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Did the Lima mint strike gold in 1706?
Mint records say yes. A small emission of gold (plus silver) occurred from the Lima mint in 1706. Lima reales dated 1706 have been been recovered from the Fleet and elsewhere, but no 1706 gold. Where have all the 1706 escudos gone? Twenty years ago I was shown a 1706 "Lima" one escudo that was an obvious fantasy piece. Several reference works on Spanish Colonial cobs also list a 1706 Lima onza, but no picture exists of the coin and no living dealer has ever seen it. I have been hunting for it for more than 30 years. At this point I feel like someone hunting for the Loch Ness monster. Eight years ago (2004) Lou Ulian showed me the coin pictured below. No 1715 Fleet salvor, by the way, has ever claimed to have seen a 1706 Lima escudos. Lou's coin had been sold several years previous as a 1703 Lima 4 escudos. It isn't a 1703. The last digit is a seven, a seven of a different and size style than the other seven in the date, probably from a seven punch used on 2 escudos. This isn't surprising because the last 7 looks like an overdate. Look at the debris to the left of the coin. IF, and say again IF, it is a 7/6 overdate, we have here evidence that Lima at least prepared 1706 dies. Unfortunately, I had only a few minutes with the coin as Lou was delivering it to one of his clients. Where is the coin now? It has not re-surfaced. Since then I have seen two normal die 1707 Lima 4 escudos that are clearly not overdates. But Lou's coin was from different dies. No other 8 or 2 or 1 escudos from 1707 known to me shows any evidence of an overdate. So, as it stands, our evidence for 1706 Lima escudos is one 4 escudos that may or may not be a 1707/6 overdate.
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