Offered without a minimum reserve

Silver Spanish reales coin from the El Cazador wreck, minted in Mexico during the reign of Carlos III. Grade of 2. Assayer: FF. Coin No. 30146.

The El Cazador, which sank in 1784, was intended to bring much needed hard currency to Spain's colony of the Louisiana territory. The loss of the ship weakened Spain's North American holdings, and could easily be said to have contributed to the return of Louisiana to France in 1800, a transition that paved the way for the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. This reales coin, recovered in the 1993 discovery of the El Cazador, represents a unique piece of the history of the formation of the United States as we know it.

Accompanied by Grumpy's, Inc. Certificate of Authenticity of April 21, 1998