Young Indiana's Coin Collection

Archaeos

Member
Stoo said:
William, do you mean the particular coins in the image you posted were commemoratives or do you mean Notgelds in general? Some quick research says that they were indeed issued for use but not by the bank, therefore, weren't considered legal tender. (You're the expert so I'm just aiming to clarify this.:))



I would love to know a bit more about that as well, WilliamBoyd8, as this is a bit confusing. Is it that as Notgeld, it was issued by third parties and used as monetary tokens (yet not legal tender, which only a central bank can issue), but that it was mostly picked up as commemorative coins by people? I don't get the logic, unless Westphalia was full of coin aficionados untroubled by the hyperinflation, and could entirely focus on the aesthetic side of all this... :p :D

Stoo said:
Quite the bargain to pay only $0.01 for the book!:eek: When you get your copy, be sure to post your thoughts here: The Greatest Adventures of Indiana Jones

Thanks for the invite! I will do that, although the book has not yet arrived. But for £0.01 (not being pedantic here :whip: ), I am not complaining about shipping being slow.

Stoo said:
As for how he obtained the Notgelds, your guess is as good as any! Maybe Indy acquired them at a curio shop while in Flensburg during WW2?:p

Sorry if I am ignorant here, but what did Indy do in Flensburg during WWII :confused: *mustknowanyreferenceorsource*

Stoo said:
Thanks for all the wonderful information, Archaeos. You are quickly becoming a highly esteemed addition to The Raven!:hat:

:eek: ... :hat:
 

Stoo

Well-known member
WilliamBoyd8 said:
Next Young Indiana Jones coin story:
Those look challenging. Have fun!:D

Here's another one from the "Greatest Adventures" book (the other side is shown with the date but I want to see how close WilliamBoyd's expertise can identify it):

GreatAdv_07.jpg


Archaeos said:
Sorry if I am ignorant here, but what did Indy do in Flensburg during WWII :confused: *mustknowanyreferenceorsource*
Nothing is really known but Indy & Mac talk about their situation in WW2 Flensburg, while outside the warehouse at the beginning of "Crystal Skull". (There's also a reference to the event in the "Lost Journal" book.)
 

Archaeos

Member
Stoo said:
Nothing is really known but Indy & Mac talk about their situation in WW2 Flensburg, while outside the warehouse at the beginning of "Crystal Skull". (There's also a reference to the event in the "Lost Journal" book.)

I was hoping that there is some "expanded indyverse" substantiation to that small talk. My knowledge of Indiana Jones, you should know, is mostly focused on the movies and the series. I am very week in respect to books, comics etc., so I had hopes that this would have been picked up somewhere. But thanks for this!

I will also try to post my "Greatest Adventures" book review sometime next week (just got back home/office from abroad, much to do), as per your invitation.(y)

And NOW, back to WilliamBoyd's next challenge *tata*..:
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
The coin is an aluminum Germany 50 Reichspfennig.
The 'F' at the bottom is the mintmark, Stuttgart.

Here is what similar ones look like with both sides:

post_germany_p50_1935.jpg

Germany 50 Reichspfennig 1935-A (Berlin mint)
They made this type only in 1935.

post_germany_p50_1942.jpg

Germany 50 Reichspfennig 1942-A (Berlin mint)
The well-known trademark was added for 1939 to 1944.

:)
 

Stoo

Well-known member
WilliamBoyd8 said:
The coin is an aluminum Germany 50 Reichspfennig.
The 'F' at the bottom is the mintmark, Stuttgart.
Once again, Master Boyd, you nailed it (and with extra details)!(y) Not only is this fun, it's educational.:)
WilliamBoyd8 said:
Germany 50 Reichspfennig 1935-A (Berlin mint)
They made this type only in 1935.
Indy has a 1935 one:

GreatAdv_08.jpg

Archaeos said:
I will also try to post my "Greatest Adventures" book review sometime next week (just got back home/office from abroad, much to do), as per your invitation.(y)
Back from München, eh? Looking forward to your review, mein freund.:)
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
Catherine Zeta-Jones as Maya, the belly dancer / spy:

post_indianayoung_daredevils_maya.jpg


Just for anyone's information, the coins that she wears are actually costume jewelry imitation coins.

The imitations are usually thinner than regular coins, and light in weight so that they can be worn.

Their inscriptions usually have meaningless imitation Arabic script.

:)
 

Archaeos

Member
Might be a silly query, but when you say costume jewelry imitation coins, do you mean
a) for the movie wardrobe only
b) as applications or embellishment for clothing that were/are worn by Arab women/real-world civilians?
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
The imitation coins are usually made of brass and are meant for dancer costumes.

Real dancers wear them, also the lady in the television show.

:)
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
"Daredevils of the Desert" episode coin identified.

Just for completeness, the coin which the "beggar" Indy receives from the uniformed officer
is an Ottoman Egypt 40 Paras dated AH (Moslem) 1277, Sultan's reign year 10,
which is around AD 1869, meaning that the coin was old when the episode was set in 1917.

The 40 Para coin is a large coin, around 38mm, which would photograph well for television.

There were 40 Paras to the Piastre, then was worth around US five cents

I managed to finally get a screen capture of the obverse (front) of the coin,
which confirms the denomination, as the 10 and 20 Para coins look similar, except for size.

post_indianayoung_daredevils_coinobv.jpg

"Daredevils of the Desert" coin obverse
The design at the bottom which looks like three vertical dots is actually a worn
Arabic character for the number "4", which usually looks like a letter "W" on it's side.

post_indianayoung_daredevils_coinrev.jpg

"Daredevils of the Desert" coin reverse

Here is what an actual one looks like:

post_egypt_p40_1277.jpg

Ottoman Egypt 40 Paras AH 1277 Regnal year 10 (AD 1869)

These are pretty common coins for collectors.

:)
 

Stoo

Well-known member
WilliamBoyd8 said:
Ottoman Egypt 40 Paras dated AH (Moslem) 1277, Sultan's reign year 10, which is around AD 1869,
WillyBoyd, I'm continually impressed by your knowledge but when this coin was discussed in posts #3 & 6 by Demitasse & yourself, the Arabic 1277 date was considered 1861 A.D. What was the deciding factor that now makes it 1869?:confused:

One can't help wonder if using this old (even for 1917) coin was intentional or not. It makes much more sense to use a special piece of money in an espionage contact than an early 20th century one. If it was, indeed, intentional than the series took much more attention to detail than I previously thought.

---
I still need to scan the rest of the coins from the "Greatest Adventures" book for you to investigate. Are you game?
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
Yes, I am still curious about the book.

The date on the "Daredevils" coin is AH 1277 but there is also a
"Regnal year" of 10, which is the tenth year the Ottoman Sultan
was on the job.

These are Moslem lunar years which are shorter than Western years,
about 354 days or 97%.

The coin date would be AH 1277 plus 9 (as 1277 is already year 1),
then converted to an AD date.
AD 1869 = AH 1286 x 0.97 + AD 622 (Base year for Moslem dates).

Some Moslem countries use the Moslem base year and add solar years.

This question will be on the test.

Study wisely.

:)
 
Last edited:

Stoo

Well-known member
WilliamBoyd8 said:
This question will be on the test.
*chuckle*. Thanks for the explanation. I know very little about the Muslim world and it's always nice to learn new things.

Are you a dealer or just a collector?
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
I have been into coins since I was a kid, but only as a collector or hobbyist.

I have traded or sold a few items to other collectors and on Ebay over the years.

:)
 

Montana Smith

Active member
WilliamBoyd8 said:
Yes, I am still curious about the book.

The date on the "Daredevils" coin is AH 1277 but there is also a
"Regnal year" of 10, which is the tenth year the Ottoman Sultan
was on the job.

These are Moslem lunar years which are shorter than Western years,
about 354 days or 97%.

The coin date would be AH 1277 plus 9 (as 1277 is already year 1),
then converted to an AD date.
AD 1869 = AH 1286 x 0.97 + AD 622 (Base year for Moslem dates).

Some Moslem countries use the Moslem base year and add solar years.

This question will be on the test.

Study wisely.

:)

This is the nifty conversion calculator I used to date the Turkish cartridge case 'trench art' I picked up.
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
I got one of my own, same size and date!

post_egypt_p40_1277.jpg


Ottoman Egypt 40 Paras AH 1277 Regnal year 10 (AD 1869)
Metal: Bronze
Size: 36mm
Weight: 24.36gm

A real "Indy" item that will go well with my "Temple of Doom" Moidore.

:)
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
I finally got the French coin shown in the "Demons of Deception" poster:

post_indianayoung_frenchposter.jpg


This poster shows a French gold "Rooster" coin attacking a German soldier.

post_france_f20_1912.jpg

France Gold 20 Francs dated 1912 but struck recently

These coins are still being struck by the French Mint with the old date for sale as gold pieces.

:)
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Congrats on your recent acquisitions, Mr. Boyd. That gold one looks very nice!:)

Here's another challenge for you, again from the "Greatest Adventures" book. (I actually scanned this last year but forgot to post it). The image on the page is very faint so a version with more contrast has been included.

Could this be a token?:confused:

GreatAdv_11-1_zpsb9df9d81.jpg
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Stoo said:
Here's another challenge for you, again from the "Greatest Adventures" book. (I actually scanned this last year but forgot to post it). The image on the page is very faint so a version with more contrast has been included.

Could this be a token?:confused:


Didn't intend to steal Hopalong's thunder but I was intrigued.

I simply Googled 'church coin' and a short way down the page I saw this:

NaziChurchCoin.jpg


5 Mark, Potsdam Garrison Church

http://www.nobeliefs.com/mementoes.htm

It was a commemorative coin issued on the First Anniversary of Nazi rule.
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Montana Smith said:
Didn't intend to steal Hopalong's thunder but I was intrigued.

I simply Googled 'church coin' and a short way down the page I saw this:
Heh, some challenge that turned out to be! It took you less than half an hour to identify.:hat:

Looking into this coin a bit more, it was issued in both 1934 and 1935 with two versions of the 1934. One with the writing & svastikas on the church side (as in the photo you found) and one without (as in the Indy book). The version that you posted is the earlier & more rare issue. Because of this, it's seemingly impossible to determine which year Indy's is.

---
On an side note:
Being curious to know if I was anywhere near that church when in Potsdam last year, I had a look on Google Maps. Sure enough, I cycled right past the empty lot where the church once stood* (on my way to the Potsdam Film Museum which is just down the street). Even more freaky is that I took a photo of the building right beside the lot because it had some communist era paintings on the wall.

*Apparently, the church caught on fire during a WW2 Allied bombing raid and its ruins were eventually torn down in the late '60s. There are talks of rebuilding it.

Here's where I was to take the snapshot. On the right of my photo is piece of the wall that surrounds the Garrison Church lot:

GarrisonChurch_zpsa01f63f6.jpg


Just noticed that I was right next to something called, "Vogel Events".:)
 
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