American Numismatic Society

William E. Metcalf
Chief Curator, ANS

The American Numismatic Society was founded (as “The American Numismatic and Archaeological Society”) in 1858. It is fair to say that its international profile is entirely a twentieth-century phenomenon, dating from its acquisition of permanent quarters in 1908 and, more particularly, from the presidency of E. T. Newell (1916–1941).

Newell took a day-to-day hand in Society affairs, and was both a scholar and a collector. His bequest of some 57,000 coins, in addition to lifetime gifts totalling some 36,000, made the Society’s collection (which now numbers about 725,000 objects) one of the largest in the world, and one of the most important. In addition its library is the largest of its kind anywhere.

Collection Access

The Society recognizes its remoteness from other major cabinets (generally speaking, located in national capitals in Europe, but also in Munich, Oxford, St. Petersburg). From the early 1960s the Society has participated in the publication of its collections in international series (the Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum [see below], the Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles). The Society’s policies with respect to provision of casts and photographs from its collection continue to be far more liberal than that obtaining elsewhere, and library holdings are made available upon request.

The ability to respond to inquiries from serious students was one factor in the enthusiasm with which staff approached the creation of a computerized database of the Society’s collection. To date about two-thirds of the Society’s numismatic holdings — just short of 500,000 specimens — are online. No other collection approaches this level of recording.

Direct remote access remains a desideratum, but anyone with a serious inquiry can expect detailed response by mail in a short time; and there is now serious prospect of making images available as well.

Publications

Newell was the first American to earn an international reputation as a scholar, and this of course redounded to the Society’s credit; more concretely, he was instrumental in establishing two series of publications (Numismatic Notes and Monographs and Numismatic Studies) to which he also contributed. The original American Journal of Numismatics had ceased publication in 1924, but after World War II Museum Notes was introduced; it was in turn succeeded, in 1989, by the second series of the American Journal of Numismatics. From the beginning, all these series have drawn a large number of international contributors, and the journal has by far the largest circulation of any publication of its kind in any language.

Since 1948, the Society has also published Numismatic Literature, at first a quarterly and now a semi-annual bibliography of numismatics. Until the late 1960s this was compiled by ANS librarians and based largely on ANS library acquisitions; in 1967 the International Numismatic Commission took over patronage of the project and formalized a system of international editors that continues to this day.

The increasing volume of publication, political uncertainty in areas of the world which normally produce large numbers of publications, and continued dependence on manual methods of compilation have been problems in recent years, but the Society is rapidly moving toward further bibliographical integration, and there has been no serious consideration of abandoning the ANS role.

In the 1960s, the Society began to publish its collection of Greek coins in the series Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum. This series, too, is under the general supervision of the International Numismatic Commission, which sets standards for format and presentation. The Society was the first to depart from a strictly geographical approach to presentation of its holdings — an approach that has resulted in the publication of huge numbers of western coins and relatively few from the eastern Mediterranean and North Africa. The original impetus was the availability of an Israeli specialist to publish the Society’s holdings of ancient Palestine; scholars from other countries have now been engaged to produce other fascicules as well. Nine fascicules have appeared to date, and four others are in various stages of preparation.

The Society exchanges its publications with nearly 200 institutions, almost all of them abroad. Through this medium the audience for its publications has expanded, and the ANS Library now has a uniquely broad representation of periodicals devoted to numismatics and related disciplines.

The Graduate Seminar

Since 1952 the ANS has sponsored an annual seminar in numismatics, which brings together 10–12 graduate students for an intensive program of numismatic study culminating in the student’s preparation and presentation of a research paper. Though the format has changed over the years, since 1958 the seminar has involved the presence of one or more visiting scholars, who are brought to New York at ANS expense to assist in supervising student work. Naturally the visiting scholar is also exposed to the riches of the ANS holdings, and these contacts have promoted the Society’s international image.

Only students affiliated with North American colleges and universities are eligible for stipends, but many foreign students studying here have been admitted in past years. In addition, since 1992 the Society has accepted applications from foreign students, though it is impossible to provide them with financial assistance. So far two — who have proved to be outstanding participants in the program — have attended.

Outside Teaching and Research

The Society’s curatorial staff has compiled a distinguished record of teaching and research abroad. Of current staff, three have held fellowships at the University of Oxford, two have taught at the University of Padua, one is a member of the governing board of the collection at the University of Tübingen. One is an officer of the Fédération Internationale de la Médaille, and two have served on the International Numismatic Commission (one as vice-president). All are regular participants in international gatherings.

The Future

The Society’s international profile in the future will depend heavily on further exploitation of computers and electronic globalism. Computerization of the collection itself will continue through completion, and there is hope of a library catalogue that will be definitive for the field. In addition, the possibilities of digital imaging are now being explored, and the Society is about to introduce access through the Internet. Electronic communication has serious implications — not all of which can be foreseen — for almost every aspect of the organization’s work. We can expect, for example, instant updating of bibliographies, and perhaps consolidation of Numismatic Literature into a single CD-ROM. Other possibilities include digital imaging of the museum’s huge photo archive, and the possibility of making basic numismatic literature available in a similar format has been discussed.

The ANS and Modern Numismatic Scholarship

It is critical for the ANS to continue its efforts to participate in a scholarly community that is mainly centered in Europe. The discipline itself may now be described as mature, but in many ways the possibilities opened up by new technology cannot be exploited as long as scholars must work with antiquated research tools.

Access to material that is dispersed all over the world is critical to any modern study. One new approach is the “union catalogue” of collections represented by Roman Provincial Coinage I (London and Paris, 1992). This attempt to embrace all local coinages struck under the Roman Empire is truly an international venture in a number of senses: the first volume was compiled by scholars from London, Paris, and Valencia, and it concentrated on 11 “core collections” in 7 countries, while incorporating published material from a number of others. The ANS collection is part of the “core,” and an ANS staff member is involved in the preparation of at least one of the further nine planned fascicules.

The greatest obstacle to ventures of this sort is financial. A generous benefactor has supported the Society’s computerization and related programs; regrettably more conventional programs are underfunded. It is impossible, for example, to offer assistance to students and scholars who could benefit from exposure to the Society’s riches, and the Society’s own staff is dependent on outside funding for research opportunities abroad. The limited money available for scholarships and fellowships is all earmarked for residents of the United States or Canada.

In the long term, the organization’s scholarly strategy must be to continue its high level of achievement, to participate as far as means allow in groundbreaking new ventures, and to demonstrate, through research and teaching, the increasing relevance of its discipline. This represents the best hope for attracting the kind of funding that will make new breakthroughs possible.