THE GALLERY MINT MUSEUM Mike Ellis   ---   Spring 1997

   Perched atop a mountain peak a few scant miles from picturesque Eureka Springs, Arkansas is a numismatic landmark destined to be on the "must do" list of most numismatists nation wide.  Centered in the twenty-four acre tract is the site of the Gallery Mint Museum, a place where dreams become reality for any coin enthusiast who happens to visit.
   By now the majority of hobbyists are familiar with the superb reproduction coins struck at the Gallery Mint Museum.  So good are these reproductions that an after market of their own along with a strong following of error enthusiasts has evolved.  Why the interest from error collectors?  The answer comes directly from the Museum's mission statement found in each issue of the Museum's newsletter: "The Gallery Mint Museum -- dedicated to the preservation and advancement of the Numismatic Arts -- is a private mint, whose mission is to build a permanent museum showing the evolution of coin-making technology from ancient Greece through the Industrial Revolution."
   When complete, the museum will exhibit the entire minting process, with full-scale equipment, including a water wheel for generating power and a huge furnace for melting silver and copper.  The goal and dream of owners Ron Landis and Joe Rust is to recreate the art, history, and technology of early coin-making techniques, stimulating the public's interest in the numismatic arts and an understanding of its role in our heritage.  Funding for this project comes directly from the sales of items produced at the mint.  Your dollars directly support the mission and your continued support insures the success of the Museum.  "We believe this is an excellent way of instilling an appreciation of the numismatic arts," says Chief Engraver, Ron Landis, who after more than a decade of demonstrating early coin making techniques at art shows and renaissance festivals, teamed up with machinist Joe Rust in 1992.
   Many of the techniques used by early coin makers were thrown aside in the advent of progress, and many questions still remain unanswered.  By working with the actual technology available in a given time period, Gallery Mint Museum hopes to gain a better understanding of the problems faced by early coin makers.  The importance of coins in our history is obvious.  Also of great import are the technologies developed for coin production.  Because coins were one of the first items mass produced, the earlier mints created a proving ground for new technologies that eventually found their way into modern industries in ways too numerous to mention.  We believe an art form with such historical importance deserves a museum dedicated to the subject.  The original hand engraving techniques used to create the designs that adorned coins for millennia are now all but lost as modern mints move toward more modern means of creating the dies used in coin production.
   GMM also hopes to hold classes in traditional hand engraving, with guest instructors invited to give seminars in related arts, such as sculpting and casting.  Patrons of the Gallery Mint Museum receive this complimentary newsletter and updates on new medal issues.  Medals are offered for a limited time to Patrons before advertised to the general public.  By recreating the early minting process many mistakes are made, just as they were by our forefathers, and the resulting errors have become highly prized fantasy pieces sought by the most astute error collectors.  The bottom line: The Gallery Mint Museum is quickly and accurately filling the void researchers have been unable to fill.  Half of what the Museum does is the result of independent research conducted by the likes of R.W.Julian, Craig Sholley, Bill Fivaz, J.T.Stanton and the staff of the Gallery Mint Museum.
   The growing popularity of errors produced by the Gallery Mint was evidenced at the ANA's 105th Anniversary Convention where they conducted their first auction.  Sometime mid-week, after error collectors had already made their scheduled stop at the exhibit, it was decided to conduct a silent auction of eleven error pieces.  Only eleven error collectors discovered the auction but moderate bidding resulted in $612, an average of over $55 per piece (with most their normal counterparts retailing for about $8.00 each) was realized.  Error auctions are planned for all future events.
   The Gallery Mint Museum was founded on a dream with a partnership entered into at the 1992 Texas Renaissance Festival by Ron Landis and Joe Rust, an artist in his own right who beautifully and accurately restores or reproduces (and occasionally creates his own) minting equipment in the museum's elaborate machine shop.  A visit to the museum reveals the detail and ornate works produced by both Ron and Joe.  But the history predates the partnership by ten years.  Always interested in die engraving, Ron Landis produced his first coins at the 1982 Colorado Renaissance Festival using a small screw press given him by Mary Eckles of Denver.  For the next ten years Ron traveled the Renaissance Festival and art show circuits, constantly upgrading his equipment while improving his engraving skills.  Ron's first engraving, that used in Colorado in 1982, depicted a Unicorn obverse and a coat-of-arms reverse and remained in use through 1988.
   Fascinated by hobo art, Ron began carving modern or neo-bo hobo nickels in 1990.  Though modern day renditions, the articulate nature of his work has created a large following of hobo nickel collectors and when able to acquire one it often becomes the center piece of their collection, even upstaging the original hobos.  Sonny Carpenter, an employee of the Museum, is rapidly becoming an accomplished carver himself.  Ron does not limit his carving to nickels as he occasionally carves coins as large as a Silver Eagle.  In fact, one of his favorites is of Rush Limbaugh on a Silver Eagle which evolved from a segment of Rush's show highlighting the controversy surrounding the honoring of a live American on a coin.  The coin was sent to Rush Limbaugh but, unfortunately, never received by him.  Somewhere out there is a fine Ron Landis original which Ron would dearly love to see again!
   Dating 1993, the first official Gallery Mint Museum product, a one and a half ounce silver round depicting a Norman Rockwell like rendition of two individuals hand striking coins on the obverse and screw press production of a coin with the museum's motto, "Dedicated to the Preservation and Advancement of the Numismatic Arts," for the reverse provided the public with a glimpse of the glorious original and reproduction medallic art forthcoming.  Their first reproduction, a 17/1994 Flowing Hair Dollar, set the tone for their strict compliance of the Hobby Protection Act by sporting a large "COPY" counter-stamp on the reverse.  Of a total mintage of 1,758 pieces, 1,515 have been sold.  The 1993 issue is the first in a series of annual medals with the 1994 issue commemorating the 202nd Anniversary of the United States Mint being my personal favorite as the reverse exhibits an outstanding rendition of the first mint building.  The 1995 issue is certainly the favorite of Hobo Nickel collectors.  Each year of annual medals is still available.  All are serialized and if you purchase all at once you can get the same number on each piece with the first option to purchase the same number in succeeding years.
   Though Landis was first commissioned in 1984 to do a medal for "Last Chance For Ever," an organization dedicated to the rehabilitation of birds of prey, the museum continues to land contracts from them.  The first official commissioned piece of the Gallery Mint Museum was of the USS Daniel T. Griffin, a World War II destroyer escort (now known as a fast frigate) commemorating the ship's fiftieth anniversary and made for presentation to attendees of a crew's reunion.  Perhaps Ron's favorite early commissioned piece was that of ANA Governor J.T.Stanton.  This was the first time a central punch device (the portrait of Mr. Stanton) was engraved on a punch and then used on all subsequent dies.  Ron likes to think that his art work is what got J.T. elected!
   A newcomer to the coin show circuit, the Gallery Mint Museum has rapidly become a crowd favorite.  Their first appearance was at the 1992 Texas Numismatic Association show in Fort Worth, Texas under the banner of the Royal Mint.  Though they did not set up at a show again until the ANA's 105th Anniversary Convention in Denver, Colorado last year they did bring the mini screw press and traveling exhibit to Colorado Springs for the ANA's 1996 Summer Seminar.  Ron and Joe could not anticipate what was to happen.  They planned a one hour bull session beginning at 9:00 in the evening but it became a five hour marathon, the longest and best attended bull session in the history of the Summer Seminar.  During the Summer Seminar ANA President Ken Bressett presented Ron Landis with the President's Award for his contributions to education in numismatics and the creation of the 105th Anniversary Convention Exhibitor and Judges Medal.  The most recent appearances include the 1997 FUN Show in Orlando, Florida and the Greater Houston Coin Club's annual MONEY Show.  They will also appear at the always popular Mid America Show at the MECCA Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, June 26th through 29th.  For each show or special event the Museum attends a special token is created and presented to attendees free of charge.  Already there is a growing collector base of these tokens.
   Unlike the early U.S. Mint, the Gallery Mint keeps accurate and detailed records in a daily log.  Entries include the introduction of new dies, the occurrence of die cracks and breaks, the number and type of strikes from each press, completion of property improvements, arrival of new equipment, etc.  These records are being kept so that numismatists from generations to come will be able to learn from the Museum's experiences and to aid in a reference detailing the early minting process.  Also kept are ten archive sets.  In other words, when possible, the first ten strikes from each set of dies or striking peculiarities (i.e. cuds, die cracks, etc.) are retained.  Future plans are to donate these sets to museums like the Smithsonian Institution, the ANA Money Museum and others.
   Currently housed in two new buildings the Gallery Mint Museum will expand into an entire living history village depicting coinage manufacture methods from ancient Greece, Roman, Medieval, Renaissance, early American and steam powered.  The site is now 24 acres with negotiations underway to acquire an adjoining 26 acre parcel.  Plans also include demonstrations on early paper making, printing and bindery of manuscripts lavishly illustrated with hand engraved plates and bound in leather and classes on engraving and die sinking so numismatists can experience with their own hands the execution of a die.  Recently listed as a tour site by the Arkansas Department of Tourism the museum is now a highly touted visitor stop in the Eureka Springs area.  Already a target of millions of tourists annually, Eureka Springs makes for a great family vacation.  There you get all the flair of Nashville, a lot of history and more entertainment than you can indulge in a week's time including amusement parks for the kids.  And, Mom will certainly enjoy herself in the quaint shopping district located downtown where home made crafts are found in abundance.
   Souvenirs of your visit to the Gallery Mint Museum are available at extremely modest prices and you may even leave with a special souvenir or a coin you struck yourself.  At the time of my visit Ron Landis was experimenting with going to a full hubbing process for the reproductions, medals and tokens produced in larger quantities.  While discussing the problems encountered to date, Ron showed me a die for the 1795 Eagle reproduction that was heavily doubled.  Throughout the next 36 hours I persisted in attempting to have them strike me a coin with that die.  They finally relented, striking only three pieces, their first significant doubled die, before retiring (or defacing) the die.  I was able to purchase the first strike (remember it is gold so it was quite expensive) and it remains one of my favorite coins.  The other two strikes went to the archives with plans to auction one of them at a future date.  I also had the privilege of striking some of the uncirculated 1796 Quarter reproductions and I can tell you striking these pieces with that giant screw press is no easy task.  The best I was able to do was three strikes to bring up sufficient relief.  The experienced hands can do it in two.
   As you can see, the Gallery Mint Museum is attracting attention to all arenas of numismatics.  Whether you collect tokens, medals, hobo nickels, the finest reproduction coins ever, errors or art, the Gallery Mint is likely to be a great source for your collectibles for many years to come.  And, let's not overlook their mission.  Most importantly, they are a great source for numismatic education.  To find out more about the Gallery Mint Museum, how to get there or how to order products contact them at: Gallery Mint Museum, P.O.Box 706, Eureka Springs, AR 72632.