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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Colonialjohn, post: 26522010, member: 57741&quot;]<b>In the 1800s, counterfeiters in South America used platinum to imitate Spanish gold escudos because platinum was abundant locally, difficult to distinguish from gold, and had little commercial value at the time.</b></p><p><br /></p><p>During the early 19th century, <b>platinum was found in significant deposits in Colombia</b>, particularly in the Chocó region. Unlike gold, which was highly prized and tightly controlled by colonial authorities, platinum was considered a nuisance metal. It was hard to melt with the technology available then, and European markets had not yet developed uses for it. As a result, platinum was cheap and readily available to counterfeiters. Its density is nearly identical to gold, which made it ideal for producing coins that matched the weight and feel of genuine Spanish escudos.</p><p><br /></p><p>Counterfeiters exploited this property by <b>plating platinum cores with a thin layer of gold</b>, creating coins that were visually convincing and physically accurate in weight. Since Spanish escudos circulated widely across South America and Europe, these counterfeits could pass undetected in everyday transactions. The deception was particularly effective because assayers and merchants often relied on weight and superficial appearance rather than chemical testing. In this way, platinum became a perfect substitute for gold in fraudulent coinage.</p><p><br /></p><p>The widespread use of platinum in counterfeit escudos also reflects the <b>economic and political tensions of the colonial era</b>. Spain’s strict control over precious metals and coinage created incentives for illicit production. Local counterfeiters undermined imperial authority while profiting from the circulation of false currency. Ironically, what was once a “worthless” nuisance metal later became one of the most valuable industrial and jewelry metals in the modern world. But in the 1800s, its role in South America was primarily as a tool for deception, cleverly used to mimic Spain’s prized gold coinage.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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