I was given a bag of jewelry from a friend's mother that passed away. Going through it I found a gold coin. Doing a little research on the internet, I found out that it is a Spanish Escudos coin shield type 2 dated 1714. I know nothing at all about coins. There are beautiful details and it includes all of the markings that I read about on the original coins. But, I'm not even sure if it's real or a replica. Where do I start? How do I know if it's worth anything? Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much
Hi brushelle, and welcome to the forum. The Standard Catalog of World Coins lists only a single variety Spanish 2 escuedos gold coin for 1714. That one is approximately 24.5mm wide, and weighs 6.77 grams. You've already taken the first step in authentication - determining that the devices and legends are generally correct. The second step in authentication is determining whether the piece has the correct physical characteristics. If yours passes that test, clear detailed pictures may enable a determination that the piece is fake, but only an in-hand examination by someone expert in the type can make a final affirmative determination. The value is certainly high enough to justify having it examined by one of the top third party graders, and placed in their "slab". That would also make it much easier to sell, if that's what you decide to do. On the other hand, if it has damage such as a hole, or solder marks, from being used as jewelry, it probably has little or no numismatic value, and is worth only its gold bullion value of ~$83.
