'Royal' 1650 Mexican 8-real coin Struck in Mexico

Goldberg's to auction finest known 'Royal' 1650 Mexican 8-real coin

Item offered in Goldberg's Sept. 4 to 5 Pre-Long Beach auction

By Erik Martin-Coin World Staff | Aug. 16, 2012 7:55 a.m.
Article first published in Web Content, World Coins section of Coin World

Enlarge this image

A Mexican 1650 8-real coin, a “Royal” coin struck with specially prepared planchets, will be offered in Session 7 of Goldberg’s Pre-Long Beach auction, Sept. 5. 

Images courtesy of Goldberg’s Coins & Collectibles.

The finest known Mexican “Royal” 1650 8-real coin of Philip IV of Spain will hit the auction block in Ira and Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles’ Pre-Long Beach auction of ancient coins, world coins and paper money, Sept. 4 to 5.

Graded Extremely Fine 45 by Numismatic Guaranty Corp., the silver 1650 8-real coin, Lot 4314, was struck in Mexico City. The Goldberg auction catalog describes the coin as an “Exceptional strike on choice metal. Perfectly centered, on quite round flan. Handsome gray toning, a deep gold and russet in the recesses.”

Royal coinage of this type is cataloged as Krause-Mishler R45 in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1601-1700, where it is described as being “struck on specially prepared round planchets using well centered dies in excellent condition to prove the quality of the minting to the Viceroy or even to the King.”

This piece was previously offered in Goldberg’s May 26, 2008, Millennia Collection auction as Lot 1082, realizing $80,000.

The coin will appear in the Session 7, World Crowns & Minors, World Currency portion of the firm’s Pre-Long Beach auction, with live bidding for the session slated to begin on Wednesday, Sept. 5 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time at the Goldberg offices, 11400 W. Olympic Blvd., Suite 800, Los Angeles, CA 90064.

Earlier, on Tuesday, Sept. 4, Goldberg’s will conduct live bidding for Session 5, Ancient Coins, and Session 6, World Gold. Session 5 begins at 10:00 a.m. PT, and Session 6 will commence at 5:00 p.m. PT.

Other items of notable interest in the auction include:

Lot 3004: Celtic Gaul. Parisii, gold stater, late second to early first century B.C., uncertified, Extremely Fine (Estimated value: $40,000 or more).

Lot 3029: Sicily, Naxos, silver tetradrachm, circa 460 B.C., ex-Nelson Bunker Hunt Collection, uncertified, choice Very Fine (Estimated value: $65,000 to $70,000).

Lot 3030: Sicily, Naxos, silver tetradrachm, circa 425 to 415 B.C., uncertified, superb Extremely Fine (Estimated value: $160,000 to $180,000).

Lot 3060: Sicily, Syracuse, silver dekadrachm by Euainetos (unsigned), 405 to 400 B.C., uncertified, Extremely Fine (Estimated value: $25,000 to $30,000).

Lot 3124: Smyrna, electrum stater, circa 630 B.C., “one of seven known examples,” uncertified, Extremely Fine (Estimated value: $30,000 or more).

Lot 3137: Syria (Seleucid Kingdom), Antiochos III, the Great, silver tetradrachm, 223 to 187 B.C., uncertified, Nearly Extremely Fine/Good Very Fine (Estimated value: $30,000 or more).

Lot 3220: Rome, gold aureus, Antonia, mother of Claudius, minted at Lugdunum, circa A.D. 41 to 47, uncertified, Extremely Fine (Estimated value: $25,000 to $30,000).

Lot 3450: Rome, gold solidus, Licinia Eudoxia, wife of Valentinian III, circa A.D. 440 to 455, uncertified, Extremely Fine (Estimated value: $20,000 to $25,000).

Lot 3538: Bahamas, $2,500 gold coin, 1983, 10th anniversary of Independence, mintage of only 55 pieces, NGC Proof 65, Ultra Cameo (Estimated value: $16,000 to $18,000).

Lot 3909: Chile, silver 8 reales, Santiago Mint, 1768-So-A, NGC EF-45 (Estimated value: $25,000 to $30,000).