Author Archives: Robert R. Van Ryzin

If all goes as planned, I will have completed my last issue as editor of Bank Note Reporter by the time you are reading this. It’s been an honor and a great privilege to serve in this post for the … Continue reading →

Even though I have often written long feature articles—sometimes covering 10 pages or more—one of the things I figured I would never be able to write on a regular basis was an editorial such as this. That’s because I feared … Continue reading →

Having watched a lot of TV Westerns as a kid, I’m partial to them. One of my favorites was “Maverick,” starring James Garner as Bret Maverick, a loveable gambler whose exploits, along with his brother Bart, played by Jack Kelly, … Continue reading →

So, if you wanted to, how would you make gold? Well, according to scientists, you need two neutron stars. Then, get them to collide. Neutron stars, relates the story of the discovery of the origin of gold, as told in … Continue reading →

I can’t imagine being in a hurricane. I get worried when winds are in the 40 to 50 mph range. My prayers to those impacted by the recent storms. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing has offered help for those … Continue reading →

My favorite professor while working on my master’s degree was Dr. Watson Parker, who wrote a definitive work on Deadwood, S.D., and who taught his students not only history but also techniques of writing and research. One of his favorite … Continue reading →

This month’s cover of Bank Note Reporter has the image of a No. 1 Deadwood $10 note. The note is part of Stack’s Bowers’ sale at the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money in Denver this year. I have … Continue reading →

On a rainy afternoon in October 1919, Samuel W. Brown posed for a photograph that could be a key to the sketchy history of the famed 1913 Liberty Head nickel, of which five specimens are known. Brown is shown standing … Continue reading →

Gangster history from the 1930s is one of those areas that interests me, as I’m sure it does many others. Lately, I’ve been reading Public Enemies by Bryan Burrough. It details the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s 1933-1936 “War on Crime.” … Continue reading →

A new venue, a different type of barbecue, and an influx of new clients were all factors in the perceptions dealers shared with Bank Note Reporter about the recently concluded 41st Annual International Paper Money Show. IPMS, which had until … Continue reading →