The Norweb Collection - An American Legacy

Mrs. Norweb died on March 27, 1984.

R. Henry Norweb, Sr. was a member of the American Numis-matic Association, the Royal Numismatic Society, the Canadian Numismatic Association, and the New York Numismatic Club. He was a member of the American Numismatic Society, serving on that body's Council from 1960 until 1978. In the latter year Mr. Norweb was appointed an honorary Life Councillor to the ANS.

He was a life member of the James Smithson Society, receiving the Society's gold medal, together with his wife, in 1978. Mr. Norweb served as president of the John Huntingdon Fund for Education, and was a trustee of Kenyon College.

In 1966 President Johnson selected him to serve on the United States Assay Commission of that year. Ambassador Norweb died on October 1, 1983.

Looking back over 70 years of involvement with coin collecting, Mrs. Norweb told Coin World in 1978: "We are grateful we have been allowed to live this long and to collect almost to the end:' Present and future generations of collectors, we are sure, share her sentiment.

Ambassador and Mrs. Norweb were well known to the numismatic fraternity, and many friendships developed between the Norwebs and other, equally well known, collectors. John Jay Pittman, noted numismatist, kindly offered his thoughts about the Norwebs, and we are happy to share them with our readers:

At the Palace Auctions of the King Farouk Numismatic Collections in Cairo, Egypt in February-March, 1954, I first met the Norwebs-Mrs. Emery May Norweb and her husband, Ambassador R. Henry Norweb. It soon became evident that they were very interested in the coins in the auction as well as numismatics in general. We had a number of pleasant meetings in Cairo and vicinity and I soon realized they were very knowledgable with respect to our hobby.

I learned that Ambassador Norweb was primarily interested in coins of Latin America, especially Cuba and Peru and other countries, where he had served in the U.S. diplomatic corps. Mrs. Norweb appeared to be interested in all series of coins, especially those of the English-British world and the United States. I also learned of her great interest in early American colonial coins, as well as the early hammered coins of the British Isles. She was a diligent student of history and art, and this interest was very apparent in her numismatic studies.

On occasional business trips to Cleveland, Ohio I was invited to their home to visit and discuss coins. I was also privileged to be shown portions of their collections in downtown Cleveland bank vaults. Mrs. Norweb told me many interesting stories of her early collecting years.

Ambassador Norweb was also interested in Canadian coins. In 1960 he attended the Canadian Numismatic Association Convention in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada, where he obtained a number of Canadian coins. In 1961 the Norwebs attended the C.N.A. Convention in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, and I had a chance to view some of their Canadian rarities at a private display.

In September 1973, the International Congress of Numismatics met in the U.S.A. Mrs. Norweb was very active in this gathering, especially in New York.

Besides being astute collectors, both Mr. and Mrs. Norweb were very personable individuals. They are to be remembered because of their great interest in numismatics and their willingness to give a good deal of their time to numismatic societies, as well as generous donations from their collections to a number of museums.

The Norwebs and their forebears have contributed a rich legacy to American history. Besides their other cultural activities already mentioned, the Norwebs contributed towards the creation of the great mosaic flooring now gracing the National Cathedral in Washington, D.c. In the field of numismatics, their presence has left an indelible mark; a remembrance of fine people collecting outstanding coins, appreciating their various aspects, sharing their coins and knowledge with others, and being an integral part of the numismatic scene. Certainly the hobby is richer for the Norwebs, past and present, having come our way.

In conclusion, the reader is reminded that the United States and early American coins in the Norweb cabinet have their own stories to tell. Many have important pedigrees and are of out-standing quality. This information will be found in the series of planned auction catalogues produced by the present authors and others at Bowers and Merena in conjunction with the sale of the Norweb Collection of United States coins.