRENDER 1777.
ANACS certifies Liberty Dollar medallions
Certif ication driving prices up for quality strikes
BY PAUL GILKES COIN WORLD STAFF
Collectors are submitting Lib- ANACS's vice presierty Dollar medallions for third- dent for marketing and
party certifications and encapsu- client relations
lation. ANACS has been grading
Collector
David
the medallions "for some time," Maudlin said he began
according to Paul A. DeFelice, submitting the silwww.colnworld.com
ver Liberty Dollar medallions to
ANACS in the fall
6S6
of 2013 because
QZl
eood
he wanted lastTOGO
ing protection for
the medallions
snwioN NOA
esn
Images courtesy of David Maudlin.
and professional Among the Liberty Dollars certified by ANACS is this
S'T/Oe/£0
confirmation of 1998 1 -ounce silver Shelter System issue graded
6££ H£)ia-£ HOS**Ointf ********** DA9NNX9#
the quality of the Proof 67 Deep Cameo.
struck pieces.
Ron Goodger, who has lar medallions for years and extenS* IF THE DATE ON YOUR LABEL IS APRIL 21,2014 (042114), IT'S TIME TO RENEW.
bought and sold Liberty DolSee ANACS page 39
^w-SilMMjJ^^^
Collection of Florida national bank
notes more complete than others.
See page 6
ANACS from page 1
sively documented all Liberty Dollar releases, said third-party certification is driving the prices up for
quality strikes. Although Goodger
has his own extensive collection
of Liberty Dollars, so far he has
not submitted any of his pieces for
professional grading and encapsulation.
"Getting the door opened to
quality grading is a big step for
Liberty Dollar collectibles in my
estimation," Goodger said. "In the
end, it will flesh out the final difference between a true gem collectible and run of the mill pieces."
ANACS is certifying each Liberty
Dollar medallion as a "token"; the
grading labels inserted within the
plastic holders identify the Liberty
Dollars as such.
"ANACS has been certifying
NORFED Liberty Dollars as tokens
for quite some time," DeFelice
said. "In fact, we welcome many
privately struck medals and
tokens, from Civil War Tokens
architect Bernard von NotHaus
under the umbrella of NORFED,
the National Organization for the
Repeal of the Federal Reserve and
the Internal Revenue Code.
Liberty Dollars are minted metal
rounds, gold and silver certificates
and electronic currency. The rounds
or medallions were issued in silver,
gold, platinum and copper, bearing different obverse and reverse
designs and face values.
NORFED continued until December 2006 when the entity was dissolved and re-emerged as Liberty
Services, doing business as Liberty Dollar.
Millions of dollars in Liberty Services Inc. assets and those held
for Liberty Services customers
were seized in November 2007 by
federal authorities.
Since that seizure, the secondary
market for Liberty Dollar issues
Liberty Dollar history
The Liberty Dollar was intro- has risen dramatically.
duced as a "private, voluntary barVon NotHaus and three associter currency" in 1998 by monetary ates were indicted in May 2009
and storecards to modern fantasy
pieces.
"As an example, most recently,
we have been receiving a significant number of physical Bitcoins
for certification. We understand
some of these tokens are the topic
of controversy.
"In the case of the NORFED Liberty Dollars, our certification is in
no way an ANACS endorsement
of this silver round as an alternative currency. ANACS is simply
providing a description and our
opinion on the condition of the
token, and fulfilling a customer
need. We always reserve the right
to refuse the certification of any
coin, medal or token for any reason, at any time, but for now we
are comfortable grading Liberty
Dollars," DeFelice said.
on charges associated with the
Liberty Dollar production, sale and
distribution.
Von NotHaus was convicted
March 18, 2011, in federal court
in Statesville, N.C., on charges
of making coins resembling and
similar to United States coins; of
issuing, passing, selling and possessing Liberty Dollar coins; of
issuing and passing Liberty Dollar
coins intended for use as current
money; and of conspiracy against
the United States. Von NotHaus is
still awaiting sentencing.
Proponents of the Liberty Dollar
argue that the Liberty Dollar is not
legal tender and has not been promoted as current money.
Meanwhile, prices for many Liberty Dollar issues, especially those
with limited mintages, continue to
rise in the secondary market.
More details on Liberty Dollars
can be found on Goodger's website at https://sites.google.com/
site/ronsnorfedsilverlibertys/. •
DNA from page 5
ing whether it matches or doesn't match the
database.
Service time is generally within a few second,
depending on the speed of the Internet connection, Reeves said.
During Carkner's demonstration, the mobile
phone application confirmed that the "test"
coin had been struck and registered at the
RCM on Nov. 14, 2013, meaning that users
would be able to determine the date of the
coins' production.
Carkner said that the RCM is currently performing demonstrations for a limited number
of distributors, but that the pool of users, while
initially small, is intended to reach around the
world.
To achieve the level of market penetration
the RCM desires, the system and setup have
"gotta be easy," Carkner said. It should be "on
the street" later in 2014.
"We'd like to see the smaller dealers be able
to have the device," Carkner said.
Users will have to purchase the device, and
the price has not been finalized (since testing
is still underway).
The number of dealers who could have the
device would be "in the thousands in the short
to medium term. It will be a gradual roll-out,
hopefully well under way by this time next year
[2015]."
RCM officials continue to maintain that there
is no threat to the security of Maple Leaf coins,
but that they want to be well-positioned to
offer "the most secure bullion" in the world.
Canada's current Maple Leaf gold coins
depict a Walter Ott image of a maple leaf on
the reverse, with the Susanna Blunt effigy of
Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse.
To view the promotional video posted at the
RCM's YouTube channel, visit www.youtube.
com/watch?v=MCOZOR2Rik8.
The video can also be viewed on a special
page at the RCM's website, located at www.
mint.ca/bullion. •
Coin World photography by Jeff Starck.
The test coin used for Carkner's demonstration was
When the program is launched to retail users, a coin Chris Carkner, the RCM's managing director of sales confirmed, not surprisingly, to be an authentic RCM
dealer can place the coin inside a movable slot that for bullion, refinery and exchange-traded products, product. The application even shows the date the
can be fed into a desktop reader connected to a mo- demonstrates the application of the DNA technology coin was struck and registered, in this case on Nov.
and the RCM database at the RCM booth in Berlin. 14,2013.
bile phone.
Image courtesy of the Royal Canadian Mint.
CoinWorld.com
Coin World photography by Jeff Starck.
COIN WORLD, March 10,2014 • 39