Costa Rica (1848) c/m 4 reales KM-51

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Stack's Bowers 2022 ANA sale, lot 34393
SB822-34393r.jpg

This specimen was lot 34393 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Chicago, August 2022), where it sold for $43,200. The catalog description[3] noted,

"Highly Desirable Costa Rica - United States of America 4 Reales, COSTA RICA. Costa Rica - United States of America. 4 Reales, 1848-JB. San Jose Mint. NGC VF-25; Countermark: AU Strong. One of only a handful of certified examples of this denomination on either the NGC or PCGS population reports. Type V bi-facial countermark; Obverse: Sun over mountains, additional square 4R punch; Reverse: Ceiba tree flanked by 1R. Issued by decree of 15 October 1846. Bi-facial countermark applied to an 1827 United States of America Capped Bust 50 Cents (1/2 Dollar). This ever-popular issue exhibits decently applied bi-facial countermark in the centers, though slightly uneven, with a deeply impressed square denomination stamp to the left of the bust. The surfaces are relatively smooth with even wear and a pleasant two-tone appearance displaying light gray on the high points complemented by attractive slate patina in the fields and crevasses with areas of richer coloration amongst the devices. Seldom encountered, this is the RAREST denomination from this series with very few known examples for this heavily sought-after host country.

Typically, it is unusual to find United States of America coinage as a host coin because they were primarily issued for domestic use; not intended for international commerce. There are few exceptions during the later part of the 19th Century where a few countermark/overstruck types (i.e. Cuba "Key" ca. 1872-77 and Puerto Rico "Fleur de Lis" ca. 1884) are commonly encountered on USA coinage. All other countermark or overstruck issues found on an American base coin are highly desirable, heavily contested for and of significant numismatic importance. According to Oscar de la Cruz Segura, who cited Raul Gurdian, they were only aware of five examples of USA 50 Cents as hosts (1809, 1822, 1837, 1838 and 1843) but were unaware of the present piece being dated 1827. Since the publication of de la Cruz's "Resellos de Costa Rica" in 2001, this is only the second date that has come to market that was previously unrecorded, the other being an 1824 in much lower condition than the present example and realized an astonishing $9,500 hammer the plus buyer's fee from the Pura Vida Collection."

Recorded mintage: unknown.

Specification: host coin 13.48 g, .892 fine silver, .386 troy oz ASW.

Catalog reference: KM-51 (unlisted date); de la Cruz-Unlisted date.

Source:

  • Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
  • Gurdian, Raul, Contribucion al Estudio de las Monedas de Costa Rica: 100 Años de Colon, 2a Ed., San José, Costa Rica, 1997.
  • Stickney, Brian, A Monetary History of Central America, New York: American Numismatic Society, 2017.
  • [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The 2022 ANA Auction - Ancients & World Coins - Featuring The Salton Collection Part III, the Augustana Collection and the Robert C. Knepper Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2022.

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