The Practical Book of Cobs, 20th Anniversary (4th) edition,
2007
by Daniel Sedwick and Frank Sedwick
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Description:The Practical Book of Cobs is a reference book on Spanish colonial coins
by Daniel Sedwick and
Frank Sedwick. First published in 1987, the book has been re-released three
times, most recently in a 20th Anniversary edition (4th edition) published in
2007. An essential guide and reference work for divers and shipwreck
enthusiasts, this book offers information that is not readily available or only
available after searching many reference works or auction catalogs. This book
covers the mints, assayers, styles, and types of “treasure coins” from the
period 1536 at the Mexico City Mint until 1773, the end of cob-type coins minted
at the Potosí Mint in Bolivia. In addition it has a section that goes over each
of the most famous treasure wrecks of all time including the Atocha, the
Spanish 1715 Fleet and many others.
Reviews:
- "Dan Sedwick has produced a fourth edition of The Practical Book of Cobs.
In it he has carefully revised and enlarged assayer descriptions and very
importantly for any and all researchers, he explains the rationale for his
conclusions. He's added a new section giving a list of fifty-five treasure ships
and their cargoes and has compressed virtually every important fact known about
cobs today into this well structured volume. It is well written—lucid and
logical—and is a meaningful addition to cob coin literature that should be
included in everyone's library. I wish that I could do as good a job as Dan has
done." - Joe Lasser, The E-Sylum: Volume 10, Number 36, September 10, 2007,
Article 2
- “This popular book has been out of print since 1995 and unavailable for a
number of years now, so this [fourth] edition should be a most welcome addition
to the market! Greatly expanded from the previous edition (more than 100 pages
longer!), this 20th Anniversary Edition contains a long new section on the
shipwrecks that have yielded cobs over the years, complete with a foldout map
and specified bibliographies for each wreck. Also, the assayer section
incorporates the latest research information, with specimen photos of most of
the assayers (not separated into a photo section as before). The values in the
back, of course, have been updated. What has not changed, however, is the appeal
to both beginners and advanced collectors alike, as well as dealers and jewelers
who work with cobs. The Practical Book of Cobs offers readers a look at
the following topics: Historical background / Elements of design / Market values
/ Extensive bibliography / Complete ID of mint marks, assayers, and period / How
cobs were made and used / Treasure Fleets and other shipwrecks that produced
cobs / How to buy and sell, and how to spot counterfeits.” – Ernest Richards,
PLUS VLTRA Newsletter: Enrada Publications, October 2007
More Reviews:
Click here
to read more reviews about the book.
Marketing: The Practical
Book of Cobs
is the only reference of its kind that puts together the Spanish Colonial
hammered coinage of the Americas with the history behind the shipwrecks around
the world that carried these coins. The budding field of such "treasure coins"
is attracting not only collectors but also investors. Both scholarly and
elementary, this book is ideal for teaching all ages and genders about treasure
coins and the rare coin business in general. Previously sold privately within
the coin-collecting community, this book was recently featured on the Internet
on several important websites and is now being offered to the general public.
Topics:
Historical background
Elements of design
Complete identification of mintmarks, assayers and periods
How
cobs were made and used
Treasure Fleets and other shipwrecks that produced cobs
How
to buy and sell, and how to spot counterfeits
Extensive bibliography
Market values
·
Bidding:
Paperback, perfect bound, 8½" x 5½"
·
Pages:254
·
Edition:4th
edition (July 1, 2007)
·Publisher:
Daniel Frank Sedwick, LLC,
·
Location:
Winter Park, FL, USA
·Language:
English
·
Illustration:
Illustrated throughout (b/w)
·ISBN:
0982081804
·ISBN-13:
9780982081808
·Suggested
Retail Price:
$25.00
Awards:
The Practical Book of Cobs,
4th edition (20th Anniversary edition), by Daniel Sedwick
and Frank Sedwick was given an award for Extraordinary Merit in the Best
Specialized Book category by the Numismatic Literary Guild (Annual Writers'
Competition 2008). The same award was bestowed on the original edition in
1987.
What
is a Cob coin?
By
reading The Practical Book of Cobs we understand that "cobs" are the
original "treasure coins." Struck and trimmed by hand in the 1500s through 1700s
at Spanish mints in Mexico, Peru, and Colombia (among others), silver and gold
cobs are handsomely crude, nearly all with a cross as the central feature on one
side and either a coat-of-arms (shield) or a tic-tac-toe-like "pillars and
waves" on the other side. Silver cobs are known as "reales" and gold cobs are
known as "escudos," with two 8 reales (about 27 grams each) equaling one escudo.
Some cobs were struck with a date, and most show a mintmark and an initial or
monogram for the assayer, the mint official who was responsible for weight and
fineness. Size and shape were immaterial, which means that most cobs are far
from round or uniform in thickness. Cobs were generally accepted as good
currency all around the world, and were the exact coins pirates referred to as
"pieces of eight" (8 reales) and "doubloons" (any gold cobs but originally 2
escudos).
Special
Orders:Individual books signed by the author are available upon request.Books without the
index on coin prices are available in very limited quantities (suitable for
jewelers)Limited-edition
hardcover books (ideal for book collectors) are available singly for a higher
price. (If you want to place an special order please contact us directly by
phone)
Price: $25.00 each
(Quantity discounts available!)
Plus postage, starting at $2 for single copies by USPS
(U.S. Postal Service) Media Mail (see
order form for details).
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please call:
407.975.3325
About the Authors:
Daniel Frank Sedwick
is a specialist in the colonial coinage of Spanish America as well
as shipwreck coins and artifacts of all nations. Until early 1996,
Daniel Frank Sedwick worked in partnership with the late Dr. Frank
Sedwick, who became known as a pioneer in the field of Spanish
colonial numismatics with his book The Practical Book of Cobs.
The fourth (2007) and third (1995) editions of this well-known book
were authored and co-authored by Daniel Frank Sedwick, who is also a
contributing editor to The Numismatist (the monthly magazine
of the American Numismatic Association) and the author of several
articles. Sedwick is a member of the American Numismatic Association
and Florida United Numismatists, and holds a Bachelor of Science
degree (cum laude) from Duke University.
Numismatic
pioneer Frank Sedwick, Ph.D, was born in 1924 in Baltimore, MD, and
earned degrees from Duke University, Stanford University and the University of
Southern California. After a wartime stint in the Navy, Frank became a career
professor of Spanish and Romance languages, which he taught at the Naval
Academy, Ohio Wesleyan, Wisconsin-Milwaukee and finally Rollins College in
Winter Park, FL. At Rollins, while earning royalties as the author of several
standard textbooks in the field, he took the position of Director of Overseas
Programs and made frequent visits to Spain and Colombia, where his interest in
Latin American numismatics began, although coins had been his hobby since
childhood.
In 1981 Frank
left academia forever and became a full-time coin dealer. At first his focus was
modern Latin American coins, but soon he realized that there was a niche in
cobs, which had not been properly researched for the average collector to
understand and appreciate. Thus was born The Practical Book of Cobs (now
in its 4th edition, 2007), which was perfectly timed to satisfy new cob
collectors generated by the fabulous Atocha find by Mel Fisher in 1985. For well
over a decade Frank was considered the authority on cobs, his main area being
gold cobs from the 1715 Fleet, thousands of which went through his hands.
In 1991
Frank authored his second numismatic book, The Gold Coinage of Gran Colombia,
in order to update the existing references in his own area of collecting
interest. Frank's collection of Colombian Republic gold coins is still one of
the finest ever put together. Frank's son
Daniel joined him in business after college in 1989, full time in 1991, after
many summers of "interning" with him at the various ANA shows. In 1996, with
plans to retire that same year, Frank died unexpectedly, leaving the business to
his son. Daniel has continued the coin business and book authorship ever since.
Daniel Frank Sedwick, LLC
P.O. BOX 1964 | Winter Park, Florida 32790
Phone: 407.975.3325 | Fax: 407.975.3327
We welcome your order,
want lists, comments, material for sale or consignment and suggestions.
The Practical Book of Cobs, 20th Anniversary (4th) edition,
2007
