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1 Real Phillip IV
| Issuer | Casa de Moneda de Potosí |
|---|---|
| Year | 1649-1651 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | KM#12b |
| Obverse description | Central field displays the Royal Arms of Castile and León, rendered as a quartered shield bearing alternating castles and lions in the characteristic macuquina cob style. The shield occupies the central field of the irregularly shaped flan, with a partial Latin legend disposed around the periphery. The die-struck devices are bold but unevenly struck, as is typical of hammered cob coinage, with portions of the legend lost to the irregular planchet edge. The overall execution reflects the utilitarian nature of Potosí mint production of the mid-seventeenth century. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Potosí's cob coinage of this period was struck under conditions that made consistency nearly impossible — dies were hand-cut, planchets were hacked from silver bars, and output demands from the Spanish Crown were relentless. The early 1650s mark a particularly troubled stretch for the mint: an enormous fraud scandal had just been uncovered in which assayers had been systematically debasing silver coinage for years, possibly since the 1630s. The scandal broke in 1649, leading to executions, the suspension of key mint officials, and a complete reorganization of assayer oversight.
Coins struck in this narrow window sit directly within that institutional rupture.