Belgian Congo 1888 2 centimes
This specimen was lot 71298 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Santa Ana, CA, October 2019), where it sold for $45. The catalog description[1] noted, "CONGO. 2 Centimes, 1888. Leopold II. PCGS MS-65+ Brown Gold Shield. A plus Gem, this brilliant brown example offers some alluring tinges of red to pair with its underlying luster." This type was also struck in 1887. The 1888 must have been saved as it is common in all grades.
The history of the Congo has long been unhappy. The region was claimed by Leopold III of Belgium in the 1880's as his private domain, ostensibly to end the slave trade which had long afflicted the area. Instead, he instituted a reign of terror as natives were massacred if they failed to yield their assigned quota of rubber and ivory. Finally, after a world outcry, the government of Belgium annexed the area in 1908 and ended the most abusive practices. Still, few wept when the colonizers withdrew in 1960. Violence and exploitation continue to this day, fulfilling white racists' worst stereotypes about "darkest Africa."
Recorded mintage: 125,000 for 1887-88.
Specification: copper, 23 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM 2 (listed under Congo Free State).
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Richard Ponterio and Kyle Ponterio, The October 2019 Collector's Choice sale: World and Ancient Coins, Santa Ana, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2019.
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