Peter Alan Rayner
Encyclopedia
Peter Alan Rayner was a British
author
of numismatic (coin collecting) books. He was known by his second name Alan, rather than his first to avoid confusion with Peter Seaby, also a popular author, whose family firm Rayner joined at the age of 24.
Rayner lived in Harpenden
, Hertfordshire
where he attended St George's School, Harpenden as a day boarder. During World War II
he was conscripted into the mines as a Bevin Boy, although he was eventually released owing to ill health and enlisted in the Intelligence Corps.
In 1948 he joined B.A. Seaby Limited as an assistant in the English Coin Department, and began to specialise in milled silver coins. In 1957 he helped prepare for print a second revised edition of the book called 'English Silver Coinage from 1649', written by H. Seaby and first published in 1949. This proved to be one of the most popular books published by B.A. Seaby Limited and further updated editions were printed in 1967, 1974 and the most recent in 1992. The book is used by numismatists as a main reference for all English silver coinage from 1649 to the year 1992 with a three-lettered prefixed (ESC - referring to English Silver Coinage) numbering system attributable to each coin and any variant. In 1961 Rayner wrote Your Book of Coin Collecting (published by Faber & Faber London). This presented to the new collector of coins 'a complete guide to Coin Collecting'. In 1966 he also wrote the book Coin Collecting For Amateurs published by Frederick Muller Ltd of Fleet Street.
Rayner remained at Seaby's until 1974, when he left to join the English branch of the coin company Paramount. He immediately became a valued member of staff whose knowledge of silver coins was unrivalled. He also specialised in foreign coins, in particular German
.
He is survived by his Swiss wife Madeleine from Schaffhausen
, who caused Rayner to learn Schweizerdeutsch (Swiss German), four children and eight grandchildren.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of numismatic (coin collecting) books. He was known by his second name Alan, rather than his first to avoid confusion with Peter Seaby, also a popular author, whose family firm Rayner joined at the age of 24.
Rayner lived in Harpenden
Harpenden
Harpenden is a town in Hertfordshire, England.The town's total population is just under 30,000.-Geography and administration:There are two civil parishes: Harpenden and Harpenden Rural....
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
where he attended St George's School, Harpenden as a day boarder. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he was conscripted into the mines as a Bevin Boy, although he was eventually released owing to ill health and enlisted in the Intelligence Corps.
In 1948 he joined B.A. Seaby Limited as an assistant in the English Coin Department, and began to specialise in milled silver coins. In 1957 he helped prepare for print a second revised edition of the book called 'English Silver Coinage from 1649', written by H. Seaby and first published in 1949. This proved to be one of the most popular books published by B.A. Seaby Limited and further updated editions were printed in 1967, 1974 and the most recent in 1992. The book is used by numismatists as a main reference for all English silver coinage from 1649 to the year 1992 with a three-lettered prefixed (ESC - referring to English Silver Coinage) numbering system attributable to each coin and any variant. In 1961 Rayner wrote Your Book of Coin Collecting (published by Faber & Faber London). This presented to the new collector of coins 'a complete guide to Coin Collecting'. In 1966 he also wrote the book Coin Collecting For Amateurs published by Frederick Muller Ltd of Fleet Street.
Rayner remained at Seaby's until 1974, when he left to join the English branch of the coin company Paramount. He immediately became a valued member of staff whose knowledge of silver coins was unrivalled. He also specialised in foreign coins, in particular German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
He is survived by his Swiss wife Madeleine from Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen is a city in northern Switzerland and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimated population of 34,587 ....
, who caused Rayner to learn Schweizerdeutsch (Swiss German), four children and eight grandchildren.