Friday, April 29, 2011

Scripophily Recapitulates Philately

No it doesn't, no more so than "ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny" but I was stuck for a headline.
I've referred to various stock frauds as a "potentially fine bit of scripophily" and posted old certs but never got around to a post devoted to the hobby.

From the amazing Lileks.com come annotated stock certificates:


that I am evil. Money isn't the root of all evil - 
it's the love of money. But I love money.
From an aesthetic point, I mean. 

Years ago I began to collect paper money, 
possibly because I find the new currency ugly beyond belief, and want a few reminders of the 
good old days when dollar bills were ornate and backed by metal. Once a week I stop by a 
coin & bill dealer in the skyway and examine the latest offerings, and perhaps pick up something 
for the collection. 
(Which so far has a face value of $8.) 

The other day the dealer pulled out a sheaf of old stock certificates, and with dismay 
I realized I'll probably end up collecting these, too. And they're worthless....MORE

Here's the first one, after this you're on your own:











"I can't believe you said that. Don't look away and pretend you didn't. I can't believe you said that. 
This is a scientific instrument. Even if I wanted to give Africa an enema I couldn't."
--
As for the Clevite corporation, it's still around, but with a different name. 
Go here, watch the flash animation on the home page, and see if you can tell what the hell's going on.
(By the way, you can click on the certificate to get a larger version; 
just don't expect any fancy-schmancy navigation aids. Use your back button.)