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DIE HARD: A Shire Penny die is ready to strike a copper blank with 40 tons of pressure.
“Another really early coin for ‘Game of Thrones’ was the Torrhen Stark penny, and it’s engraved in the same way that Viking pennies were,” Helen Maringer said. “So you have a bar and you have a circle, and you just make the design out of those two elements. It looks really authentic and it feels really different. And some of them are struck in a way where the edge is scalloped. You’re used to coins feeling smooth along the edge and even having that flat rim, but we don’t strike coins in a way that creates that because it’s not how it used to be done.” In addition to working closely with the creators of their licensed coins’ origins, Helen Maringer places high value on input from fans. “Our best designs — our best-selling things — have been suggestions from customers. We love every piece of info we can get,” she said. One top request was a coin featuring an ancient Icelandic symbol called the Vegvísir, a talisman against getting lost. “We did this really nice incuse [stamped] THE MINTING MARINGERS: (From left) Tom Maringer, Peggy Maringer, Woody Maringer and Helen Maringer, with minter Chris Kelsey.
design,” she said. “Instead of going out of the metal, the design goes into the metal so it gets really dark and it wears really nicely. There’s this phrase; it’s in Icelandic and then transcribed in runes, so even if you know runes you have to know Icelandic also to read it. But it says, ‘I do not stop when I am tired, I stop when I am done.’ People have been asking for it for a long time.” Enthusiasts were also eager to see Shire Post Mint create a memento mori coin. Helen and company obliged and added their own spin to the classic idea. “Memento mori is this ancient and medieval philos-
ophy about not being connected to your earthly possessions and your body. It’s Latin for ‘remember that you have to die.’ So we added a flip side, ‘remember that you have to live,’ memento vivere.” The memento mori coin is more complicated than most of their other coins because of its octagonal shape and complex design elements, so it’s a little pricier than other single coins. But Helen says the extra effort is worth it. “There’s a lot of work that goes into that one, but dang, it looks good. I think people feel the value of it.” The thought and care that goes into the craftsmanship of each coin CONTINUED ON PAGE 31
A group of Central Arkansas musicians is raising funds to rehabilitate the storied, 30-year-old stage at Vino’s Brewpub, the pizzeria and brewery that’s doubled as a longtime home for independent local music in Little Rock. “The current stage they have can barely support the weight of the equipment and bands that play on it,” organizer Cory Fisher said in an email. “The wiring is rough, the lights are cheap and in poor shape, etc. Even a lot of the staff has acknowledged these issues but their hands are tied as there are just limited resources that they have access to to help build things up.” Fisher said the fundraising goal is $1,600. “That should cover building a new stage and all materials (screws, wood, glue, sealants, hinges, stairs, electric drop chords, etc.) plus allow a bit of wiggle room should our team run into something unexpected.” The benefit concert, which will feature sets from Terminal Nation, My Hands to War, Go For Gold and Colour Design, is set for Friday, Jan. 25; suggested donation is $10. The Arkansas Cinema Society will screen a sneak preview of “On the Basis of Sex,” a film about the life of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, starring Felicity Jones, Armie Hammer and Justin Theroux. The film will screen at 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 29, at CALS Ron Robinson Theater. The ACS will host a panel discussion and after-party after the film. Admission is free, but reserve a seat at arkansascinemasociety.org. As shortlists of predicted Oscar nominees begin to take shape, Variety named Arkansas native Ben Dickey’s performance in “Blaze” — a film about Malvern native/legend Blaze Foley — on its list of “pleas for consideration.” Dickey, a former member of Little Rock-based band Shake Ray Turbine, won the U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Achievement in Acting at the 2018 Sundance Awards. Concert announcements for 2019 continue to roll in: The Rev Room will host a show from The Descendents on March 9; the Oxford American hosts Joan Shelley on Feb. 28; VenuWorks presents Judas Priest and Uriah Heep at the First Security Amphitheater on June 1; Weird Al Yankovic lands at Verizon Arena (which will, by then, be renamed Simmons Arena to reflect a $10.5 million bank sponsorship) on Sept. 1; KISS performs at Verizon/Simmons Arena on Sept. 5; and comedian Mike Epps performs at Verizon Arena on April 26. The Arkansas Arts Center is accepting entries for its 2019 “Delta Exhibition,” to run May 3 through June 30. Deadline is Feb. 13.
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arktimes.com DECEMBER 20, 2018
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