By
Kent Ponterio, Senior Numismatist and Consignment Director, World and Ancient
Coins and Chris Chatigny, Cataloger
There seems to be no shortage of
incredible highlights for our approaching Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio January
New York International coin show and auction. To date we have featured the Pattern Grano and Half Grano,
and the unique 1755 Nuevo Reino “Milled” 8 Escudos. To continue our
streak of amazing Spanish Colonial rarities, this week we preview a coin which
may not visually conform to a coin’s standard dimensions, but nonetheless
stands as a true numismatic rarity.
This extremely rare piece has a
slightly mysterious background, as its exact purpose is uncertain. One
predominant theory is that since the heart shape is similar to “The Most Sacred
Heart of Jesus” or simply “Sacred Heart,” they could have been created for
special religious purposes. As the religious demographic of Latin America is
predominantly Roman Catholic, it seems to be indicative of their religious
nature. Regardless of their true purpose, these extraordinary “Heart”-shaped
pieces were carefully crafted with special planchets and were carefully aligned
to give the piece a medallic die axis. In addition to this special preparation,
they are nearly always found pierced for suspension and are often gilt to be worn
on display.
The obverse (cross side) prominently
displays the Cross of Jerusalem, with the castles and lions of Castille and
Leon in the quadrants. The “8” above the cross represents the denomination of 8
Reales, and the first of three full dates “710” is visible below the cross. A good-sized
portion of the legend “D.G. HISPAN” is visible. The mintmark “P” for Potosi is
to the left of the cross, while the assayer’s mark “Y” is shown at the right. The
reverse (pillar side) contains the Pillars of Hercules, located at the Straits
of Gibraltar, indicating the gateway out of the Mediterranean and into the
Atlantic. The center Latin legend “PLVS VLTRA” means ‘more beyond’ and most
likely refers to the vast uncharted territory beyond the Pillars which the
Spanish explored and colonized. The “P” mintmark appears in the upper left and
lower right, and the “Y” assayer’s mark appears in the lower left and upper right.
The “8” denomination appears in the area above the central legend, with a “710”
representing the date below. Waves are represented underneath the Pillars as
well. A large portion of the outer legend appears on this side, including the
date in the seven o’clock region. Overall this is a well-struck example with
near full legends, three full dates and three clear assayer’s letters. A hint
of contemporary gilding is still present in the protected areas giving the
piece a lovely marigold tone. This extremely attractive piece is sure to
greatly enhance its new owner’s cabinet. We here at Stack’s Bowers are only
aware of one other example of a 1710 “Heart” 8 Reales piece, which was lot #193
in our Sale #42 of the 1990 Paul Karon Collection.
Preview this impressive coin
along with the rest of our New York International auction this December at the
Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio office located in Irvine, California. For details
please refer to the Auction Schedule/Details link under Current Auctions at
www.StacksBowers.com. To schedule an appointment, please call 800.566.2580.
While our Stack’s Bowers and Ponterio January New York International sale is
closed for further consignments, we are currently taking consignments of world
and ancient coins for our April 2014 Hong Kong and August ANA sales. If you are
interested in consigning your coins and paper currency (whether a whole
collection or a single rarity) be sure to contact one of our consignment
directors.
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