I purchased this coin while hunting contemporary counterfeits, but was informed by a member on another forum that it is in fact necessity coinage of the Mexican revolution. Mexico, Sinaloa 1 peso, silver (1915). Crude sand cast made from various existing dates of the cap and rays series. This one is 1886 or 1896 Cn AM. Weighs 25.75 grams.
Sometimes I suppose the line between a contemporary counterfeit and a "siege" or "necessity" coin is a bit blurry, and also had quite a bit to do with whoever happened to be winning in a conflict, and who had access to resources. These Mexican revolutionary pieces have never been much on my radar precisely because they're so crude, but they certainly do serve well as historically interesting relics.
I suppose the distinction is whether or not they are approved by the local authority of where they are to be used for circulation. Oddly enough, this would be a terrible counterfeit, as it would not be likely to pass as genuine even once. I thought it was interesting to find one on this level of crudeness, but I'm not all that familiar with most REV-MEX types, so this was a surprise and a learning experience
And therein lies the problem, in a civil war or revolutionary situation. The "local authority" might change from week to week, depending on the outcome of conflicts - or things can slide into anarchy and there will be no "local authority"! You can definitely see this in the coins, which is what makes stuff like this (and siege coinage in general) so interesting (if seldom aesthetically pleasing).
Well they're not all crude. Some are well made and you can have coins from just about all the big players in the Mexican Civil War or Revolution of 1910 - 1920. This is one a 1Peso, 1915, State of Chihuaha, bought from a Sedwick auction raw.
Gorgeous example, i felt a bit of drool flowing out the side of my mouth. It's still pretty crude in design, but a very nice strike showing about as much detail as can possibly be shown
