AI and Numismatics. Tips, Tricks and Responsible Usage
July 9, 2026, 12 p.m. MT

Artificial intelligence is transforming historical research, but how can numismatists use these tools effectively and responsibly? Using the recent discovery and investigation of The Lost Mint of Manhattan as a case study, this presentation demonstrates how AI can help researchers process archival documents, build timelines, identify research leads, and uncover hidden connections within historical records. Attendees will learn practical techniques, useful prompts, and important limitations of AI, gaining a framework for incorporating these powerful new tools into their own numismatic research while maintaining the standards of evidence and verification that serious scholarship demands.

Russ Bega began collecting U.S. coins when he was 8 years old after a trip to his local coin shop in Northern Colorado. He was previously employed by Heritage Auction Galleries, before departing on a decade-long career as a US Army Infantry Non-Commissioned Officer. In 2021, he joined the Harlan J. Berk team in Chicago, IL, where he is now the store manager. His specialty is Liberty Seated coins and 19th-century numismatics.

The Coins of the 300
July 23, 2026, 12 p.m. MT

Join Doug in a numismatic romp across Asia Minor and into Greece, following in the footsteps of the Persian army and navy as they attempted to punish the Greeks—especially the Athenians—for their perfidious support of the Greek cities of Asia Minor in their revolt against the mighty King of Kings, Darius the Great, and his son Xerxes. The coins of the ancient cities along the way will be used to illustrate the story of one of the founding wars of Western history.

Douglas Mudd is the curator / director of the American Numismatic Association’s Edward C. Rochette Money Museum in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He is responsible for developing, planning, and content of the Museum’s exhibition program and the organization and care of the ANA collections. He has created dozens of numismatic exhibits for the museum and for the ANA’s semi-annual conventions. His recent work has expanded the museum's exhibits into the virtual world of the internet including "Trenches to Treaties: World War I in Remembrance" and "Money of Empire: Elizabeth to Elizabeth."

Peace and Treaties in Numismatics
August 13, 2026, 12 p.m. MT

When given the opportunity to choose, most people would choose to live in peace rather than otherwise. All too often, however, the people in charge—those who actually have the power to make and enforce such choices—will, instead, choose “otherwise.” But when peace does come at last, it is nearly always cause for celebration.

This Numismatalk will survey a variety of coins and medals that tell different stories of peace and of the treaties that (sometimes) bring about peace. This will include taking a look at how different cultures think of “peace,” and how treaties and the “peace” they bring sometimes trigger later conflicts.

Michael T. Shutterly is a recovering lawyer who formerly worked in the financial services world, specializing in consumer protection and the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing. He is now a coin collector, exhibitor, writer and presenter, specializing in Byzantine, early Medieval and Roman Republican coinage, with a side interest in Hungarian hyperinflation currency. An ANA life member, he is also a member of more than a dozen national, regional and local coin clubs, several of which (for some reason) allow him to serve as an officer or director. He received a BA in physiological psychology from the University of Pennsylvania and a JD from Boston University.

The Lost Mint of Manhattan: Rediscovering New York's Forgotten Branch Mint
September 24, 2026, 12 p.m. MT

Every collector knows the story of America's eight United States Mints, but few realize that a ninth mint nearly joined their ranks. During the mid-nineteenth century, as New York emerged as the nation's financial capital, federal officials, Treasury administrators, and members of Congress spent more than a decade studying and debating the establishment of a United States Branch Mint in New York City.

Long overlooked by both historians and numismatists, this remarkable chapter of American coinage history was rediscovered through archival research conducted using primary-source government documents, Treasury correspondence, and congressional records. What began as a chance encounter with a forgotten report soon revealed a complex story of politics, commerce, bullion deposits, and competing regional interests at a pivotal moment in American history.

Join researcher and author Russ Bega as he traces the rise, development, and ultimate disappearance of New York's proposed branch mint. Through contemporary documents and newly uncovered evidence, attendees will explore one of the most fascinating "what if" stories in American numismatics and discover how close New York came to receiving its own mint mark.

Russ Bega began collecting U.S. coins when he was 8 years old after a trip to his local coin shop in Northern Colorado. He was previously employed by Heritage Auction Galleries, before departing on a decade-long career as a US Army Infantry Non-Commissioned Officer. In 2021, he joined the Harlan J. Berk team in Chicago, IL, where he is now the store manager. His specialty is Liberty Seated coins and 19th-century numismatics.