File:Ecuador SB118-11377o.jpg

This specimen was lot 11377 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2018), where it sold for $48,000. The catalog description^[1] noted,

"Magnificent High Grade 1854 8 Escudos. The Garrett Specimen. ECUADOR. 1854-GJ 8 Escudos. Quito mint. KM-34.1. MS-63 (PCGS). The only example of this entire type certified as Mint State by PCGS. A frosty wonder coin, with full unbroken mint bloom and luster on both sides, this is a strong candidate for the finest surviving specimen of this entire type. The surfaces are satiny rather than reflective, and scrutiny reveals many raised die finish lines, scattered evidence of die rust, and other texture of the die face. The strike is strong on both sides, and splashes of subtle coppery toning on the reverse lend an exquisite look of originality. The centering is ideal. Only a thin and well hidden short scratch above the eye serves as a defect worth noting. A coin of incredible aesthetic gifts, a unique survivor in this grade and one of the highlights of this collection. From the Eldorado Collection of Colombian and Ecuadorian Coins. From Numismatic Fine Arts, Inc. and Bank Leu's sale of the Garrett Collection, Part I, lot 1316, via Don Canaparo. Earlier, from the Guttag Brothers, July 1926 (for $325)."