Preface
The two of us embarked on this project independently and at different times, but both shared the same goal – to make available our knowledge and
experience with this often-neglected series in an easy-to-understand way, and to foster enthusiasm in new collectors so that they would think of
the twenty-cent piece as something beyond merely a coin for a 19th-century type set.
When Brian Greer introduced us to each other, we set aside two independent works that were in their early stages, and pooled our collective
interest and experience into this one book, and while doing so, found our knowledge was largely complementary. The product is something we
both believe is a better and more interesting reference than either one of us could produce individually.
The exciting thing about this series is that there are so many varieties available from such a short time span. And while varieties themselves
are fun to collect, it is also imminently practical to assemble a die marriage set, and it won’t take decades to assemble. With a few of the die
pairs developing dramatic die cracks and breaks, individuals can enhance their collections by also studying and obtaining die state progressions.
This book is a work of passion, and we wanted to share this information in both print, and digitally on the Internet at no cost. The coins and
other numismatic items pictured in this book are largely from the authors’ collections, and represent “collector-grade” coins that an individual
of relatively modest means can hope to find and obtain, rather than gem examples found only in auctions, and beyond the reach of many of our readers.
The photographs, as well, were almost entirely taken by the authors, which puts an added personal touch and motivation to this project.
We have both enjoyed an immense amount of fun working on this project. As we have been getting closer to publication, finishing the text, taking
or retaking those last few photographs, it has been especially rewarding to hear the collecting community’s anticipation to the availability of this book.
We hope that you enjoy reading and learning from this book, and the authors would be interested to hear of any new varieties or die marriages
that are found. It is our intent to post new findings on our website, www.doubledimes.com, and we will publish notable new errors and exonumia
from time to time for you to enjoy. Happy collecting!
Lane Brunner and John Frost
July 2014
