I wanted a couple (or many) of Byzantines coins from different periods. Also the last centuries. So in order to do that I managed to find two byzantine coins from last centuries: one Theodore Lascaris and one Michael Viii Paleologus. It is a sear 2062 and 2290 according to my receipt. That sounds pretty correct as I can also see that at wildwinds.com – No problem so far. BUT for some few days ago I managed to find David Sear’s “Byzantine coins and their values” at the library. I could find or confirm my Anastasius, Justinian, Maurice or Manuel, but I can’t find that Theodore or Michael viii in that book. In that book Sear 2062 is a “St. Demetrius”. That is a clearly contradiction as in wildwinds it is a “Theodore”. In that book Sear 2290 doesn’t exist as it ends with a Sear 2260 which is an extremely rare coin of the last emperor during the fall of Constantinople. What have I done wrong? That Sear book I have borrowed from the library is dated 1974. Is it outdated as there is some newer?
There is a 1987 edition which has about 90 more pages including what the editors call "a thorough revision of the post-1204 section of the catalogue undertaken by Simon Bendall, the noted specialist in late Byzantine coinage; and a valuable appendix on modern forgeries contributed by Michael O'Hara, who has done considerable research on this important topic." I have the 1974 book as well and my interest in the subject is not great enough that I plan to spend $100 on the more recent edition. Is there something better or plans for another edition? I do not know. I know you are all tired of hearing my opinion but there is a lot more to studying coins than assigning catalog numbers. Every time Sear issued a new edition of his books w got new numbers and had to adjust to having "New Sear" or "Millenium Sear" rather than just Sear numbers. I get enjoyment and information out of my old Sear books but can not quote numbers or expect the latest scholarship on any subject. I hate to mention it but RIC works the same way. I am very interested in the coins covered by RIC IV and V and would buy those books if they were updated. Currently there is an online 'New RIC V part 1' resource which may just be the better answer these days when scholarship can be outdated before the ink dries. However you get your information on coins, learn first this one important fact: Numismatics is a science and just like the science that made Pluto not a planet and replace continental drift with plate tectonics, the latest 'word' is prone to update frequently enough that we should know better than to cling tightly to old ideas or to accept blindly the new ones.
This brings to mind a great quote from the physicist Richard Feynmann: "You can know the name of that bird in all the languages of the world, but when you're finished, you'll know absolutely nothing whatever about the bird. You'll only know about humans in different places, and what they call the bird. … I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something."
