Eric P. Newman

In four decades of service on the governing Council (predecessor of the present Board of Trustees), Eric P. Newman (1911–2017) was consistently a strong advocate of the Society’s educational mission. Wanting to see modern and American numismatics represented in the Graduate Summer Seminar, he not only urged inclusion but stepped up to give a lecture on this area each year for many years. In addition to his own foundation for numismatic education, he provided a generous endowment for the ANS Graduate Summer Seminar, now named after him.

Newman’s rigorous sense of numismatic integrity was important to the Society in many ways. In particular, he led the effort to recover the early United States large cents that had been stolen by William Sheldon.

Although Islamic coinage was not at the center of Newman’s interests, his respect for George Miles and the Islamic Department led him to acquire a major collection and donate it to the Society in the early 1970s.

For more on Newman and his numismatic achievements, see the Newman Numismatic Portal.