Now that I am back from Mass, the age old fork in the road confronteth me: TV or blogging? Difficult decision, but as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air isn't on until Monday night, a-blogging I will go!

Far are the problems of the world from my tranquil existence. True, it remains evident that we live in a moral cesspool, but this is Northampton, where bearded women are common and Obama signs are commoner than stop signs. I have gotten used to it. Despite the upcoming election, even the political mailings have slowed down, although the Republican National Committee continues to beg for donations to finance their mediocre candidate (John McCain just does not excite me, except when I think of the only alternative. Were he not so aggressive toward Iran, he could be dubbed "the safest"). Yesterday, for a change, I was pleased to receive a catalogue from the Pobjoy Mint, a private mint which is contracted by many nations to strike their coins. [By the way, if the rumors prove true and Obama actually does make conservative and anti-war Republican Chuck Hagel his VP, he will have my highest accolades. Hagel has a "moderate" reputation for his Iraq stance, but he's actually more pro-life and pro-small government than McCain; it would be a big silver lining should the Democrats win in November].

While the mint, like most businesses, is just concerned about making a buck, it has a dazzlingly interesting history. The Pobjoy family has been involved in metalwork and the production of jewelry since the Medieval times, and even has a coat of arms. The Popinjay (from which Pobjoy was derived) was a wooden "bird" once used in archery contests, and is the central motif. The Latin phrase, 'OCCULO CERTO', means "with an unerring eye. What a fitting coat of arms for a mint that is the latest part of a tradition spanning centuries! Unfortunately, their quality seems to be somewhat hit or miss. Again, it is a for-profit mint (so you won't catch it striking pennies or nickels), and seems ready to prostitute their abilities at the first opportunity.

Naturally, some of their coins are well designed- otherwise, how would I have gotten on their mailing list. Most notably, the catalogue I received on Saturday advertised two trimetallic Isle of Man (between Great Britain and Ireland, probably their biggest customer) crowns, featuring (for the first time) four different colors of titanium in the middle ring. Despite a subject I couldn't care less about- it's for the International Year of Planet Earth, courtesy of the UN, so rejoice ye pagans- the coin represents the earth, air, fire, and water with portrayals of Demeter, Zeus, Hephaestus, and Poseidon reminiscent of the way they were represented on ancient Roman coins. The floral design surrounding Her Majesty on the obverse, which recalls designs from the Victorian age broadly defined, is also very appealing. Too bad for me: even the silver version is $179 apiece. Other favorites include a series commemorating battles from 2006; while there was no real occasion to justify the striking, they were filled with detail, and I was pleased with my El Cid's Siege of Valencia and St. Joan of Arc's Siege of Orleans crowns.

The pursuit of sales often leads the Pobjoys, unfortunately, to mint the mundane, irrelevant, or flashy. Exemplifying the first are the animal coin series. The Pobjoy Mint is frequently contracted to make collector coins with images of African or other animals, most often by Sierra Leone if memory serves. There are hundreds of these sets already; why another? The most recent featured statuesque chess pieces trying to pass for the real thing. Note especially the diagonally-oriented hippopotamus. As for the shamefully irrelevant, the dear reader may remember the "Harry Potter Casts a Spell" Isle of Man crown that was sold on TV a few years ago. The design was O.K., but they made SIX different designs for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and the next two sequels (even they realized it was too much, and lowered the total to four for the last 4 series). My, that totals out at 34; when the centennial Olympic Games were held in Atlanta in 1996, the US Mint issued "only" 16 different designs. And I do not have time to go over all the coins issued for the British Virgin Islands to commemorate President Kennedy, or the Isle of Man's commemoratives of rare US postage stamps. Lastly, like the Royal Canadian Mint, the Pobjoy Mint produces a steady stream of gimmicky coins. Holograms, unusual shapes, and (perhaps worst of all) jeweled coins are common fare. At the same time the British Virgin Islands are issuing a series of commemoratives for famous British monarchs (I love coins with Bloody Mary as much as anyone, but weren't all these folks already on coins in their own time. And Queen Victoria especially, how many more does she really need?), Sierra Leone (usual suspect) is issuing four commemoratives for British monarchs- with jewels! King George VI looks especially glum, having to tote the out-of-place ruby on his crown.

The mint would probably sell more of each if they made less designs, and focused on quality (even at their high prices; I always find it hard to believe that they bother to strike their proof coins four times each, as they boast, but often put so little effort into the design). However, it is no secret to entrepreneurs to make swaths of mediocre or lower quality widgets will mean more sales, as those who still desire the product will need to collect them all. Just look at Happy Meal toys. And a greater variety of products allows one to cater to a broader audience and access niche markets. Still, it seems rather improper to put just any design on a legal tender coin just so people will buy it. It is a place of honor, which the Pobjoys and Queen Elizabeth II have forgotten (she technically gives royal assent to all their numismatic projects). Oh well; in the Middle Ages, when the local nobility were autonomous and held greater power, collectively, than the king, local nobles often put not only their mint's initials, but their portraits on coins struck at mints in their area. Today, the power is with the consumer- or, rather, those who shape the consumer's tastes and preferences- and this is reflected in our fine coinage.