Q. David Bowers
By early 1943, the Numismatic Gallery auction sales were catching on. This February 1943 advertisement in "The Numismatist" discusses auctions of the preceding year. "Our mousetrap must be better," Abe Kosoff concluded. sion of Sally Rand's fan dance; six-foot-two Martin Kortjohn, first vice-president, and five-foot Max Schwartz, who put on a Mutt and Jeff act blindfolded-their attempts to feed each other marshmallows rolled the audience in the aisles; etc. The program was closed by the act of a professional magician, who, among other things, removed a shirt from a man without first taking off his coat.
"A large group of visitors to the convention made the trip to the Rookwood Pottery Tuesday afternoon. Sol Kaplan packed the gang into two different streetcars and handed over a fistful of tickets to cover the transportation. The cars were so crowded that even Al Gullian of Buffalo had trouble getting a seat. The tour of the pottery was a unique experience. Here the potter's art has reached a high standard of excellence...
"On Tuesday evening an auction of 1,190 lots was conducted by A. Kosoff and attracted a large number of bidders. Mr. Kosoff was at some disadvantage due to the fact that the table was on the same level as his audience, in a long narrow room, however, the sale was completed in less than five hours. At the halfway point in the sale a 10-minute recess was called and punch was served. The sale totaled over $15,000."
Abe Kosoff's Sale No. 19 was held on Saturday, December 12, 1942, at the Numismatic Gallery at 42 East 50th Street. The auction was a modest one and realized a total of $8,266.60. The vast majority of pieces sold below $10 each, with numerous lots bringing less than $1. The most expensive item in the sale was an English Proof 5-pound piece of King George IV, 1826, which realized $165.
The auction commenced with an extensive offering of numismatic literature, including standard reference books by Adams, Beistle, Breton, Crosby, and others, followed by an offering of Chapman catalogues, American Numismatic Society publications, and sale catalogues of dealer Tom Elder (commencing with the Henry C. Miller Collection, 1920, the catalogue of which sold for $2.50).
The inside back cover noted:
'The Numismatic Gallery extends to all its friends and patrons very best and cordial greeting for a very Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year," while the back cover referred to we bonds which were available for $18.75 and whichcould be cashed in later for $25:
"$18.75 today will buy the things you war today-bullets, tanks, victory, peace. $25 late will buy the things you want later-new tool: contentment, happiness ... BUY WAR BONDS.
In February 1943, Abe Kosoff suggested in his: advertisement that if one builds a better mouse trap, the coin community would beat a path to its door. Cited were a number of auction sales he had held recently. "Our mousetrap must be better," he concluded.
It may have been about this time that J. Hem Ripstra, a prominent Chicago numismatic personality, offered him 800 pieces of the rare 1928 Hawaiian commemorative half dollar for $20 each Unfortunately for Abe Kosoff, Ripstra had already sold several batches of five coins each to other dealers at the same price. Here and there, the earlier sellers were offering Hawaiian halves far as low as $21. "Competition of this kind was discouraging, so I passed the offering," he late reminisced. Forty years later, similar pieces were to sell for several thousand dollars each!
Sale No. 20, held on Saturday, February 2/ 1943, was another of Abe Kosoff's popular Saturday afternoon events and offered 884 lots of mixed United States, ancient, and world coins. The back of the catalogue noted:
"We extend to you a sincere invitation to visit our spacious office and showroom where we devote all our time to numismatics.
"Our public auction sales conducted by Mr. A Kosoff are the best attended sales in the country At our last sale in December, over 75 collector were in attendance (while 497 'attended' by sending their bid sheets).
"It is our hope that we can serve you as we have served our thousands of friends. If you cannot visit with us, write to us. Whether you are interested in buying or selling, you get prompt, fair, and efficient service."