Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-12-28
Coins as JeWeIry.

The use of coins in iewelry is not so
popular today as it was once, say the
jewelers. Nevertheless coins are still used
to some extent in this way, ano that Is
why Washington jewelers. were interest
ed in a report from Denver recently that
out there the local head of the secret
service had received orders from the
Treasury Department to see that the
fedora! statute regarding the DETACHMENT
of current coins was enforced.
This law. which is section $3.50 of the
revised statutes, has been sort OF buga-
boo for jewelers. for many years. because
from time to time the use OF certain COINS
in jeWelry has been fad. ana rot every
jeweler has been aware just to what ex'
tent it came within the law. For instance
a man may have one of the old gold DOL.
lars and have hankering to wear 1t on On
his watch chain. The simplest way OF
doing this is to take it to .jeweler
and get him to punch a hole in 1t.
No doubt there are good many people
who would be surprised at the curt re-
fusal they would get from most jewelers.
If such a request were made. Should a
jeweler accommodate you the secret
service man who caught you wearing
that punctured coin on your watch chaln
could put you in Jail and the jeweler, too.
and II wouldn't make a bit of difference
how old the coin was you were wearing.
Curiously enough. you would be IN the
same class with the c0unter1elter anu
the man who plugs coins.
Not long ago when the Lincoln cents
first came out some of the jewelers. here.
struck by the artistic merit OF the COINS
and the popularity they met with, thought
If would be q nice thing to make use OF
them as jewelry. Their idea was to gid
them to be used for watch charms ana
brooches and pins.
Then some Of them happened to think
OF the law. and decided to find out how
o.. <ho1y could on The law saws that any
person commits crime who fraudulent
~, by any art. way or means. 9eIaces'
mutilates, impairs, diminishes, faisines,
coins of the United States While this
made no mention Of copper coins. tne
jewellers concluded not to embelilsh tns
popular Lincoln cents In any way, anu
there the matter ended. s;..z -,
a gold or silver coin OF ancient Vlntase
and gets a desire to have MS MONOGRAM
nicely engraved on 1t for use as an orna-
ment. jewelers. frequently get requests 10
do such work. but there again the law
comes in Cutting a monogram on com
lightens 1t and again brings you into the
class of those who tamper with the cur
rency.
ON the other hand, suppose you asked
jeweler to cut a gold dollar in the shape
of a diamond and make stickp'n oW VI
it. This he would gladly do ana VIII "a
into the Treasury building at Washing
ton itself without fear Of molestation.
OF course, you would have ightened
your gold piece. but you would also have
DESTROYED it completely as a coin. In
hard-up moment you couldn't use your
stickpin for carfare as you could your
watch charm with your initials on 1t. In
one case Uncle Sam wouldn't have q Word
to say and in the other ne ccuid cap
you into jail.
One concern has for years made spe-
cialty Of making coins into jewelry, but 1t
is done in a way that doesn't disturb
Uncle Sam a bit. This concern has a
process by which the head on a coin is
driven out In this condition the heads
are mounted on pins and made up In
brooches and charms, even ten-cent pieces
destroyed as a coin. Before elnbarking
on this, however. the concern to"k pains
to see that it came within the law.