#42-Double Eagle, Da Vinci, and Bezos
"What's not going to change over the next ten years? And that question is so important because you can build your plans around those things." -Jeff Bezos
I hope you are having a great weekend -
Why do I love collecting?
Because a hobby based around things that will remain true decades from now is time well-spent.
I didn’t fully understand this concept until I heard Jeff Bezos explain it in his own unique way.
Check it out in the ‘Bonus’ section below, or click on my ‘bookshelf’ image here -
Three Thoughts -
Here’s a few interesting things I learned this week while searching for the world’s greatest collectibles.
#1 - The Commission
President Roosevelt wanted to reintroduce American coinage,
and in 1905, he commissioned a famous sculptor to do it.
Augustus Saint-Gaudens accepted the challenge, and designed the twenty dollar "double eagle" gold coin, with a figure,
"striding forward as if on a mountain top... the flaming torch, the drapery, flowing in the breeze."
He wanted to make the coin,
"A living thing and typical of progress."
The commission by Roosevelt set a new precedent for coin design in America.
From then on, established artists would now design coinage, rather than the chief engraver at the U.S. Mint.
James E. Fraser's buffalo nickel,
Victor D. Brenner's Lincoln penny,
Adolph Weinman's dime,
John Flanagan's Washington quarter,
and Bela L. Pratt's half dollar eagle.
Every one of these artists, except Brenner, were former students or assistants of Augustus Saint-Gaudens.
His earliest plaster sketches of the double eagle mark the beginning of American coinage rebirth. And what President Roosevelt called one of the most important achievements of his administration.
#2 - The Uhlenhaut Coupe
Two were produced,
The engineer? Rudolf Uhlenhaut, who also used the car as his personal daily driver.
Uhlenhaut clocked speeds of over 180 miles per hour on his commute between Stuttgart and Munich. Just one hour drive time.
The fastest race car to never compete in a race, some would say.
The few that drove it said it was, "The car that turns pilots into poets."
After a test drive through the Swiss Alps, Automobil Revue magazine remarked,
“The 300 SLR demands a driver of many qualities. Cold blood, quick reactions, a feel for the machine, plus decency and regard for the environment, as well as decisiveness, courage, and stamina.”
One of the two 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupes sold for a record-breaking $140 million in 2022.
#3 - “To-do” Lists
He was inclined to procrastinate,
and struggled to complete works.
Easily distracted by new ideas and concepts, execution was not his strong suit.
With a lack of formal education, he could barely read Latin.
Complex arithmetic was not for him, he was mostly self-taught.
At a time when most people were highly specialized, he made connections across disciplines by following creativity, imagination, and curiosity.
But the habit that kept Leonardo da Vinci on track was his list making.
He carried a notebook everywhere he went, constantly writing and drawing anything that inspired him.
He once said, "It is useful to constantly observe, note, and consider."
A few items on his 'to-do' list from 1490 include:
1. Examine the Crossbow of Mastro Giannetto
2. Get Messer Fazio to show you how to square a triangle
3. Draw Milan
4. Ask about the measurement of the sun promised me by Maestro Giovanni Francese
5. Calculate the measurement of Milan and Suburbs
6. Describe the tongue of a woodpecker
Da Vinci's 72-page notebook full of lists and sketches, the Codex Leicester, was bought by Bill Gates in 1994 for $30 million.
BONUS - Things That Never Change
I heard Jeff Bezos describe a concept he used to build Amazon and it blew my mind.
It’s so simple, yet the way Bezos explained it really changed the way I think and act.
In the Walter Isaacson book, ‘Invent and Wander,’ Bezos describes it like this –
“I get asked a very interesting question from time to time:
“Jeff, what’s going to change over the next ten years?” And I enjoy playing with the answer. That’s a fun dinner conversation.”
Bezos Continues –
“So I know for a fact that Amazon customers are going to want low prices ten years from now. That’s not going to change. Customers are going to want fast delivery. They’re going to want big selection. So all the energy we’ve put into those things will continue to pay dividends.
It is impossible to imagine a customer coming to me ten years from now and saying, “Jeff, I love Amazon. I just wish you delivered a little more slowly” or “I just wish the prices were a little higher.” That’s not going to happen.”
Finally, Bezos wraps up his unique insight with this stunningly simple phrase –
Read more about what we should put our energy into -
Reach out - I’d love to hear what you’re collecting next!
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Thanks for reading, and have a great week!
TJ@atticcapital.com