4 Escudos - Felipe V

Felipe V inherited the Spanish throne in 1700 through the will of the childless Carlos II, triggering the War of the Spanish Succession — a conflict that consumed nearly the entire period this coin was struck. The Mexico City Mint continued producing gold coinage throughout, its output critical to financing Spanish military commitments across Europe. These early Felipe V macuquinas were struck by hammer in the medieval tradition, each flan hand-cut from a rolled bar, which means no two coins share identical shape or weight distribution.

The cob coinage of this era is notoriously difficult to attribute by precise year, as date numerals were often partially struck or entirely absent from the finished piece.