Mexican 8 Reales with an unusual chopmark (Endless / Bowen knot?) - Opinions needed!

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by Alcazar1936, Jul 15, 2026 at 11:48 AM.

  1. Alcazar1936

    Alcazar1936 New Member

    Greetings from Spain,

    I'm a new member here, so apologies in advance for any errors!

    I'd love to get your thoughts on this Mexican 8 Reales. It has several chopmarks, but one of them caught my attention because it seems rather uncommon. From what I've found, it looks like an "endless knot" (or mystic/Bowen knot). If anyone has further details or history about this particular mark, I'd be very grateful if you could share.

    Additionally, considering it might be a rare chopmark, do you guys think it's worth submitting to NGC?

    Cheers! 8 reales.jpg 8 reales 2.jpg PXL_20260712_222919034.jpg
     
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  3. BRandM

    BRandM Counterstamp Collector

    Very interesting coin. I've seen a lot of chopmarks but nothing like that one. Although I'm an avid collector of counterstamps, I have no chopmarked coins nor have I ever studied them.

    My only thought is is it really a chopmark or something added at a later time. It just looks very different than anything I've seen before. Good luck in your research and I hope someone here can help you.

    Bruce
     
    SensibleSal66 likes this.
  4. SensibleSal66

    SensibleSal66 U.S Casual Collector / Error Collector

    What's a Chopmark? :hungry:
    Lines on a Porkchop? :smuggrin:
     
  5. Randy Abercrombie

    Randy Abercrombie Supporter! Supporter

    I keep coming back to look at this. Now the only experience I have with chopmarked coins is with trade dollars and the early Spanish pieces of eight.... Here's my quandary.... That 8 reales shows somewhere between 6-8 chopmarks. That tells me that coin has see a lot of trade.... Yet, the coin itself appears near mint state. I cannot reason out in my mind how a coin that has seen that much trade can be in such a state of preservation. Admittedly, I am not a world coin guy so I may be barking up the wrong tree here.
     
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  6. fretboard

    fretboard Defender of Old Coinage!

    Cool coin with an interesting knot but I know nothing about chopmarks! :shame: That said I wouldn't have it graded as the chopmark shows the coin is legit to most collectors! Your decision though, here's a couple of my Mexican Reales coins, I can't miss a posting opportunity! thumbupp.gif

    mexico1884a.jpg mexico1884d.jpg mexico1896e.jpg mexico1896f.jpg
     
  7. Alcazar1936

    Alcazar1936 New Member

    Thank you all for replying. As Randy rightly pointed out, a while ago I also had the exact same doubt about chopmarked coins. You'd think they should be much more worn considering all the places they must have seen. That was until I started getting interested in them and realized that while it's true for most, there are exceptions. For example, my Calos III 8 Reales (which was my first one) is older and has even more chopmarks and it's in very good condition.. I imagine they would just chop them and toss them straight into the vault. 8 Reales Carlos III.jpg 8 Reales Carlos III 2.jpg

    I buy all my coins from highly reputable auction houses in Spain and they come with a certificate of authenticity, so I have peace of mind on that front. But the coin we are discussing, with such an unusual chopmark, really has me intrigued. Where did it circulate? Where is that chopmark from?

    The reason I brought up getting it graded is to see if NGC might note on the label that the chopmark is rare or something similar, which could add value to the piece. However, I've never submitted a coin for grading before and I'm not sure if that's something they even do.

    Fretboard, nice 'duro'! That's what we also call that type of coin here in Spain.
    By the way, if you spot any weird phrasing, blame Google Translate! I'm still getting the hang of English :happy:
     
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