Making Your Genealogy Visual - Old Coins Can Help

In Search of Ancestors

One of the more interesting hobbies is to look up your genealogy, finding ancestors, and in some cases learning interesting facts about them.  As a hobby, it can be addictive as long as you are having success.  Blockages do occur, but once a blockage is passed you can sometimes open a whole line back several generations, and that line may even branch.
Once you start and get past those ancestors with whom you are familiar, you may question the value of the search.  I did.  Yes, I had a growing list of names branching along more paths than I could follow in a single day, but a list of names is meaningless.  Yet, I was having success, and one line seemed to be well done by those who went before me, as though it were leading somewhere significant.  So, I continued on the path.  Eventually, I was astonished to find many people of historical significance in my line. 
Now, after finding several branches of less significance, I have become convinced it is much better to make things visual.  

Going Past the Names and Numbers

Seeing Adds So Much

Genealogy sites often allow you to use what others have done.  How well others have done their work is another issue.  Do you believe the other person has always done due diligence?  I have seen people try to be connected to royalty by having one ancestor a parent of another, even though the parent would not be born for two hundred years.  So, first make certain things are reasonable before accepting others’ work.  But, you can use a census, marriage records, birth records, and death records, along with any other document that can be associated with your ancestor.  But, even with a belief that you have properly documented an ancestor, what do you know about the person?  Birth and death dates, location of birth and of death, marriage date and location, and children are about what you can expect.  
If the person lived since the invention of the camera, a photographic image may be available.  I use ancestry.com, and people post images to it.  If they make the image public, you can add it to your ancestor.  This adds much, being able to see the person from whom you have come.  Older photographs are in black and white, but they add more than you can imagine.  But, your journey may go to earlier times.
One image people substitute is the family coat of arms.  You may see the same coat of arms on several other people’s trees, but remember, just like the photograph the image of the coat of arms is often copied.  If one is wrong, ten may be wrong, so check what is there in a book of heraldry.  And always remember, there are two people in each generation, and each has a family coat of arms.
Of course, as you go back in time the population decreases, so many branches lead to the same significant figures in history.  In my case I first found a few of the women marrying into one line with the title of lady.  As I got back, especially on some of their trees, I found Roman numerals after the names of some of the men.  Then, I found dukes and eventually a princess.  She was the daughter of an Emperor of the Western Holy Roman Empire.  If you can find such ancestors their images are often preserved.  Often such people sat for a portrait, which would be hung in their castle.  So, does that mean a trip to Europe?  No, others probably have found the images, or copies used in books, and posted them.  Just look at others’ trees. 
If your ancestor was a head of state, coins of the realm probably bear the person’s image.  Books on old coins can provide these, or you can collect the coins themselves.  Having an ancestor’s money can add so much to your genealogy search.  And, if your ancestor was not head of state, the coins your ancestor would have used can also be meaningful.  This gives a tangible link to your past, and is highly recommended, especially since such coins can often be bought inexpensively.
One of the more unusual images I encountered was of an ancestor who became a saint, and has been pictured in a stained glass window, probably in a church in Metz.
Another image that you might find is that of an ancestral home.  Some plantations still stand, and can be photographed, while others have been captured on film before they were destroyed.  In older homes, such as castles, images abound.  These can often be bought and hung on a wall as decorative art.  And why not go to a trophy maker and have a plaque made to place just below the castle image.  

Old Coins Do Not Have to Be Expensive

Lower Priced Coins Exist

Many inexpensive coins exist.  Just remember, minting was usually a guy with a hammer, and the coins are usually of poorer quality than coins are today.  If it looks too good, be skeptic.  And old coins predate the calendar, so they have no date on them, unless they are from a culture that used another calendar. 

Has Your Ancestor Produced Famous Work?

Are You Descendant from an Artist of Any Kind?

Having an example of an ancestor’s work can be a great visual connection to the past.  If your ancestor was an artist of any kind you might consider getting a reprint of some of that ancestor’s work.  For musical ancestors, get a copy of a piece written or sung by that ancestor, and have it mounted and framed.  It will bring you a connection in a tangible way.

One of my ancestors, if I have done my genealogy correctly, was William Smith, son of Sir John Smythe, High Sherriff.  What makes William Smith significant is he is mentioned in one of Shakespeare’s genealogy books as having been a godfather of William Shakespeare, and possibly the source of the name William that was given to Shakespeare.  Here we have a connection with Shakespeare, albeit not a direct line connection.  How can a visual representation of this be accomplished?  There are images of scenes of Shakespeare’s plays available for purchase.  Indeed, a small plaque among several would explain the connection nicely.