Hi all. Just looking for an opinion on the condition and value of this Mexican 4 Reales cob. Minted from 1701 through 1728. Unfortunately, the date has been totally obliterated. Actual weight is 12.9 g of .930 silver(?). 2002 edition of the Standard Catalog of 18th Century Coins, page 958, KM#40. *please see links below for pics* Thanks for your time and help. CJ
Ok. There's a problem with my photo hosting service. It seems that their server is a bit moody today. Here are a few pics of the cob in question:
Based on the pictures it is impossible to say if the coin is even genuine since there are no identifying marks even visible. That said, since the coin has been turned into a piece of jewelry any numismatic value it may have had (if genuine) has been reduced by 50-80%.
GDJMSP: Thanks for the reply. I guess I can figure the coin to be worth that of the current market of silver, plus another $10 just for the novelty of saying I own a cob (real or fake). LOL! Thanks again, CJ
I know I'm coming into this a bit late, but would like to add a couple observations: Speaking just of the ability to date & place the piece without a visible date or mint mark, you would still have 2 points in your favor- The cross design is called Florenzada, and was only used on coinage minted in Mexico City, and the shield on the obverse shows three fleur-de-lis in the center; this shield design appeared first in 1700. The weight, too, would be within the realm for a genuine cob 4 reales. Based thus, and without any accompanying certification making it a 'salvage' coin (from any shipwreck), the value would be in the $35-60 range. Certified as a salvage piece- $100 and up, depending somewhat on what wreck it was from. However, in all my years of diving, travel and associations close to various Spanish shipwreck salvors in the Caribbean and Central America never have I seen a genuine coin defaced by the direct soldering or creation of a loop such as this one shows so it could be worn; to anyone in that field this would be total sacrilege, and never, ever done. Because of this feature, I would strongly suspect that what you have is actually a replica piece rather than genuine.
In my research for info on this coin marked as 4 reale from 1701-1728 I came across this thread. The coin just doesn't quite match the picture so I'm thinking it is marked incorrectly. I'm hoping you guys may help.
jgreen - The coin you show is made in the made in the style of the 4 reales from the period you mention, but from the mints of Potosi and Lima (not Mexico). Based on your pics I cannot tell which. Nor can I tell if it is genuine or not. That said the coin appears to have been holed and then later had the hole plugged. That would greatly reduce any value even if it is genuine.
Ah thanks that was the other thing I was wondering if maybe the grader had marked it Mexico by default.
