$1 billion rare-money show comes to Portland
Arizona Coin Collector
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2009/03/1_billion_raremoney_show_comes.html
$1 billion rare-money show comes to Portland
by Laura Oppenheimer, The Oregonian
Thursday March 12, 2009, 6:23 PM
There aren't many places you'll find more than $1
billion in a single room, especially not during
the recession.
One safe bet: this weekend's National Money Show
at the Oregon Convention Center.
You can see very old, very famous coins -- including
the penny flipped in 1845 to determine Portland's
name. Meet hundreds of collectors, who give informal
appraisals. And learn about the hosts -- the American
Numismatic Association, a group devoted, naturally,
to the study of money.
The rockstars of the show might be the U.S. Department
of Treasury's Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
Christopher Madden, lead engraver, is taking a break
from President Barack Obama's official engraved
portrait to show off the money-making trade.
Though engravers are artists of sorts, Madden says, they
ultimately make a product. "If I didn't like George
Washington's hairstyle, I couldn't change it."
Children can try engraving and print their creations
on a vintage press. In its heyday nearly 150 years
ago, it produced 250 sheets of bills a day. Modern
machines crank out more than 8,000 sheets per hour.
Mike Beck, lead plate printer, gladly
demonstrates -- and shows off 100-year-old photos.
"It's really cool when you get kids, and people
who had no idea any of this happens," he says.
"You're teaching history."
A single case contains $1 billion worth of treasury
notes. Next display over, you can see piddly
$100,000 bills printed for Federal Reserve bank
transfers. The largest denomination ever issued to
the general public: $10,000 bills, also on hand.
As curator of the Numismatic Association, Douglas
Mudd cultivates a collection for the group's Colorado
Springs, Colo., museum and traveling shows. For
example, visitors can see a silver dollar made for
President Andrew Jackson to give to an Asian head of
state. It was stolen from a private collector in
1967 and recovered more than a quarter-century later.
"Coins of this type, if they're stolen -- people know
what they look like," Mudd says. "They're like the
Mona Lisa. You can't walk into a coin store and try
to sell them."
But you can stroll into the convention center
for a look.
--Laura Oppenheimer,
loppen...@news.oregonian.com
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