ANA Summer Seminar

For many, the American Numismatic Association's (ANA) Summer Seminar, is a life-changing event. It has catapulted the careers of many of the nation's most successful numismatic collectors, authors and dealers, and guided young numismatists to become hobby leaders.

Now celebrating its 44th year, Summer Seminar again features a lineup of classes to suit virtually every collector’s hobby needs. Whether your interest is ancients, paper money, Barber coinage, Indian Head cents or medals and tokens, there’s a class or mini-seminar for you. Want to learn to take exceptional digital photographs, or learn something about security? There’s a class for you. Students can learn to grade coins, detect counterfeits and about the modern minting process. Most importantly, everyone who attends Summer Seminar has something in common: a passion for numismatics.

Your class experience is a true seminar: students gather in small groups where everyone actively participates. You'll learn not only from instructors who are recognized leaders in their fields, but also from the collective experiences of fellow students, who range in age from 13 to 90.

Here is a sampling of the Paper Money Classes being offered:

Detecting Counterfeit World Paper Money

June 23 - 29
Instructor: Joseph E. Boling, ANA Chief Judge and co-author of World War II Remembered: History in Your Hands, A Numismatic Study

Students examine actual specimens using microscopes, ultraviolet and infrared light as well as the naked eye to distinguish good notes from bad. Topics include the history of counterfeiting, printing techniques, security devices and their illegal replication, raised and altered notes, and entrepreneurial counterfeiting since the 19th century. Students will have the opportunity to handle hundreds of examples of counterfeit notes, while matching genuine examples side by side. Special attention will be devoted to counterfeit notes that are created specifically to sell to collectors.

Non-Federal Paper Money of America (1783-1865)

June 23 - 29
Instructor: Wendell Wolka, ANA governor, The Numismatist columnist and author of A History of Nineteenth Century Ohio Obsolete Bank Notes and Scrip

Before National Bank Notes and the end of the Civil War, the financial history of the U.S. could be traced through the paper money and scrip issued by individual banks, businesses, states and the Confederacy. Students will learn interesting and often humorous anecdotes connected with antebellum American banks and bankers while discovering ways to collect these fascinating, rare and yet quite affordable numismatic items. Learn how they were produced and how they were widely counterfeited. Study the history surrounding the paper money of the Confederate States of America, as well as issues of the individual southern state governments, why they were issued—and why they ultimately failed. Fractional currency, early National Bank Notes and early Federal notes like Demand Notes and Legal Tender notes also will be discussed.

Military Numismatics Since 1930

June 30-July 6
Instructor: Fred Schwan and ANA Chief Judge Joseph E. Boling, authors of World War II Remembered: History in Your Hands, A Numismatic Study. Schwan also has written several other books on these topics.

Paper money, coins, tokens and medals of 20th-century conflicts (primarily since 1930) will be discussed, including emissions of all belligerents and affected non-belligerents. Students will learn the reasons for creating restricted military- use currencies. Special emphasis will be placed on U.S. military payment certificate issues and how they were used. Instruction includes reenactments of such use.

Advanced Military Numismatics

June 30-July 6
Instructor: Fred Schwan and ANA Chief Judge Joseph E. Boling, authors of World War II Remembered: History in Your Hands, A Numismatic Study. Schwan also has written several other books on these topics.

Limited to students who already have taken the Military Numismatics class, or who have permission of the instructors. Students will meet separately, but will join the basic “Military Numismatics Since 1930” class for selected functions. Subjects are extensions of those taught in the basic course, in greater detail or covering separate ground. Students will perform independent research for half of each classroom day and will present the results of that research to the basic class at the end of the course.

Mini-Seminars:

Mexican Paper Money
June 23 & 24, 6:30 - 9:30 pm
Instructor: Ricardo de León Tallavas, Mexican coinage expert

Mexican paper money was born in turmoil and suffered an inglorious death a century later. In between, paper money issues trace Mexico’s turbulent history from the U.S. Invasion (as it’s called in Mexico) through the establishment of a powerful banking system, brought down by greed and corruption. Paper money was rendered useless during the Mexican Revolution and, by 1920, was replaced by a rigid metallic monetary system. Hundreds of images have been gathered for this class—the result of 36 months of research by the instructor.

MPC Boot Camp
June 25 & 26, 6:30 - 9:30 pm
Drill Sergeant: Carlton “Fred” Schwan, co-author of World War II Military Currency

All Military Payment Certificate (MPC) enthusiasts are to report for duty! Mission includes basic to advanced study of MPCs. Deserters will be courtmartialed!

To learn more about summer seminar, visit the information page on the ANA's Web site, or download the full course catalog [PDF]. All tuition options are listed on the registration form.

Enroll in Summer Seminar today and have the numismatic time of your life.