Did You Know: Coin Collecting Challenge!

Test your knowledge on these five questions, and see how you do. Get three right and you are doing well!

1. The “Bugs Bunny” variety describes a:

a: Rabbit with long ears on an 1863 Civil War token issued in Cincinnati.

b: Half dollar of 1955 with a die defect at the teeth of Benjamin Franklin.

c: Low-mintage 1844 Liberty Seated dime.

d: Lincoln cent of 1962 with “whiskers” caused by die cracks.

2. Which one of these statements is correct?

a: A branch mint was proposed at The Dalles, a town in Oregon on the Columbia River. The building was constructed, but it never went into operation as a mint.

b: Dr. Henry R. Linderman, director of the Mint and a knowledgeable numismatist, put an end to restriking coins and the private production of rarities and during his administration made the Mint a model of rectitude.

c: The 2004 California quarter dollar features an American eagle as part of the reverse design.

d: Silver dollars dated 1804 are very rare today, as most were lost on a ship sunk off the coast of Africa, en route to deliver pay to American sailors.

3. Which one of these statements is not correct?

a: Chet Krause, one of America’s most acclaimed figures in the coin collecting hobby, established Numismatic News in 1952. It is still going strong today, along with its sister publication, Coins magazine.

b: Dr. George F. Heath, who established The Numismatist in 1888, was a medical doctor, mayor of Monroe, Michigan, and enjoyed long train trips. The magazine is still going strong today.

c: The first time that 1804-dated federal silver dollars were struck was in 1834.

d: The Numismatic Scrapbook Magazine was established in 1935 by Curt Teich and in the 1960s was edited by Walter Breen.

4. The 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair and its commemorative coins, as well as the 2005 Westward Journey series of nickel designs, were inspired by:

a: Westward expansion through the development of the transcontinental railroad.

b: The 1803 Louisiana Purchase and the 1804-1806 Lewis and Clark expedition.

c: The voyage of the Lady Washington and Columbia to the remote Pacific Northwest coast in the late 1780s.

d: Expansion of steamship commerce on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers in the early 19th century.

5. Well-known numismatist Eric P. Newman has done all of these things except which one?:

a: Received more Heath Literary Awards given by the ANA than has anyone else.

b: Owned all of the five known 1913 Liberty Head nickels.

c: Served as president of the American Numismatic Association.

d: Written books on subjects as diverse as the mysterious Good Samaritan shilling and the 1804 silver dollar.

Answers: 1-b, 2-a, 3-d, 4-b, 5-c