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 Replies: 13 / Views: 523 |
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New Member
United States
20 Posts |
 This box of junk was $10 at a chaotic little antique shop called "Old Stuff Shop". I was digging through the contents and discovered one of the metal discs was actually a coin, so I bought it!   Best I can tell it is a 2 reales coin from the Mexico City mint in 1775.
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Moderator
 United States
187446 Posts |
Very interesting find!  I do not know these well, so I hope it is authentic.  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
24878 Posts |
Nice find, JstnPwll! I love junk boxes like that. It appears to be authentic - see https://en.numista.com/15061. It might be damaged, but it's still about $20 worth of silver! Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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New Member
 United States
20 Posts |
Thanks HondoB! It's crazy to think that this coin predates the U.S. as an official country. I'm sure it got plenty of use as currency here in Spanish Florida before it became a pendant.  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
24878 Posts |
Quote:
I'm sure it got plenty of use as currency here in Spanish Florida before it became a pendant. Absolutely - and it may have been around the world a few times, too! And there's no reason that it can't be a pendant again - just sayin'. Inordinately fascinated by bits of metal with strange markings and figures
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Moderator
United States
187446 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1780 Posts |
...You are correct ... It's a Spanish colonial 2 reales, commonly referred to as "2 bits" ... the date is 1775, Mexico city mint...most likely holed to wear for safekeeping (2 "bits" was a nice amount of money in that era...) ... those coins circulated freely here, in the USA, up through 1857, when the Coinage Act of 1857 disallowed their usage as currency (they still continued to circulate...silver is silver...) ...hard to tell from a picture, but the slight greenish tint could suggest a contemporary counterfeit (still very collectable) ... ... the official silver content for that issue is .903 ... a coin dealer or jeweler could easily check for the content ... ...very nice junk box find... Edited by mrwiskers
01/27/2026 1:49 pm
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
7933 Posts |
Not only did Spanish currency ciculate freely, but the Spansh dollar was the de facto medium of exchange in the colonies (wheenever barter wasn't used). "Shillings" were not pegged to the pound sterling, but to the Spanish "dollar." So in mid-18th century Massachusetts, there were 6 shillings to a dollar, in Pennsylvania 7 1/2 (R. MIchener, Money in the AMerican Colonies". So, your "2 bits" of Spanish silver was equivalent to 1.5 Massachusetts shillings.
Why do I care? Because I just learned that a Minute Man from Blandford, MA who answered the "Lexington Alarm" and headed to Boston was paid 14 shillings 3 pence for his 10 days of service: very close to one 2 reales coin per day!
Edited by tdziemia
01/27/2026 8:45 pm
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Moderator
United States
94636 Posts |
excellent find in a junk box |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6449 Posts |
Congrats on the sharp eye, that's a great pre-Revolution find! =)
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Pillar of the Community
United States
684 Posts |
Not sure about the lettering. If silver great!
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
73579 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1780 Posts |
@tdziemia: Quote:
a Minute Man from Blandford, MA who answered the "Lexington Alarm" and headed to Boston was paid 14 shillings 3 pence for his 10 days of service ..............................never forget............................thanks, tdziema, for the remembrance.... |
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Moderator
United States
187446 Posts |
Quote:
Why do I care? Because I just learned that a Minute Man from Blandford, MA who answered the "Lexington Alarm" and headed to Boston was paid 14 shillings 3 pence for his 10 days of service: very close to one 2 reales coin per day! Fascinating! Thank you for sharing. |
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Replies: 13 / Views: 523 |
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Posted 01/27/2026 09:21 am
