Peru 1800-L IJ 1/2 real
This specimen was lot 72318 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, February 2023), where it sold for $1,320. The catalog description[1] noted, "PERU. 1/2 Real, 1800-L IJ. Lima Mint. Charles IV. NGC MS-62. Quite a fabulous and RARE little minor at this state of preservation. As fresh and original as could be hoped for, this piece is sharply struck, with warm silver luster and rich pastel overtones circling the rims. The sole finest NGC has ever handled, the existence of this remarkable 'top pop' survivor is a small miracle." This specimen is one of a series struck 1791-1808 during the reign of Charles IV (1788-1808). As a class, colonial coinage of Peru is much less plentiful than that of Mexico. Harris[2] noted of the six mints that struck half reales for Charles IV, Lima is tied with Guatemala as scarce. He found only two-fifths as many as Potosi or Santiago and one seventh as many as Mexico. Assayer "IJ" is noted for the years 1788-1803.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: 1.69 g, 0.896 fine silver.
Catalog reference: Cayón-13294, KM-93; Cal-238.
- 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 Juan Carlos I, 1474 a 2001, Barcelona: Aureo & Calicó, 2008.
- [2]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]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, February 2023 World Collectors Choice Online Auction, featuring the David Sterling Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2023.
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