Don Taxay | |
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 Don Taxay in 1975 | |
| Born | Donald Paul Taxay May 24, 1933 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Disappeared | c. 1982 (aged 49) India |
| Occupation(s) | Numismatist, historian |
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Donald Paul Taxay [1] (born May 24, 1933) [2] was an American numismatist and historian, known for the reference works he composed, and for his disappearance at the height of his career.
Taxay's first published work was Counterfeit, Mis-Struck and Unofficial U.S. Coins, in 1963, followed by The U.S. Mint and Coinage in 1966 (which Gilroy Roberts called "the most complete and authoritative treatise on the subject ever written"), [3] An Illustrated History of U.S. Commemorative Coinage in 1967, Money of the American Indians in 1970, and Scott's Comprehensive Catalogue and Encyclopedia of United States Coins in 1971. He also served as the curator of the Chase Manhattan Bank Money Museum [3] from April 1964 to May 1966. [2]
His first numismatic job was as manager of the leased coin department at the JordanMarsh Department Store in Boston, joining the firm in 1958. He followed this with stints as the manager of Royal Athena Coin Galleries in New York City, and New Netherlands Coin Company, where he worked with renowned numismatists and researchers John J. Ford and Walter Breen. In 1963, Breen and Taxay formed the Institute of Numismatic Authenticators. [4]
In 1969, he and William Thomas Anton, Jr. co-authored catalogs for Harmer Rooke. In 1974, he joined award-winning numismatist Harry Forman in establishing the coin dealership of Forman, Taxay and Associates. [5] In 1975, Taxay was appointed senior vice president of First Coinventors, Inc. where he also served as director of their Colonial American Coin Club. On July 8, 1976, he formed Rare Coin Collectors Co-op, Inc, which operated until December 30, 1977. [6] In approximately 1977, Taxay withdrew from society.
On December 25, 1977, Taxay married Constance "Connie" Ferris. The marriage ended in divorce on April 12, 1982. Taxay was a resident of Lakeland, Florida by 1979. [7]
In 2005–2006, the members of the Numismatic Bibliomania Society's mailing list undertook a joint research project to discover what had happened to Taxay. [8] They established that Taxay had been introduced to Indian spirituality by Walter Breen and that, as a result, Taxay became a Rajneeshee and emigrated to India. [9] Historian Karl Moulton—whose 2007 book Henry Voigt and Others Involved in America's Early Coinage includes a chapter analyzing Taxay's historiography —speculates that Taxay attempted to liquidate all his property so that he could donate his wealth to the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and describes him as "brainwashed and untraceable," concluding that Taxay's ultimate fate may never be known. [9]
Walter Henry Breen Jr. was an American numismatist, writer, and convicted child sex offender. He was known among coin collectors for writing Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial Coins. "Breen numbers", from his encyclopedia, are widely used to attribute varieties of coins. He was also known for activity in the science fiction fan community and for his writings in defense of pederasty as a NAMBLA activist. He was arrested in 1990 for child sex abuse and died in prison three years later.
The two-cent piece was produced by the Mint of the United States for circulation from 1864 to 1872 and for collectors in 1873. Designed by James B. Longacre, there were decreasing mintages each year, as other minor coins such as the nickel proved more popular. It was abolished by the Mint Act of 1873.
The Numismatist is the monthly publication of the American Numismatic Association. The Numismatist contains articles written on such topics as coins, tokens, medals, paper money, and stock certificates. All members of the American Numismatic Association receive the publication as part of their membership benefits.
The Franklin half dollar is a coin that was struck by the United States Mint from 1948 to 1963. The fifty-cent piece pictures Founding Father Benjamin Franklin on the obverse and the Liberty Bell on the reverse. A small eagle was placed to the right of the bell to fulfill the legal requirement that half dollars depict the figure of an eagle. Produced in 90 percent silver with a reeded edge, the coin was struck at the Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco mints.
The American twenty-cent piece is a coin struck from 1875 to 1878, but only for collectors in the final two years. Proposed by Nevada Senator John P. Jones, it proved a failure due to confusion with the quarter, to which it was close in both size and value.
The three-dollar piece was a gold coin produced by the United States Bureau of the Mint from 1854 to 1889. Authorized by the Act of February 21, 1853, the coin was designed by Mint Chief Engraver James B. Longacre. The obverse bears a representation of Lady Liberty wearing a headdress of a Native American princess and the reverse a wreath of corn, wheat, cotton, and tobacco.
The Oregon Trail Memorial half dollar was a fifty-cent piece struck intermittently by the United States Bureau of the Mint between 1926 and 1939. The coin was designed by Laura Gardin Fraser and James Earle Fraser, and commemorates those who traveled the Oregon Trail and settled the Pacific Coast of the United States in the mid-19th century. Struck over a lengthy period in small numbers per year, the many varieties produced came to be considered a ripoff by coin collectors, and led to the end, for the time, of the commemorative coin series.
Russell Alphonse Rulau was an American numismatist. He was involved in coin collecting for over 60 years. From his earliest days as a casual collector, Rulau contributed to numismatics as a writer, editor and club organizer. His interest in world coins led him to create the "Coin of the Year" award. The award is presented annually by Krause Publications' World Coin News. Rulau coined the term "exonumia" in 1960.
James Barton Longacre was an American portraitist and engraver, and the fourth chief engraver of the United States Mint from 1844 until his death. Longacre is best known for designing the Indian Head cent, which entered commerce in 1859, and for the designs of the Shield nickel, Flying Eagle cent and other coins of the mid-19th century.
John Adam Eckfeldt was an American worker and official during the first years of the United States Mint. A lifelong Philadelphian, Eckfeldt served as the second chief coiner of the Mint, from 1814 until 1839.
The Liberty Head double eagle or Coronet double eagle is an American twenty-dollar gold piece struck as a pattern coin in 1849, and for commerce from 1850 to 1907. It was designed by Mint of the United States Chief Engraver James B. Longacre.
The Roosevelt dime is the current dime, or ten-cent piece, of the United States. Struck by the United States Mint continuously since 1946, it displays President Franklin D. Roosevelt on the obverse and was authorized soon after his death in 1945.
John Jay Ford Jr. was an American numismatist from Hollywood, California, known for his extensive collection of historical currency and medals. Ford largely collected American coinage, particularly U.S. colonial coins, medals, and obsolete U.S. and colonial currency. Ford was one of the premier experts in the field of numismatics, and it is estimated that the total value of his numismatic holdings was upwards of $55 million at the time of his death.
Gene Hessler is an American musician and numismatist, specialising in paper money.
The Chase Manhattan Bank Money Museum was a money museum in New York City from 1928 to 1977.
Coins was an American monthly numismatic publication.
Clifford Leslie Mishler is an American author and numismatist. He has served as president of the American Numismatic Association.
Robert W. "R.W." Julian is an American numismatist, author, and researcher.
David E. Schenkman is an American numismatist and author, specializing in tokens and medals.
The Token and Medal Society (TAMS) is an American numismatic organization founded in 1960. The organization specializes in the study, collection, and research of different types of exonumia.
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