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The WCNS is actively promoting the preservation of our heritage. Our national repositories are the custodians of historically important and irreplaceable items. We are aware of numismatic items that have gone missing from these repositories and urge anyone with information to get in touch via our Contact Us channel
The Farouk Sale
(Click to open image in new window)
The telegram shown here confirms the auction sale of Lot No 902, from the collection of King Farouk of Egypt, to Dr Froehlich from Port Elizabeth in 1954. The lot of 19 gold coins included the unique "Single 9" Kruger pond. The fascinating history and discussion about these coins can be found in the publication housed in our library: The Rarest of the Rare - Unique and very Rare Gold Coins of the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek - Pdf (31MB)
Coin of the Year Awards 2024
The category winners of the annual Coin of the Year awards were announced on 14 May 2024. South Africa was nominated in three categories, Gold coins, R50 - Buffalo, Circulating coins, 50c - Knysna Loerie, and Bi-Metallic coins, R5 - the Southern Right Whale. The 50c coin, featured elsewhere on this page, won the award for Best Circulating Coin dated 2023. South Africa has always been at the forefront of coin design and has won numerous accolades.
As numismatics is closely connected with history, archaeology, art history, and economics, the language and tasks of numismatics – its terms and techniques - can often be bewildering. From Zevenstuiver to hairline, Unc to Nimbus, find it here. It's the Oxford Dictionary of Numismatics - NNP Dictionary. Note, external link.
WCNS 3rd Quarterly Meeting
The societies' 3rd quarterly meeting coincided with a visit to the Cape Mint, the oldest of two privately owned mints in South Africa. Members were led on a most interesting tour through
the facility. From the display and commemoration rooms, and accompanying commentary, it was clear from the outset that this is a world-class mint! Follow the link for more photos and info.
The "Perfect" Forgery - Part 3
We had hoped to publish the third instalment of The "Perfect" Forgery, but have decided to delay it, as we might have discovered more groundbreaking news on this fascinating topic. We hope to access this material within the next 3-4 weeks and will share it in Part 3.
In Part 2, two of South Africa's foremost numismatists, Prof. Francois Malan and Glenn Schoeman, share their accounts of discussions with master die cutter Tommy Sasseen regarding his views on the 1900 Kruger sovereign forgeries. Glenn Schoeman, who worked closely on numerous projects with Tommy over a period of 35 years, wrote a complimentary piece for the WCNS upon request and said: "Tommy examined the coins under a microscope for days". Prof Francois Malan's meticulous approach together with Glenn Schoeman's first-hand account and sharing of his own knowledge that shines through has never been documented. Glenn Schoeman's piece was added as an addendum to Part 2 and will also be available in the WCNS archive. Read more...
The “Perfect” Forgery - Part 1
The Story of the Fake Kruger Pond of 1900
Many articles have been published on features that are fairly common to coins that have been copied or imitated. However, the sudden appearance in 1968 of quantities of mint condition ZAR ponds dated 1900 even had the experts sharply divided over this particular piece. The near-perfect coins appeared to
have been struck with original dies and sold for "bargain" prices. In other words, too good to be true.Years later the original
seller, Gerritt van Niekerk, confessed, but many questions remained. In a two-part article, Pierre H. Nortje revisits this intriguing episode in SA numismatics with interviews and further research that bring to light new information.
Was the Victoria Cross really denied to the South African Soldier Corporal Job Maseko?
In this paper, decorated author, lecturer, and expert in Decorations and Medals, Brig Gen Deon Fourie discusses the controversial article published in the British newspaper,
Daily Mail in 2021 under the heading "The hero snubbed for being black: Petition is launched to award Victoria Cross to South African WWII hero who snuck(sic) aboard Nazi ship and blew it up with bomb he built from a tin of condensed milk - but was denied medal due to his race".
The author explains the processes for nominating and awarding such esteemed honours, and he applies them clearly and methodically to the Maseko case using publicly available facts to reach his conclusion. It is a must-read for both medal collectors and anyone interested in the process of awarding them. Read more here...
Featured Coin Designers
Our fourth instalment features the two designers of the R1 coin from South Africa's 2023 Fourth Decimal Coin Series, a collaboration between Lillian Guerra and Richard Stone of the SA Mint. The new design features the national flag on the obverse side of the coin, while the reverse displays the national flower, the king protea, which has the largest flower head in the genus.
Richard Stone leads Product Development at the South African Mint and has successfully spearheaded projects like redesigning the Krugerrand in 2017 and the current design of South Africa’s Fourth Decimal circulation coin series.
The fate of 22 1899 coinage dies for the State Mint of the Z.A.R.
Shown above is an extract from a piece written by BJ Hern which can be found in our library (ASANS 1). We have now seen more information about this extraordinary event that led to one of the most iconic coins in history, the Single 9 Kruger pond. Watch this space for a comprehensive explanation.
Western Cape Numismatic Society Announcements
Membership
Membership of the society is open to all. Enquiries can be made through our Contact Us channel
WCNS Archives
Our comprehensive library consists of SA Numismatic Publications and Government Gazette sections, 1870 - current in Pdf formats, with an added Category Section as a research finding aid. Follow the Library link in the Site Menu bar.
More SA Numismatic resources
Library feature:
Commemorative Medals: LJ De Wet
Lecture given by Africana and Medal expert, LJ De Wet. Commemorative medals of South African interest cover a vast and somewhat neglected field of Africana. Mrs De Wet's account of many of the earliest medals is fascinating and important . Link here...
New Book Release
Hern's Handbook is an essential companion for all collectors of SA Coins and Pattern pieces and needs no introduction. "Buy the book before you buy the coin"
Very little on the history of the SA mint-marked sovereign is described in numismatic literature. Prof. F. Malan's latest publication, The Pretoria Sovereign, sheds more light on these coins, and corrects the mintage figures for 1923 and 1924 . Read the full book review here.
New 1/10th gold coins released by the SA Mint - click to enlarge
