Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
41/2 Bits Counterstamp on Peru 2 Reales KM# 76
| Issuer | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
|---|---|
| Year | 1811-1818 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse of the host Peruvian 2 Reales displays the Spanish royal coat of arms, composed of the quartered castles and lions of Castile and León, set between the two crowned Pillars of Hercules with scrolling banners. The whole is encircled by a Latin legend identifying the monarch, the mint city of Lima, the denomination, and the assayer's initials. The design is typical of the Lima Mint coinage of Charles III, struck in the macuquina or milled style, and shows considerable wear consistent with extended circulation prior to counterstamping. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Saint Vincent's chronic shortage of small change in the early nineteenth century prompted colonial authorities to authorize counterstamped Spanish colonial coinage as a stopgap. The Peruvian 2 reales host was a logical choice — widely circulating throughout the Caribbean at the time — and the crowned "4½" punch converted it to a locally denominated 4½ bits, aligning with the island's bit-based accounting system rather than the Spanish real.
Genuine examples vary considerably in strike quality for the counterstamp itself, a known issue with hand-applied punches of this period. Forgeries were documented almost immediately after authorization.