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2 Escudos - Carlos IV bust of Carlos III, CAROL IV
| Issuer | Casa de Moneda de Santiago |
|---|---|
| Year | 1789-1790 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | 22.5 mm |
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| Obverse description | Armored and draped bust of Carlos III facing right, used as the royal effigy for the early coinage of Carlos IV during the transitional period of 1789–1790. The portrait features a laureate head with classical styling consistent with the Spanish colonial milled coinage tradition. A beaded inner border encircles the effigy, with the regnal legend arcing along the upper periphery. The date appears in the lower exergue area beneath the bust. The overall design follows the portrait type established at the Santiago Mint for the 22-karat gold escudo series. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | CAROL IV D G HISP ET IND R |
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| Additional information |
Carlos IV ascended the Spanish throne in December 1788, but the Santiago mint continued striking coins under his name using the portrait of his father, Carlos III — a stop-gap measure while an approved likeness of the new king was engraved and distributed to colonial mints. This transitional type, produced only during 1789–1790, represents one of the shortest-lived portrait combinations in the Chilean colonial series. The Santiago mint received its royal warrant in 1743 and remained one of the more reliable gold producers in Spanish South America, drawing on Andean placer deposits.
KM#40 is specifically cataloged as the "bust of Carlos III" transitional issue — distinct from the later Carlos IV portrait coinage — making attribution straightforward when the obverse die is examined against its successor type.