The International Association of Professional Numismatists (IAPN), founded in 1951, is a non-profit organisation of the leading international numismatic firms. The objects of the association are the development of a healthy and prosperous numismatic trade conducted according to the highest standards of business ethics and commercial practice.
The IAPN was constituted at a meeting held in Geneva in 1951 to which the leading international numismatic firms had been invited. There were 28 founding members. The objectives of the association are the development of a healthy and prosperous numismatic trade conducted according to the highest standards of business ethics and commercial practice, the encouragement of scientific research and the propagation of numismatics, and the creation of lasting and friendly relations amongst professional numismatists throughout the world.
Membership is vested in numismatic firms, or in numismatic departments of other commercial institution, and not in individuals. Today there are more than 110 numismatic member firms, situated in five continents and twenty-one countries. the General Assembly is the supreme organ of the association, and this is convened annually, normally in a different country.
The executive committee is composed of twelve to fifteen persons from at least six countries and includes the president, two vice-presidents (one from each hemisphere), the general secretary and the treasurer. There are subcommittees dealing with membership, discipline, publications, anti-forgery work, and government relations.
In pursuit of the objective to encourage numismatic research the association has published or assisted in the publication of a number of important numismatic works. In particular it maintains a close liaison with the International Numismatic Commission, and individual members take an active interest in the work of their national numismatic organizations.
In 1965 the IAPN held an international congress in Paris to consider the study of and defence against counterfeit coins, and in 1975 the association established the International Bureau for the Suppression of Counterfeit Coins (IBSCC). This bureau maintains close links with mints, police-forces, museums and collectors with the publication of specialized reports on counterfeits. Since January 1997 the information about new dangerous counterfeits and the scanned photos of the pieces are available on Internet. The Bulletin of Counterfeits and Internet-access are restricted to members only.
The members of the IAPN guarantee the authenticity of all the coins and medals which they sell – this is a condition of membership. Collectors may purchase numismatic material from any of the firms from the membership list in the full knowledge that if any item did prove to be counterfeit or not as described the piece could be returned and the purchase price would be refunded, without regard to date of purchase.
Membership of the association is not lightly acquired. Applicants have to be sponsored by three members, and the vetting of applications involves a rigorous and sometimes protracted procedure. In order to be admitted the applicants must have been established in business as numismatists for at least four years and must be known to a number of members. The committee need to be satisfied that they have carried on their business in an honourable manners and that they have a good general knowledge of numismatics as well as expertise in whatever field is their speciality.
The Medal of Honour of the association was established in 1963 in memory of its first president, Leonard S. Forrer, and is awarded by the President to persons of distinction whom the association wishes to honour or for distinguished services to the association.
The IAPN Book Prize was established in 1982 "to encourage the publication of books of scientific and general interest." It is an annual prize for a numismatic work published the previous year.
Recipients of the IAPN Book Prize
2024 - Jerome Mairat, Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume V.4: The Gallic Empire (AD 260-274). 2023. ISBN978-19-1266-799-4
2023 - Prashant P. Kulkarni, Archaic Coinage of the Godavari Valley and The Deccan. ISBN978-93-5526-685-9
2022 - Steve Hill, The Gold Sovereign Series. 2nd revised edition. ISBN978-1-908828-55-2
2021 - Roberto Delzanno, Sveriges Myntbok / Münzen aus Schweden / Coins from Sweden 995-2022. ISBN978-91-639-9468-5
2019 - C. Catherine Lorber, Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire (2 vols). ISBN978-0-89722-356-0
2018 - Paul Stevens, The Coins of the English East India Company: Presidency Series. A Catalogue and Pricelist. ISBN978-1907427701.
2017 - Andreas Pangerl, Portraits: 500 Years of Roman Coin Portraits. ISBN978-3-922840-36-7.
2016 - Hugo Vanhoudt, De munten van de Bourgondische, Spaanse en Oostenrijkse Nederlanden en van de Franse en Hollandse periode, 1434-1830. ISBN978-90-902-8784-3.
2015 - Carlo e Silvana Crippa, Le Monete di Milano.
2014 - Italo Vecchi, Italian Cast Coinage. A descriptive catalogue of the Cast Bronze Coinage and its struck counterparts in ancient Italy from the 7th to 3rd centuries BC. ISBN978-0-9575784-0-1.
2013 - Ronachai Krisadaolarn & Vasilijs Mihailovs, Siamese Coins from Funan to the Fifth Reign. ISBN9749863542.
2012 - Hector Carlos Janson, La Moneda Circulante en el Territorio Argentino 1574-2010.
2011 - Christopher Eimer, British Commerative Medals and Their Values. ISBN978-1-907427-06-0.
2010 - Helmut Zöttl, Salzburg, Münzen und Medaillen 1500-1800. (2 vols). ISBN978-3-9502590-0-1/-1-8.
2009 - Silvia Mani Hurter, Die Didrachmenprägung von Segesta. ISBN978-3-033015-64-7.
2008 - Richard McAlee, The Coins of Roman Antioch. ISBN0-9709268-9-8.
2007 - J. Vico Monteolivia, et al, Corpus Nummorum Visigothorum. ISBN84-609-8913-5.
2006 - M. Mehl, Die Münzen des Stiftes Quedlinburg. ISBN3-933420-02-4.
2005 - S. Cudazzo, Monete Italiane Regionali.
2004 - Christian E. Dekesel, Bibliography of the 17th Century Numismatic Books.
1. Günther Probst, Die Münzen Salzburgs. (1959, 2nd ed. 1975).
2. First International Congress for the Study of and Defence against Coin Forgeries. Paris, 1965. Analytical Report (1967).
3. Rodolfo Spahr, Siciliane dai Bizantini a Carlo I d'Angio (582-1282) (1976).
4. Proceedings of the 8th International Congress of Numismatics, New York/Washington, 1973 (2 vols) (1976).
5. International Numismatic Commission, A Survey of Numismatic Research 1972-1977 (1979).
6. Rodolfo Spahr, Le Monete Siciliane dagli Aragonesi ai Borboni (1282-1836) (1982)
7. Proceedings of the 9th International Congress of Numismatics, Bern, 1979 (2 vols). (1982)
8. Numismatics. Witness to History / La numismatique. Temoin de l'Histoire. - Written by IAPN members to commemorate the IAPN's 35th anniversary (1986)
9. A Survey of Numismatic Research, 1978-1984. (1986)
10. Philip Kinns, The Caprara Forgeries. (IAPN/RNS publication, 1984)
11. Proceedings of the 10th International Congress of Numismatics, London 1986. (1989)
12. A Survey of Numismatic Research 1985-1990. (1991)
13. A Survey of Numismatic Research 1990-1995. (1997)
14. A Survey of Numismatic Research 1996-2001. (INC/IAPN, 2003)
15. A Survey of Numismatic Research 2002-2007. (INC/IAPN 2009)