![](\"https:\/\/blog.museunacional.cat\/wp-content\/uploads\/GNC-003.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nAs a general rule, whenever I am asked what I do, my reply causes a certain amount of expectation. Let me explain:<\/p>\n
– If I say, \u201cI work in a museum,\u201d the other person usually says, \u201cOh, how interesting! Which one?\u201d<\/p>\n
– If I say, \u201cI\u2019m an archaeologist,\u201d the following comment is, \u201cHow nice, like Indiana Jones,\u201d to which I usually reply, \u201cYes very nice, but it\u2019s not like Indiana Jones.\u201d<\/p>\n
– If I say, \u201cI\u2019m a numismatist,\u201d the other person\u2019s face very often changes, with a look of \u2018What is she saying?\u2019 and they ask, \u201cA numiswhat?\u201d But they immediately add, \u201cCoins! I\u2019ve got a very old coin that belonged to my great-great grandfather. How much do you think it\u2019s worth?\u201d<\/p>\n
Then begins a job of explaining and reasoning, which after so many years I think is easier to understand. Being a numismatist is a mixture of everything I have said, as the training or study course to be a numismatist traditionally derives from the branch of history and archaeology.<\/strong> The place where a numismatist works is a cultural institution devoted to the conservation and study of the patrimony, generally a museum. Although the main task is not to determine the market value of coins, we do have tools to be able to evaluate pieces historically.<\/p>\n The word \u201cnumismatics\u201d is derived from Latin, from the genitive of numisma,<\/em> and also from the Greek word \u03bd\u03cc\u03bc\u03b9\u03c3\u03bc\u03b1, words that mean \u201ccoin\u201d. The current definition according to the Enciclop\u00e8dia Catalana<\/em> is therefore: The science that studies the origins and the development, in both space and time, of coinage, considering it to be not a simple element of exchange, but a historical, social, economic and artistic monument or testimony<\/strong><\/em>. This is how, since 1932, the Numismatic Cabinet of Catalonia (Gabinet Numism\u00e0tic de Catalunya, GNC) has taken care of, conserved, studied and disseminated the numismatic patrimony of Catalonia.<\/p>\n Josep Amor\u00f3s, first curator of GNC, in the work room in the Palau Nacional. On the desk there are all the things necessary for studying a coin: weighing scales, a slide gauge, magnifying glasses, bibliography and a file to complete.<\/p><\/div>\n But what is done in the Cabinet? What is the daily job of a conservator of the GNC? The GNC\u2019s collections are made up of more than 155,000 pieces, most of them metal coins, but in the reserves we also keep paramonetary objects such as tokens, counters, lead weights, pellofes<\/em>. We also have a collection of paper money, banknotes, vouchers, bonds and credit cards. Traditionally, however, anything that is small, round and metallic is also conserved in numismatic cabinets and museums, so we also have medals \u2013 in all their variations: artistic, commemorative, proclamatory, historical and religious, and badges and stamps. What\u2019s more, according to the above-mentioned definition, we also conserve everything to do with coinage and its manufacture, metrological objects and those which at one time or another have been part of the production system.<\/p>\n Since 1932 the main job of the GNC conservators has been to learn about, classify and record all the materials in the collections. Although the method of working is very similar for all periods, the registration techniques have been changing and developing over the years. The basic rule or international convention when recording a piece is to make a note of the weight, the diameter and the position of the coin\u2019s dies, whatever the coin\u2019s date of issue. These three values are those that identify the piece physically, its identity document. As a general rule the weight<\/strong> is expressed in grams (g). From the creation of the coin a specific weight has been established for each nominal value, but there are always slight variations above or below what is established by the decree of issue or the issuing authority<\/a>, which are what make the piece unique. The diameter<\/strong>, expressed in millimetres, may vary too, especially in hammered<\/a> coins, because depending on the blow received by the disk, the module is slightly different. The position of the dies<\/strong> or the axes, expressed in hours (h), or depending on the period, in degrees or arrows, is the relationship between the position of the iconography on the obverse<\/a> and the reverse<\/a> of the coin, something quite important for coins struck by hand.<\/p>\n Drawing published on Numism\u00e0tica: Dades per a la documentaci\u00f3 numism\u00e0tica<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n It is also important to note the coin\u2019s degree of wear<\/strong> and tear,<\/strong> above all if it is a piece from a hoard, as this information will help to establish a date when the hoard was hidden.<\/p>\n With the physical data associated with an inventory number, which is the identification given to a piece when it enters the museum\u2019s collection, we can open a registration file which must also include information about: the issuing authority<\/strong>; the date of issue<\/strong> or moment when the coin was minted or made; the mint<\/a> or territory where the piece was made; the description of the obverse<\/strong> and the reverse<\/strong>, which has to include a literal transcription of the inscription that runs round the coin or medal (legend<\/a>) and a brief description of the image or device that is engraved on it.<\/p>\n To be thorough the file ought to include bibliographical data referring to the piece. Moreover, it is also very important to conserve the information about the provenance of pieces:<\/p>\n \u2013if it is an archaeological find: the name of the site, location, stratum number and \u00a0materials accompanying it.<\/p>\n – if it is a purchase: details of the acquisition,\u00a0 and if possible, which collection it comes from, or the previous owners.<\/p>\n – if it is a donation: information about the person who has deposited the piece, date and year of admission, and the way in which they wish to appear on the cartouche if the object is exhibited.<\/p>\n Before the digital age all this information was recorded on hand-written paper files that were placed in order by the correlative registration number in a filing cabinet. Nowadays, at the MNAC this information is entered in the registration program of the Museum Plus (M+) collections system<\/a>. In this respect, there are two lines of work: one of entering the GNC\u2019s old collections in the M+, and the other, doing the same with all the department\u2019s new acquisitions.<\/p>\n<\/a>Recording, classifying and studying at the GNC<\/h3>\n
The basic or physical data of a piece<\/h4>\n
<\/a>Identifying details<\/h4>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n