Trajan Publishing has learned esteemed numismatist Charles “Chuck” Moore, president of Moore Numismatic Auctions, died this morning in Walnut Creek, Calif.
A funeral is being planned for sometime next week in California, but a memorial will be held in Canada later this fall.
“It is a sad day when a Canadian icon passes,” said Steven Bromberg, president and CEO of Canadian Coin and Currency and longtime friend of Moore. “Chuck Moore has been a dominant figure in numismatics since before I started collecting in the early 1970s, and he has been a mentor and role model to me over the past 30 years.”
Moore was a Fellow and 38-year life member of the Royal Canadian Numismatic Association (RCNA). For 27 years, he sat on its board of directors. He would eventually serve one term as vice-president and two consecutive terms as president, from 2003 to 2007.
Moore was also a 34-year life member, a 30-year board member and had served as both vice-president and president (2003-2005) of the Canadian Paper Money Society. What’s more, he was a founding charter member of the Canadian Association of Numismatic Dealers (CAND), serving terms as both vice-president and president.
Bromberg added: “Chuck combined exceptional professional knowledge with an affable personality and made many friends along the way. I have been honoured to have Chuck as a friend as well as a colleague and business partner in our Canadian Legacy Sales. Chuck will leave an everlasting legacy on both the numismatic community and on the many people who have come to know him.”
In 2010, Moore was awarded the J. D. Ferguson Award – Canadian numismatics’ highest honour – for his numerous contributions to the hobby.
At the time of his death, he was a chairman of the Canadian Association for Numismatic Education (CAFNE), which provides grants for numismatic education.
Moore has been a dominant figure in numismatics for decades, serving as a mentor, role model and friend to many.
Former Canadian Coin News editor and current RCNA President Bret Evans knew Moore as both a friend and a colleague in the hobby and will greatly miss his presence.
“It’s a shame for Canadian numismatics,” said Evans, who is also a director with CAFNE. “Chuck has been a prominent part of the hobby for decades and was also a supporter of the RCNA. He gave generously of his time and his resources for the betterment of the hobby. It leaves a gaping hole in the hobby.”
However, Evans said, Moore’s influence on and accomplishments in numismatics would be felt for years to come.
“I had the pleasure of working with Chuck for many years at Canadian Coin News, and he was a professional in all of his dealings,” he said, adding Moore also provided excellent company in social settings.
Moore Numismatic Auctions – or Moore’s – opened for business in Toronto in July 1969. Moore’s first public auction was held in April 1977 at the Ontario Numismatic Association’s (ONA) annual convention.
Since 1977, Moore’s has held about 130 auctions, with two major auctions in Canada nearly every year. Altogether, more than $100 million-worth of coins, tokens and banknotes have crossed the auction block, reaching more than 25,000 collectors around the world.
Moore’s highlight auctions include three sales for the Bank of Canada, which saw him auction off one of the most valuable collections ever to be offered in Canada.
Over the decades, Moore’s has set numerous world price records for Canadian coins and banknotes, including in 2010, when a 1910 Bank of Vancouver $5 note, with a serial number showing 000001, realized $150,000.
Altogether, the esteemed auction house has conducted many sales for the RCNA, ONA, CAND, Toronto International Coin Fair, and Torex, Canada’s oldest commercial coin show, as well as many other numismatic clubs and associations.
“I worked with Chuck Moore for many years, dating back to the 1980s, when we were on the RCNA executive together,” said Paul Johnson, secretary of both the RCNA and CAFNE. “He had a very high reputation, and it’ll be a big loss for the hobby to know that he’s gone.”
Johnson said Moore was one of the hobby’s foremost auctioneers.
“Some of the collections he brought together for auction were unparalleled over the last number of years. He’s been doing auctions since the 1970s.”
Over the past few years, as Moore and Johnson became more involved with CAFNE, the two began working together a lot, something Johnson looks back on fondly.
“We worked really well together and I always enjoyed my dealings with him both professionally and personally,” Johnson said.
“He was genuinely a great person to spend time with and had a lot of interests outside of numismatics,” said Evans, adding Moore was working on his PhD in genetics before his death. “Some of my fondest memories were of talking about things other than numismatics. He was very widely read and we’d talk about everything from philosophy and human nature right through to economics and politics.”
Check back for more details on Moore’s life and death, and watch for updates and full coverage in the next issue of Canadian Coin News.