2018 RCNA Education Symposium

already on it! been waiting forever for my first RCNA show!

You won't be disappointed as it is always a fun adventure!
Hopefully you pre-registered to get the most value out of the experience.

If not, be sure to plan your time around the program of events carefully so as not to overwhelm yourself.

I'm not going to the big reception Wed night. I don't like driving after sunset, especially toward Toronto on the 401. I'll be there about noon on Thursday or somewhat before.

Really enjoyed the Numismatic Workshop this past Tuesday (08/07/18) which kicks off the RCNA (Wed the next day). Stephen Bell gave a very informative workshop on: Printing/Anatomy of a banknote; History of CDN banknotes; Grading notes & Collecting paper money in today's market. Although the last part of the workshop was brief (we were running out of time) it was a very informative & fascinating morning.

In the afternoon, Susan Maltby discussed preservation, storage & care of both coins and banknotes. It too was very interesting & informative. I thought it was particularly hilarious the way she gave the "evil eye" to us about how so many collectors buy expensive coins (or notes) and then fail to protect them in the appropriate media (or the wrong place: like a damp basement). Many of the collectors there laughed at this too (from experience I'm sure). She showed lots of popular methods of storing coins which simply are the worse possible way due to the natural chemical reactions that can occur with metals (oxygen or the chemicals in the wood, wool, silk, etc used to store the coins/money). She showed countless examples of damage due to moisture or inappropriate contact with other metals/media.

I would recommend these workshops to any collector interested in understanding grading methods (a lot of useful technical knowledge on the production of banknotes) & keeping/storing their collections. The workshop was considered such a success that the RCNA plans to sponsor a similar workshop next year. If you are interested in adding paper money to your collection or would like to learn more about storing/caring for your collection, I would highly recommend you take advantage of attending this pre-conference Education workshop next year (if they do set it up).

Also: I thought the venue (Hilton Mississauga Meadowvale) was an excellent choice as it is so much more accessible (& easy to park at) than many of the hotels in & around Toronto. "Hats off" to the North York Coin Club for hosting this great event.