Gold Cobs from the Florida shipwrecks of the 1715 Fleet & other New World wrecks. Spanish Colonial gold and silver coins from Lima, Mexico, Cuzco, Bogotá, Cartagena, and other mints.

 

 

 

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(Philip V 1700-1747)

 

M25.  Mexico 1744/3 MF eight escudos.

 

Choice uncirculated and sharply struck, the finest known 1744 Mexican onza and an unlisted 1744/3 overdate.

NGC MS 63, with no others at this grade or higher. A total of just 4 onzas have been graded as MS 63 or better for the entire Philip V portrait series (1732-47).

 

 

 

 

 

All Philip V onzas (1732-47) are very rare in choice mint state, a result of both low original mintage and poor survival in the Republican era. Some issues were struck with only one or two dies, the dies often remaining serviceable at the end of the year. The ever frugal Mexico City mint would then simply repunch the final date digit. In this case, an only lightly used 1743 obverse was repunched for use with the 1744 coinage, with the digit 3 remains clearly visible under the 4. Several Philip V issues are known with overdates, but the 1744/3 overdate, despite being obvious to the naked eye, has never been recorded in the reference texts, suggesting that very few examples survive. Culling through the catalogues has discovered only two other possible 1744/3, both XF/AU coins.

 

 

Only a handful of choice uncirculated Mexican onzas exist for the entire Philip V series 1732-1747. NGC has seen only 4 for the entire series. None of the major collections in the last 30 years--Norweb, Karon, Eliasberg, Millennia--contained a mint state 1744, nor for that matter any Philip V portrait onza that would grade choice uncirculated. Heritage recently auctioned a more common 1743 in MS 62 for $32,000. Philip V portrait onzas in MS 61 realize $14,000-15,000. No MS 63 Philip V portrait onzas have ever come to auction. This MS 63 1744/3 is a unique and important coin that will be a highlight of any collection of Spanish Colonial 8 escudos.

 

 

Available. Price on Request.

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