Colombia 1884-B 50 centavos

from the Mountain Groan Collection

from the Stack's Bowers 2018 ANA sale, lot 44400

photo courtesy Stacks Bowers LLC

The Medellin mint began issuing five décimos in 1868 along with the Bogotá mint, the denomination being completely unknown in Colombia until then. The Bogotá mint, however, switched to fifty centavos pieces (of the same size and weight) in 1872. Production increased after the issue of silver pesos ceased in 1871. Popayán also issued a few 1868-78 but concentrated on gold coins. To the delight and despair of collectors, the half dollars of Colombia come in a profusion of dates, styles, varieties and errors and form a collecting specialty all their own. The 1884-B is a common date tho the first specimen has a Costa Rican counterstamp, applied in 1889. The second specimen was lot 44400 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Philadelphia, August 2018), where it did not sell. The catalog description^[1] noted, "COLOMBIA. 50 Centavos, 1884. Bogota Mint. PCGS MS-63 Gold Shield. Sharply struck and fully lustrous and largely untoned. A very attractive coin. From the Eldorado Collection of Colombian Coins."

Recorded mintage: 993,000.

Specification: 12.5 g, 0.835 fine silver.

Catalog reference: KM 177.1.

Source:

• Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
• Restrepo, Jorge Emilio, Monedas de Colombia, 1619-2006, Medellin, Colombia: Impresiones Rojo, 2006.
• ^[1]Ponterio, Richard, Kyle Ponterio and Chris Chatigny, The August 2018 Philadelphia ANA Auction: World Coins and Selections from the El Dorado Collection of Colombian Coins, Santa Ana, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2018.

Link to:

• 1884-B 5 centavos
• 1884-B 10 centavos
• 1884-B 20 centavos
• 1884-M 20 centavos
• 1884-M 5 décimos
• 1885-B 50 centavos
• Coins and currency dated 1884
• return to coins of Colombia