A Convergence of Two Hobbies

I've been collecting coins since Christmas Day of 1952 when my Grandparents gave me my first coin folders. Two Whitman folders with about thirty slots filled with common dates. It took my Grandfather a while to convince me that this was a good thing...I didn't necessarily believe that thirty cents was a very good Christmas present when I first opened it. A little creative psychology on my Grandfather's part had me on fire for the hobby before I left his apartment that day.

In 1963 I began another hobby. I started playing the violin. (Ironically I only found out after my Grandfather's death that he also played the violin.) I played through public school, then went to college. I founded my college's string quartet, and played first violin for that short-lived ensemble. (I understand it folded after I left the institution.) I've played as an amateur in symphony orchestras, chamber orchestras, a string orchestra, an opera company, and numerous smaller ensembles.

Both hobbies have had their high and low points over the course of the years.

Having picked up both hobbies again a couple years back, I was really excited to find the 1967 Austrian 50 schilling piece. On its obverse it portrays Johann Strauss...playing his violin! Whoa! Cool! Not exactly the Harmonic Convergence, but this coin allows me to combine two hobbies that I really enjoy. I had to have one, and it only took about a month to find a coin that I really liked. I acquired it.

Did you ever notice that sometimes the most obvious course of action just never occurs to the folks who are involved? It was that way for me. Just recently I looked into musical instruments on coins, and guess what I found! The 1973 100 shilling piece also portrays Strauss and the violin. So does the 1960 100 schilling note.

Now I'm looking for more. It's not a quest. It's not an obsession. But it is certainly something that is on my mind when I look at coin auctions and attend coin shows. I'll be looking again in Fort Worth at the end of the month when I attend the A.N.A. show. Will I run across something else interesting? Undoubtedly. Will it involve both hobbies? Who knows? But I'll learn and I'll enjoy the things I find!

That's My Two Cents
Art Haule
Coin Collecting: The Hobby of Kings
www.squidoo.com/ICollectCoins

Don't Leave Home Without It

Any time I get the chance to talk about Coin Collecting I take it. I've always considered coins "fine art for the common folk," and I have often discussed just that point with people I didn't even know. I'd love to be able to carry my coin collection with me, but as forgetful as I am (at least according to my wife and 13-year old daughter), I'm probably better off leaving my actual collection safely at home. But I have figured out a few ways to bring up coins in conversation without the risk of losing something valuable, and over the next few weeks I'll post something about some of those ideas.

One thing that I like to do is have an image or two of coins I enjoy with me. If I can display them somehow, people always seem to talk about them. For me it's especially fun if the coin is not one that is commonly circulated today.




The image of a coin on a keychain is one neat way to bring coins to the fore. This is especially fun with kids. And it's always best if you know some interesting trivia about the coin!

What I like about keychains is that they are appropriate everywhere. A t-shirt won't work in most office settings. But I need to pull out my keys half a dozen times a day. At the fast food restaurant or the local mega-mart...folks see my keychain. When I sit at a table at the library, I leave my keys on the table next to my books. Unobtrusive. But an effective way to get folks involved in the greatest hobby in the world. And for under Three Bucks, it's something I can enjoy even if nobody else is around.