Atocha Shipwreck Coin

Discussion in 'What's it Worth' started by AtochaFan, Dec 6, 2011.

  1. AtochaFan

    AtochaFan New Member

    I have a silver coin from the "Atocha" shipwreck that my mother bought in November of 1996. It is a "Genuine TreasureCoin," mounted in a bezel with an "Atocha Emerald." I have the an "Appraisal Certificate" and a "Certificate of Authenticity" with this information:

    Coin Number: 95A-2099
    Denomination: 8 Reales
    Reign: Philip III
    Mint: Potosi
    Assayer: T 1618-21
    Weight: 25.90
    Grade: One (1)

    Mom wants to sell it. First off, I need to get an idea what it might be worth now. I know how much she paid for it then, so I could ball park it, and hope for the best, but I thought I would ask here.

    Plus, I am having a hard time trying to describe it. Is this coin (singular) a "pieces of eight" or a "piece of eight"? Does that eight refer to "8 reales"? What is a "4 reales"?

    (*Sigh* I got a lot to learn.)
     

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  3. Skylark

    Skylark Senior Member

    I wouldnt know the value, but those that would shall probably want to see the other side.
    Oh what the heck, I'll say its worth $1,792 :)
     
  4. AtochaFan

    AtochaFan New Member

    The reverse of Atocha coin

    20111205-07 (788x800).jpg
    The reverse of the Atocha coin
     
  5. As a boy raised on a farm in a backward county Id say 8 reales would be a large family with a little more money than the family I came from all fishing on a sunday with all reales in the water.It is my honest belief that 4 reales would be when 4 of the family members engaged in the smoking of a crack pipe and gave up on fishing all together.
     
  6. crowbaby

    crowbaby Member

    Love the coin, don,t know what they sell for.
     
  7. Kasia

    Kasia Got my learning hat on

    Don't know the value, but coin is good looking. For numismatic purposes, the mounting of it in the bezel may have hurt the value. Wait for some others to weigh in on this.
     
  8. LostDutchman

    LostDutchman Under Staffed & Overly Motivated Supporter

    Atocha coins were VERY pricy when they were sold. I recently sold a lone grade I with all the proper papers for $415. I thought it would have brought more... But oh well. Which was about 1/3 of the original price. If yours has all the original papers I would say its worth 1/3 to 1/2 of the original purchase price. These were not a good buy originally.

    Here is a segment from my podcast called The Coin Show about collecting Atocha coins.

    [video=youtube_share;OL9SK1k4EJk]http://youtu.be/OL9SK1k4EJk[/video]
     
  9. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    What you have there is a 2 reales. And yes, a piece of eight was an 8 reales. The coins were minted in various denominations ranging from a 1/2, 1, 2, 4 and 8 reales. In later years they even minted 1/4 reales. The denominations for US coinage was based on these coins. An 8 reales = 1 dollar. 4 reales = half dollar. 2 reales = quarter. 1 reale (roughly) = dime and the 1/2 reale (roughly) = half disme.

    What Matt said is quite true, the coins were grossly overpriced right form the very beginning. Sold to tourist for the most part who had no idea what they were buying. They still are, and yes they are still grossly overpriced in the tourist shops.

    But people who know coins won't pay those prices, never would. And the reason they never would is because you can go and buy the same coins, without the provenance, for a fraction of the price.

    Your coin , I would think would be worth $100 at best. But you might find someone who is a shipwreck collector willing to pay more. The emerald on the other hand might be worth several times that - or not. I truly have no idea. But I would suggest taking it to a few jewelers and having the stone looked at. Do not let them remove the stone from the setting. And if that is a gold setting, that too will add to the value.

    If you wish to sell it, contact Dan Sedwick as he will likely know more about this piece than anyone else. You can reach him through his web site - http://www.sedwickcoins.com/
     
  10. LostDutchman

    LostDutchman Under Staffed & Overly Motivated Supporter

    Doug,

    It looks from the cert that the OP gave that this is an 8 reales.
     
  11. coinman0456

    coinman0456 Coin Collector

    In addition to what Matt provided for you, you may also want to consult with Daniel Frank Sedwick @ sedwickcoins.com Congrats on your owning a wonderful piece of history.


    Sorry Doug, I now see you made that referral.:eek:
     
  12. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Yeah, I know. But I'm looking at the coin Matt, not what he typed. And unless I'm mistaken, that's a II right there circled in red.
     

    Attached Files:

  13. AtochaFan

    AtochaFan New Member

    Thanks LostDutchman, for the link to the video. It explains a lot.

    As for it being an 8 reales or some other denomination, since I have the original "Certificate of Authenticity" and an "Appraisal Certificate" and both of have Mel Fisher's name on them and both state that it is an 8 reales, I think I can safely pass it off as an 8 reales.

    Since it was bought as a piece of jewelry, instead of a coin, I suppose I am in the wrong forum, but the video was worth dipping into this pool.

    Thanks again.
     
  14. LostDutchman

    LostDutchman Under Staffed & Overly Motivated Supporter

    How big is the coin? The 8 Reales were the size of silver Dollars or slightly larger.
     
  15. AtochaFan

    AtochaFan New Member

    The coin is about 1.5 inches (3.5 centimeters) in diameter.
     
  16. LostDutchman

    LostDutchman Under Staffed & Overly Motivated Supporter

    That would be consistent with the 8 reales then size wise.
     
  17. AtochaFan

    AtochaFan New Member

    Yes!

    I guess I need to take a photo with a ruler beside it. (Tripping off to look for threads about how to photograph coins.)
     
  18. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Yes it would. But that II with the O over it on the coin sure is troublesome. That is exactly how the 2 reales was marked ! An 8 reales would have a big 8 there. And since I knew Mel Fisher personally, I know he sure knew the difference between them.

    Something aint right here.

    And that certificate, it's meaningless really. You can buy 'em on ebay.
     
  19. coleguy

    coleguy Coin Collector

    Neat coin. I bought a 4 Reales coin from Mel Fisher quite a few years ago. I think I paid $200 for it, which yes, I could have gotten somewhere cheaper, but not with the provenance, which is what I wanted. You'll probably have to hope for a buyer who's looking for the attached Fisher name to get most of your money back out of it.
    Guy
     
  20. LostDutchman

    LostDutchman Under Staffed & Overly Motivated Supporter

    I agree Doug.

    I had to crack my book on that one. I got to looking thinking that the Phillip II coins might have been marked with a II... but you are correct. It looks like the 8 Reales were all marked in that area with an 8. Strange...
     
  21. DCH

    DCH Member

    Many were with denominated with VIII rather than an 8. Blow the picture up really big, the 'V' is on top of the shield border.
     
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