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PERU, Lima, 8 reales, Philip II, assayer Rincón to left, king's name as PHILPVS, legends HISPA /

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Cobs - Lima Silver Start Price:35,000.00 USD Estimated At:50,000.00 - 100,000.00 USD
PERU, Lima, 8 reales, Philip II, assayer Rincón to left, king's name as PHILPVS, legends HISPA /
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PERU, Lima, 8 reales, Philip II, assayer R Rincon to left, king's name as PHILPVS, legends HISPA / NIARVM, motto PL-VSVL-TR, very rare, NGC AU details / environmental damage, ex-Ponte. S-L1; KM-13; Cal-651. 25.57 grams. Superb full inner details with nearly full crown and legends on a full and round flan, no doubling, the interiors bold but weaker in peripheries (king’s name clear), darkly toned with only a hint of surface porosity, among the finest known of this important unauthorized issue that represents the first “dollar” coin struck in South America. Pedigreed to the Luis R. Ponte Collection (stated on label).
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The three primary cob-producing mints in the Americas—Mexico, Lima and Potosí—all started with an assayer named Rincón, and at each mint the Rincóns produced 8 reales in very small quantities, making them all very rare and desirable in our time. The Potosí Rincón 8R, made in 1575, is the commonest of the three, with just a few dozen known, struck shortly before Alonso Rincón’s death; at the other end of the scale is the Mexican Rincón 8R (struck under Francisco Rincón, Alonso’s brother), of which only three are known from what had to be an experimental run in 1538, due to the reported difficulty in making such large silver coins. In between in rarity and chronology is the Lima Rincón 8R (struck under Alonso Rincón), like the present specimen, with a known population of sixteen and highly coveted as the first “dollar” made in South America, struck in 1569 without proper authorization and quickly discontinued.
To categorize the varieties of these Lima 8 reales, there are two distinguishing characteristics on the obverse and two on the reverse:
On the obverse (shield side), the king’s name is spelled either PHILIPVS or PHILPVS, with two types of flowers in the
crown above the shield, either three of the same kind or the middle flower larger than the other two.
On the reverse (pillars side), the beginning of the legend continuation is either -NIARVM or -RVM, and the motto is
one of three versions of PLVS VLTRA: PL-VSVL-TR, PL-VSV-LT, or PLV-SVLT-RA.
Based on these characteristics we have identified three obverse dies and four reverse dies, categorized as follows:
Three obverse dies:
1. Legend lettering of PHILIPVS . II . D . HISPA and three equal flowers in crown (six known)
2. Legend lettering of PHILPVS . II . D . HISPA and three equal flowers in crown (one known)
3. Legend lettering of PHILPVS . II . D . HISPA and middle flower larger and different from other two (eight
known)
Four reverse dies:
A. Legend lettering of NIARVM . ETINDIARVM . REX and banner as PL-VSVL-TR (seven known)
B. Legend lettering of NIARVM . ETINDIARVM . REX and banner as PL-VSV-LT (six known)
C. Legend lettering of NIARVM . ETINDIARVM . REX and banner as PLV-SVLT-RA (one known)
D. Legend lettering of RVM . ETINDIARVM . REX and banner as PL-VSVL-TR (one known)
Known combinations:
1. 1A (one known)
2. 1B (four known)
3. 1C (one known)
4. 2D (one known)
5. 3A (six known)
6. 3B (two known)
The present example is 3A, meaning that the king’s name is spelled without a second I and the middle flower in the
crown is larger than the ones that flank it, while on the other side the legend lettering begins with -NIARVM and the motto in the middle reads PL-VSVL-TR.