Clain-Stefanelli, Vladimir
Born in Czernowitz, Bukovina, Austria, now Chernovtsy, Ukraine. Married to Elvira Olinescu December 29, 1938. They had one son. He received B.A., M.A. in 1936, and Ph.D. in 1938 from University of Carol II in Austria. He was a librarian 1932 to 1937 and museum assistant in Romania 1937 to 1938. During World War II he spent 18 months in the Buchenwald concentration camp. In Italy he served as a secretary in the Vatican 1946 to 1948. He came to America in 1949 or 1951. Employed with Hesperia Art in New York prior to 1953.
Employed as manager of Coin Galleries 1954 to 1956. He joined the Smithsonian in September 1956. Served as senior historian and curator of the National Numismatic Collection of the Smithsonian Institution until his death in 1982. Under his direction the national collection grew from about 64,000 pieces to 900,000 pieces. In May 1973 he was given the Smithsonian gold medal for exceptional service. He was life member number 267 of the ANA. In 2014 he was inducted into the ANA Hall of Fame.
Author of History of the National Numismatic Collections in 1968. Author of Chartered for Progress: Two Centuries of American Banking in 1973. Author with Elvira of The Beauty and Lore of Coins Currency and Medals in 1974.
He died following heart surgery at Georgetown University Hospital.
bio: ConAut 111; WWS&SW 75
obit: CW 11/3/82; NN 10/30/82; NTY 10/30/82; The Washington Post 10/23/82; NUM 95 Dec 1982 page 2982
2 entries found
Displaying records 1 — 2
1968History of the National Numismatic Collections
"History of the National Numismatic Collections", by Vladimir Clain-Stefanelli, 1968.
1975Chartered for Progress: Two Centuries of American Banking, A Pictorial Essay
Chartered for Progress: Two Centuries of American Banking, A Pictorial Essay by Elvira and Vladimir Clain-Stefanelli. This is an in-copyright publication. "Snippet" results will appear in the Newman Portal search results.
