Help Protect the Ancient Collecting Hobby
Help Protect the Ancient Collecting Hobby
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A Helping Hand Repost
While I was surfing the net and reading our FUN Twitter feed I stumbled on a re-tweet from Krause Publications also known as @KPNumismatics. It directed me to the Coins Blog where Scott the blog owner was sharing an email he recently received. When inquiring on the source of his information, Scott replied
[quote]The information was received in an email from vauctions.com who sent it on behalf of the Ancient Coin Collecting Guild. I copied it verbatim adding my note at the bottom with additional information.[end quote]
So with Scott's permission we are re-sharing this information here.
Help Protect the Ancient Collecting Hobby
Help Protect the Ancient Collecting Hobby
This message is being transmitted on behalf of the Ancient Coin Collectors Guild (ACCG) concerning an urgent matter that affects all collectors of ancient coins.
What is being asked of you is to take 5 minutes to write a comment to the State Department’s Cultural Property Advisory Committee via a website. Please submit your comment once by the deadline of November 2, 2011, 5pm EST.
Please consider sending this to any coin collector you know:
The US State Department is seeking public comment on a new request for import restrictions made on behalf of Bulgaria. To submit comments electronically to the State Department’s Cultural Property Advisory Committee (CPAC), go
Here
For further details of the request, see this post
What is at issue? Despite President Obama’s efforts to foster government transparency, the State Department has not indicated whether coins are part of the request. Nonetheless, based on recent history, it is probable that import restrictions on coins will be proposed. As a practical matter, this means the State Department and US Customs may be considering restrictions on tribal coinages from Thrace, coins of Greek city states like Apollonia Pontica and Messembria, Roman provincial coins struck at Bulgarian mints, and even some Roman Imperial coins. It’s also possible that any restrictions will include later coins as well. Though details are few, the public summary the State Department has provided indicates that Bulgaria seeks import restrictions on objects from 7500 B.C. to the 19th c. AD. If restrictions are imposed on coins, many common types will likely become so difficult to import legally that they will become unavailable to most collectors.
Why bother? Large numbers of coin collectors have made their concerns known to CPAC. Recently, 70% of the comments CPAC received on an MOU with Greece were from concerned coin collectors. Even though recent extensions of import restrictions to certain Greek and Roman Republican coins from Italy and on coins from Cyprus despite the vast amount of public comment make it easy to become cynical, public comment can at least help moderate demands for import restrictions. For example, the archaeologists actively sought import restrictions on Roman coins as well during the discussions about the Italian MOU, but they remain exempted, and thus easy to obtain on the open market, likely due to the 2000 or so faxes CPAC received from concerned collectors.
What should I say? Tell the State Department and CPAC what you think about the bureaucracy’s efforts to deny you the ability to collect common ancient artifacts that are available worldwide. You might also might consider noting that coins from Bulgarian mints are common and often very inexpensive. Tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands exist in collections around the world, and because of the low price the vast majority of these coins will never have been through an auction and will have no verifiable provenance.
If you are having trouble commenting from the direct link above, go to http://www.regulations.gov and search on docket number DOS-2011-0115. Further information about regulation.gov, including instructions for accessing agency documents, submitting comments, and viewing the dockets, is available on the site under How To Use This Site. Kindly note that your comments will be public so avoid conveying any personal information, and, of course, be polite in commenting on the issue.
Please submit comments just once, before the cutoff of 5:00 PM EST Nov. 2, 2011.
For more information on this issue please see the Original Source Coins Blog Reposted with permission.
Trade Restrictions On Imports of Ancient Iraqi Coins
Trade Restrictions On Imports of Ancient Iraqi Coins
Add coin collectors to the list of interests lobbying on the Iraq war.
Peter Tompa, a lawyer at Bailey & Ehrenberg, wants an exemption allowing imports of ancient Iraqi coins. The trade was restricted by the State Department late last month.
Tompa is representing the Professional Numismatists Guild and the International Association of Professional Numismatists, two nonprofit groups that represent the world’s coin and paper money experts.
There is a big trade between the United States and Europe. [Coins] have been literally collected since the Renaissance, said Tompa, himself a coin collector for 30 years.
Congress called for the State Department to restrict the coin trade from Iraq in 2004. The new rules are designed to stave off a burgeoning black market for Iraqi historical artifacts that has boomed since the U.S. invasion.
Tompa argues, however, that ancient Iraqi coins have been inappropriately caught up in the dragnet. To bring Iraqi coins to America, owners now have to establish proof of ownership going back several years, said the attorney. That’s a lot of effort for an item that may only cost $10 to $15.
Tompa is optimistic about his lobbying effort. He has carved out an exemption for Italian coins in the past and is now finding lawmakers who are willing to raise concerns about the restrictions in letters to the State Department.
The Ancient Coin Collectors Guild
The Ancient Coin Collectors Guild is a non-profit organization committed to promoting the free and independent collecting of coins from antiquity.
The goal of the guild is to foster an environment in which the general public can confidently and legally acquire and hold any numismatic item of historical interest regardless of date or place of origin.
ACCG strives to achieve its goals through education, political action, and consumer protection.
Who are they? ACCG is a group of collectors and numismatic professionals who care passionately about preserving, studying and displaying ancient coins from all cultures. Since the Renaissance, coin collectors and dealers have been responsible for most numismatic research. The efforts of generations of numismatists have led to the discovery and conservation of untold numbers of ancient coins as well as a better public understanding of the ancient cultures that created them.
Why are they concerned? The ACCG was formed to provide a voice for ancient coin collectors on issues that threaten the hobby. Given a widespread disinformation campaign about the extent of looting at the Iraq and Afghan national museums, we fear that ideologues within the archaeological establishment have subverted laudable efforts to protect public collections and archaeological sites into a crusade to suppress the public's longstanding right to preserve, study and display antiquities, including ones as common as ancient coins. Unless we provide decision makers in the legislative and administrative branches of government with our own views on the complex issues surrounding preservation of historical sites, we face the prospect that our right to collect ancient coins will be legislated out of existence by ill-informed decision makers who have been told that anything "old" should belong to the government of the country where it is found, and that only academic elites should have a right to study and preserve the artifacts of the past.
Check Out Their Website & Their FAQ Page
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the big fuss about?
Are ancient coins rare?
Aren't archaeologists good custodians of ancient coins?
What can be done to encourage protection of archaeological sites?
What can collectors themselves do to encourage protection of archaeological sites?
Are import restrictions necessary to curry favor with foreign nations?
What government action do we support and what government action do we oppose?
Click ACCG FAQ
Source The Ancient Coin Collectors Guild
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