An Interview with the Smithsonian's Coin and Currency Curator Richard Doty

By Maribeth Keane and Ben Marks of The Collectors Weekly.

For 24 years, Richard Doty has been entrusted with the keys to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History’s legendary coin vault, which houses some of the most important coins in the world. Doty’s "America’s Money, America’s Story" is one of the most respected books on the subject of U.S. coins and currency, and his next book with Whitman Publishing, “Pictures From a Distant Country,” will focus on obsolete U.S. currency. You can see samples from the Smithsonian’s U.S. coins collection at their “Legendary Coins and Currency” microsite, which is a member of our Hall of Fame.

When I was 8 years old I had a friend named Jimmy Hood. His father was in the army, and he had been on the staff with General MacArthur when MacArthur was effectively the boss of Japan right after World War II. Jimmy had some Japanese and Chinese coins, so we swapped a few things, as kids will do. And at that point, in 1950, I just got hooked on coins. . . .

Full story at: The Collectors Weekly