Paul Song joins Bonhams

Auction house Bonhams & Butterfields welcomed Paul Inho Song as the director of its newly formed Coins and Banknotes Department, the firm announced July 16.

An auction professional credited with several discoveries in the field of rare gold coinage, Song joins a firm with its own connection to the precious metal with origins dating back to the California Gold Rush era.

Song has more than 20 years of experience in numismatics with special expertise in appraising and selling 19th and 20th century American coinage. Over the course of his career, he has participated in the sale of more than $250 million internationally.

His primary responsibilities at Bonhams include business-getting, appraisals and the day-to-day management of the Coins and Banknotes Department, which will hold three sales annually in Los Angeles and New York City beginning in December.

Among his professional highlights, Song has made one of the most significant discoveries in the field of American numismatics this century. In 1992, he unearthed an extremely rare high relief of the 1907 double eagle coin designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens. It was deemed one of the greatest rarities of the 20th century by the numismatic community, the firm says.

Song is also credited with the sale of a pristine example of the Ultra High Relief from The Sam and Rie Bloomfield Collection of Highly Important Gold Coins for $825,000 in 1996, a world auction record at the time for any gold coin.
Source: numismaticnews.net

Get new Lincolns from Old Capitol

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn was expected to join Mint Director Ed Moy Aug. 13 to officially unveil the third 2009 Lincoln cent design in a special ceremony at the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Ill.

Specific details were not yet available at press time.

The design of the Professional Life cent shows Lincoln in a formal speech-making pose at the Old Capitol.

Collectors will be given the opportunity to purchase at face value rolls of the new cents provided by Chase Bank.

This coin exchange will occur following the ceremony after any schoolchildren in attendance have been given their free individual coins.

Collectors who are not in attendance will have the opportunity to buy two-roll sets of the new cents for $8.95 plus a $4.95 per order handling charge at the Mint Web site at www.usmint.gov. Orders will also be taken by telephone at (800) USA-MINT. The set features one roll of 50 coins from Denver and one roll from Philadelphia.

Emcee for the Springfield event will be television’s WCIS news anchor Jerry Lambert.

Entertainment is to be provided by the Lincoln Troubadours. They are known for their Lincoln era songs.
Source: numismaticnews.net

Medal to honor Apollo 11 astronauts

Both the Senate and the House used the 40th anniversary of man’s landing on the moon to pass separate bills to mandate issuance of a national gold medal to astronauts Neil Armstrong, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, and Michael Collins of Apollo 11, and John H. Glenn of Friendship 7.

Bronze duplicates would be produced and offered for sale by the U.S. Mint, and would be called national medals. Because two different versions passed, the measure will either go to conference to iron our small differences, or one house will have to recede from its position.

Armstrong landed on the moon on July 20, 1969, taking a giant step “for mankind.” Aldrin accompanied him in the lunar lander and was the second man to walk on the moon. Collins remained in orbit.
The landing was later commemorated on the reverse of the Eisenhower and Susan B. Anthony dollars.

Glenn’s 1962 flight three times around the globe paved the path to the lunar surface.
Source: numismaticnews.net