8 reales gold 2 2

[Melior Invenidiste]

Portuguese? Need help identifying please.

[NewGuy1]

I think it looks like a poorly made fake.  Anybody else feel the same?

[Henri Charriere]

Pardon my impertinence, but what did the guy from whom you acquired this coin say it was?

 

[Good morning, Moderation!]  

[robec1347]

I’m pretty sure reales were made from silver. Escudos were made from gold. 

[Buffalo Head]

On 11/21/2022 at 10:27 AM, robec1347 said:

I’m pretty sure reales were made from silver. Escudos were made from gold. 

I 100% agree.

[Henri Charriere]

On 11/21/2022 at 1:27 PM, robec1347 said:

I’m pretty sure reales were made from silver. Escudos were made from gold. 

That's a lead right there. Now how about the optics?  Were any hexagonals minted?

[Henri Charriere]

[ 🐓:  How come nobody answers you?

Q.A.:  My reputation is in tatters. My credibility is shot!  You didn't know that? Sheesh! ]

[robec1347]

On 11/22/2022 at 6:51 PM, Quintus Arrius said:

[ 🐓:  How come nobody answers you?

Q.A.:  My reputation is in tatters. My credibility is shot!  You didn't know that? Sheesh! ]

In looking at some images (thanks to google) it appears, besides the normal round, they came in all sorts of irregular shapes and sizes. These were also coins that were often clipped into smaller bits. This is where the terms 2 bits, 4 bits, etc come from. In the case of 8 reales, which was the origin of the American Pillar Dollar, pieces of 8 could be clipped off for trading. I’m sure you knew this. I’m sure it’s much more complicated than my description. I believe 16 reales equal 1 escudo. 

[Sandon]

    I understand that these irregularly shaped, hammered Spanish American colonial coins are called "cobs" and were made before the colonial mints had screw presses and other equipment to make more modern looking round "milled" coins.  I recall that the genuine pieces date mostly from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries (1500s and 1600s).  Some were recovered from the shipwrecks of Spanish galleons by salvagers such as Mel Fisher.

   Unfortunately, there are many modern replicas and other fakes of cobs.  I don't have the knowledge to determine whether the original poster's piece is genuine or fake. It looks too smooth and bright to be something that old.  

[Henri Charriere]

On 11/23/2022 at 1:31 PM, Sandon said:

.... Unfortunately, there are many modern replicas and other fakes of cobs.  I don't have the knowledge to determine whether the original poster's piece is genuine or fake. It looks too smooth and bright to be something that old.  

I know nothing about the composition of "cobs," but was there a standard finess to these coins, and if so, what was it? 

[robec1347]

On 11/23/2022 at 1:38 PM, Quintus Arrius said:

I know nothing about the composition of "cobs," but was there a standard finess to these coins, and if so, what was it? 

I just found this. I had heard of cobs, but like you I had no idea how it related to early silver. 
 

What is a cob of silver?

• In fact, the Spanish word "cabo" (from which the English "cob" is derived) refers to the end; in this instance, the clump of silver clipped off the end of the bar. The size, shape and impression of these cobs was highly irregular but they were the proper weight. Many cobs were quite thick and disfigured with large cracks.

https://coins.nd.edu/ColCoin/ColCoinIntros/Sp-Cobs.intro.html