Jamaica (1758) 1 shilling 8 pence
The island of Jamaica was captured by the British in 1655, and formally ceded to them in 1670 by the Treaty of Madrid. Foreign silver abounded in this colony rich in sugar and wealth pirated offshore. In 1758 the Jamaican legislature authorized the countermarking of all denominations of Spanish colonial pillar reales, mostly from Mexico City and Lima. The countermark consists of the letters GR (Georgius Rex)[1]. Effort appears to have been made to center the counterstamps, but did not always succeed.
This example was lot 1200 at Ponterio sale 158 and sold on Jan 7, 2011 for $590. The catalog description[2] reads: "JAMAICA. 1 Shilling 8 Pence (1/4 Dollar 2 Reales), ND (1758). Act of 18 November 1758. Floral "GR" countermark within circle on obverse and reverse of a 1757 Lima Peru 2 Reales. GOOD/VERY GOOD."
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 6.80 g of 0.917 fine silver.
Catalog reference: Prid-6. KM 4.5.
- Michael, Thomas, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1701-1800, 7th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2016.
- [1]Byrne, Ray, Coins and Tokens of the Caribees, Decatur, IL: Jess Peters, Inc., 1975.
- [2]Ponterio, Richard, and Kent Ponterio, Ponterio sale 158: The 2011 N.Y.I.N.C. Auction, Irvine: Bowers and Merena, 2010.
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