NEWSBITES
1 May 2005 XXVIII

Khamsin Molossia News

President Visits Emperor Norton's Grave His Excellency, The President spent the last two weeks, 16 - 30 April, in the vicinity of Dublin, California, for the purpose of military training. During this time, he had the opportunity to visit the grave of Emperor Norton, which is located in the Woodlawn Cemetery, in Colma. The Emperor's grave is located on a quiet hillside in the cemetery, off a side loop road. It is lightly decorated with pennies for luck, à la Marie Laveau. Emperor Norton is an icon in Molossia, being regarded as the founder of micronationalism, or at least the first micronationalist. Norton Park, behind Government House, and Norton Day, on January 8th, are both symbols of our nation's devotion to the Emperor.

Mysterious Coin Identified. Last April's excavations in Norton Park uncovered a mysterious coin, buried deep in the Molossian soil. Subsequent to our article which first reported this discovery, our government was contacted by the Government of the Federal Republic of China. Wayne Chen, Minister of Foreign Affairs for that nation, stated as follows: "the coin is originated from the Yongle reign period of the Ming dynasty of our nation. On the coin, it is written "Yong-Le Tung Bo", which means "Currency of Emperor Yong Le". The Yongle period is in the early 15th century. If this coin is real, it should be over 500 years old." Mr. Chen then briefly mentioned a couple of possibilities for the arrival of the coin in Molossia, either brought by medieval Chinese explorers or by 19th century immigrants. Either way, this coin is unusual and its discovery here is quite remarkable. Further investigations will take place to attempt to discover the origin of this strange coin.

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