Bolivia 1825-PTS PJ 2 reales
This specimen was lot 796 in Sedwick Auction 36 (Winter Park, FL, November 2024), where it sold for $420. The catalog description[1] noted, "BOLIVIA, Potosí, bust 2 reales, Ferdinand VII, 1825 PJ, rare, NGC XF details / harshly cleaned, finest and only example in NGC census. Rarest assayer for this final date of colonial issue, strong strike with nearly full rims, lightly striated surfaces but overall quite acceptable, an important coin for the Potosí or final-date specialist." This is an example of a type struck 1813-25 at Potosi, Bolivia (then called Upper Peru). Assayer PJ is recorded for the years 1803-25 and assayer J for 1824-25. The Potosí mint changed hands several times during 1813-15 between the Argentines (republicans) and Bolivians (royalists). By 1816, the royalists had resumed their firm grip on Upper Peru which they held until 1825. Only the final crushing defeat of Spanish forces outside Lima prompted the local chiefs to declare independence and then only to avoid incorporation into Peru or Argentina.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 6.77 g, 0.896 fine silver.
Catalog reference: Cayón-15620; Janson-88.15.1; KM-83; Cal-923.
- Cayón, Adolfo, Clemente Cayón and Juan Cayón, Las Monedas Españolas, del Tremis al Euro: del 411 a Nuestros Dias, 2 volumes, Madrid: Cayón-Jano S.L., 2005.
- Calicó, Xavier, Numismática Española: Catálogo General con Precios de Todas las Monedas Españolas Acuñadas desde Los Reyes Católicos Hasta Felipe VI, 1474 a 2020, Barcelona: Aureo & Calicó, 2019.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Harris, Robert P., Pillars & Portraits, San José, CA: Bonanza Press, 1968.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Sedwick, Daniel Frank, Augi Garcia, Cori Sedwick Downing, Connor Falk and Sarah Sproles, Treasure Auction 36, World, U.S Coins and Paper Money, featuring the Luis R. Ponte collection, the Jorge Becerra Collection and the John M. O'Brien collection, Winter Park, FL: Daniel Frank Sedwick LLC, 2024.
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