Guatemala 1776-NG P 8 reales
This specimen was lot 29816 in Heritage sale 3037 (New York, January 2015), where it sold for $2,820. The catalog description[1] noted, "Charles III 8 Reales 1776 NG-P F15 NGC, Nueva Guatemala mint. the plain NG variety. An unflawed and wholesome specimen of this very rare date, with no flaws and only "honest" wear. Recently published information by Carlos Jara indicates a comparatively quite low mintage of 46,733 pieces for this denomination and date, which provides a logical explanation for its rarity. The 1776 coinage represents the first coinage struck in Guatemala after the mint was transferred from the initial (now Antigua) Guatemala site, after the series of earthquakes of 1772 and 1773. Interestingly, all minor denominations (from ½ to 4 Reales) struck in 1776 in Guatemala used old reverse dies bearing the 'G' mintmark, while new reverse dies with the 'NG' (for Nueva Guatemala) mintmark were engraved for the coins of 8 Reales (all bear the 'P' assayer initial for Pedro Sanchez de Guzman). Due to its obvious historical importance, the 1776 date bears a special attractive to the American collectors. Here is a chance to own one of the rarest 1776-dated 8 Reales in the entire Spanish Colonial series, with less than 10 confirmed specimens (including the NG/GN and the plain NG mintmark varieties). From The Santa Maria Collection."
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 27.07 g, 0.903 fine silver.
Catalog reference: Cayón-12035, KM 36.2.
- Harris, Robert P., Pillars & Portraits, San José, CA: Bonanza Press, 1968.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- Cayón, Adolfo, Clemente Cayón and Juan Cayón, Las Monedas Españolas, del Tremis al Euro: del 411 a Nuestros Dias, vol. 1, 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.
- [1]Bierrenbach, Cristiano, Warren Tucker and Scott Cordry, Heritage Signature Auction 3037, featuring the Empire, the Santa Catarina, the Law and the Santa Maria Collections, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2014.
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