4 Escudos - Carlos III bust of Fernando VI

Carlos III ascended the Spanish throne in 1759 but the Santiago mint continued striking gold escudos with the portrait of his predecessor, Fernando VI, well into the following decade. This was not negligence — die preparation in colonial mints lagged significantly behind royal decrees, and new portrait punches had to travel from Spain. The 1763 date places this piece at the outer edge of that transitional window, making it one of the later examples of a type already technically obsolete at striking.

Santiago's gold output in this period was modest compared to Lima or Mexico City, and attrition among surviving specimens has been considerable.