Peter Alan Rayner

Peter Alan Rayner (1924 - July 29, 2007) 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.

Alan 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 was 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 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'.

He 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.

Alan was a keen collector of Swiss stamps, English silver flatware, cacti, model aircraft and meteorological data. He was an accomplished shot with a pistol and an enthusiastic archer, making regular attendances to the local archery club as well as shooting in competitions. He possessed a keen interest in homoeopathy and if one were taken sick on a trip with him, one could be sure of a ready suggestion for a speedy cure. This led in later life to an interest in veterinary practice, and he treated many cats, including his own group of some 16 Burmese, Siamese and Abyssinian which he bred.

In addition to these pursuits, Alan also flew gliders as a hobby and played viola with the Luton Vauxhall Chamber Orchestra. He is survived by his wife Madeleine, a Swiss girl from Schaffhausen who caused Alan to learn Switzerdeutsch (Swiss German), four children and eight grandchildren.