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Potosi, Bolivia, cob 8 reales, early 1640s design, fraudulently altered (ca. 1649) with new assayer

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Shipwreck - Silver Coins 1500s-1650s Start Price:350.00 USD Estimated At:500.00 - 1,000.00 USD
Potosi, Bolivia, cob 8 reales, early 1640s design, fraudulently altered (ca. 1649) with new assayer
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This item SOLD at 2016 Nov 12 @ 13:11UTC-5 : EST/CDT
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Potosi, Bolivia, cob 8 reales, early 1640s design, fraudulently altered (ca. 1649) with new assayer O engraved on shield side and counterfeit crowned-L countermark on cross (unique). KM-19a. 25.78 grams. Bold P-O and countermark (complete) belied by lions and castles from early 1640s; closer inspection reveals that the assayer was re-engraved and the countermark is fake (minor differences from the norm), with lightly corroded surfaces but also likely underweight and debased to begin with, quite a fascinating piece as a contemporary "triple fraud." From the Maravillas Research Collection of Countermarked Potosi Cobs, with Marex certificate and tag #0451. Recovered from: Maravillas, sunk in 1656 off Grand Bahama Island