Numismatists United for Political Action (NUPA) a grassroots organization with a mission to educate and inspire the coin collecting community to stand and be heard in Washington organized this week.

The effort follows discussions at the recent Board of Directors meeting of the Industry Council for Tangible Assets (ICTA). NUPA is already set up on Google groups and Facebook and invites anyone, especially coin dealers and collectors to join and get involved. There are no dues or fees for membership.

Three core issues right now for NUPA are: getting the U.S. Mint to produce 2010 Proof Silver Eagles, fighting for elimination of restrictive private commodity sales language in the Senate Financial Reform measure and passage of S.1769 the Coins in IRAs Bill. Nicholas Pyle who addressed the ICTA meeting on political action said, “The need for NUPA is clear, our community needs to step up and be heard.” “NUPA is here to fill a void since many of the organizations that serve to numismatic community have charters and tax status that limits their political activity to education and prevents direct lobbying to Members of Congress.” Our goal with NUPA is to complement these organizations activities and energize their memberships and the broader coin-collecting universe to be heard on important issues.

NUPA efforts will provide inspired coin enthusiasts with talking points on key issues for individuals to use in reaching out to their constituent representatives. The tools will be useful in emailing, writing and visiting Members of Congress. We will take a broad brush of “shotgun” approach for initial outreach efforts to all of congress and focus resources of time and visits to the key members on committees like Banking in the House and Senate as well as the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee.

Pyle noted we are less than a day old and moving quickly on raising awareness for NUPA. We have a core group identified with interest in serving on a steering committee. Our next steps are putting issue talking points on the web and providing direction for grassroots efforts. If significant interest does arise we may want to consider a Washington “fly-in” and March on Congress in conjunction with the next major Baltimore coin show. (more…)

By Numismatic Conservation Services, LLC (NCS)

The term “carbon spots” refers to tiny black concentrations of corrosion. Oftentimes these are so small as to escape notice by the naked eye, though they may be seen with low-power magnification. Also called “flyspecks” by some in the hobby, these spots are actually slightly raised from the surface of the coin, as the corrosion forms around some particle of organic matter, such as paper dust (often present with coin albums and cardboard “2×2″ stapled holders) or human saliva deposited unknowingly by a numismatist during casual handling. Oxygen, humidity, and other atmospheric elements react with the debris to form a minute mound of corrosion around it, and this is called a carbon spot.

Removal of the debris will usually stop the reaction, and thus worsening of the spot, then and there. This may be as simple as removing the offending particle. The resulting corrosion, however, will remain as an unsightly black speck that can range greatly in size from nearly microscopic to as much as a quarter-inch in diameter, depending on how much mass the contaminant possessed and how long the reaction was occurring.

Most often carbon spots will form on the surface of copper or bronze coins. The highly reactive nature of copper as a metal will often lead to their formation, but US copper-nickel coins as well as other copper-nickel coins from around the world are also quite susceptible. Most nickel alloys used for United States coinage are a combination of 75% copper and only 25% nickel. This includes the three- and five-cent pieces made since 1865 and the outer layers of our current dimes, quarters and halves, as well as those of the dollars coined 1971–99. The thick cents dated 1856–64 included 88% copper to only 12% nickel and, given their greater copper content, have an even greater susceptibility to developing carbon spots.

For copper-nickel coins displaying carbon spots, proper conservation can remove both the contaminants and the resulting spots. In some instances a pale ghost of the spot may remain, and removal of carbon spots will usually leave tiny bald patches in a coin’s toning. For these reasons, copper-nickel coins that undergo removal of carbon spots will typically have their toning removed as well during the conservation process. This is preferable to having such eye-catching gaps and is in the best interest of the coin’s long-term preservation.

NGC and the ANA offer three numismatists the experience of a lifetime.

NGC has teamed up with the American Numismatic Association (ANA) to bring three motivated individuals to the numismatic educational event of the summer. Winners of the ANA Summer Seminar Registry Contest will receive full tuition and room and board for one session of the ANA Summer Seminar, courtesy of the ANA. Air travel to Colorado Springs, Colorado, will be provided by NGC. The ANA Summer Seminar is a life-changing event that has catapulted the careers of many of the nation’s most successful numismatic collectors, authors and dealers. It has also been instrumental in shaping young numismatic enthusiasts into respected hobby leaders.

To enter, the collector must be an NGC Registry participant. Each contest applicant should send a self-nominating e-mail to SeminarContest@NGCcoin.com by Friday, April 30. The e-mail should include the collector’s public registry name and a brief description (fewer than 500 words) of how attending Summer Seminar could contribute to his or her experience as a collector. Winners will be selected by the NGC Registry Awards judging panel, based on a combination of Registry Sets and the e-mail provided, on Wednesday, May 5.

“No collectors are more passionate about the hobby than those who participate in the NGC Registry,” said Scott Schechter, vice president of marketing and sales at NGC. “This contest is a phenomenal way to recognize and encourage them. Summer Seminar is the single best learning environment in numismatics, and we are thrilled to work with the ANA to make it available to three collectors who otherwise may not have been able to attend.”

Susan McMillan, ANA education project manager, commented, “We think Summer Seminar is the best education in numismatics. Period. We are very excited to be able to offer NGC Registry members the opportunity to attend this year’s Summer Seminar and hope to be able to offer more such scholarships in the future.”

The ANA Summer Seminar, a hobby destination for 42 years, will feature a lineup of classes to suit virtually every collector’s hobby needs. Mini-seminars will cover topics such as ancients, paper money, Morgan dollars, Lincoln cents, shipwreck coins, commemoratives, and medals and tokens. Seminar attendees can learn to grade coins and detect counterfeits. Most importantly, participants will have the opportunity to meet and converse with the hobby’s most distinguished scholars, rising young stars and successful business leaders.

The Summer Seminar, held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, will consist of two sections, the first from June 26 to July 2, 2010, and the second from July 3 to July 9, 2010. The ANA will provide contest winners with their choice of attendance at either section, plus basic accommodations and meals ($1,000 value). NGC will provide round-trip airfare for each winner. Some classes in each section are already sold out and will not be available. Winners can pay for room upgrades if so desired.

To learn more about the ANA and educational opportunities at Summer Seminar, please visit www.money.org