(511) The Back Page: Volume 1 Issue 5: Last Revision: 11/12/05
We have bounced all around here on the Back Page covering different unpublished varieties of Republican coins in our first four issues.
I guess it’s time to look at a few unpublished 1 Escudos to keep you 1 Escudo collectors happy.
The Culiacan 1 Escudos:
It is almost impossible to tell the True Rarity of most of the unpublished 1 Escudos because so few have been fully attributed or properly photographed in auction catalogs.
As I have stated before, it is my opinion that the Culiacan Mint’s coins are some of the least studied coins of Mexico because most are thought to be so common, which isn’t always the case. For variety collectors I’m sure Culiacan will be become one of the largest sources of new unpublished varieties for all gold and silver coins in the future.
Our first new and unpublished variety is a C 1848 CE with the 2nd 8/7 OverDate and a Normal Assayer that uses the Style of 1846 Hand on Book (HoB) and Culiacan-Mexican Style of 1846 Eagle. On December 5, 2005 the owner of the San Jose Collection visited me, and he brought a few coins with him to scan and enter into the FoxLair Reference Collection. One of them was the ex Voetter-Eliasberg specimen of this DAM. After comparing this coin and the example in the San Antonio Collection I made an amazing discovery. Both coins were the unlisted OverDate 2nd 8/7, but each one was from a different set of dies. Therefore, there are two varieties of this unlisted OverDate.
FoxLair# Cn-1848-1101a: Small 1 & 2nd 8/7 OverDate
FoxLair# Cn-1848-1102a: Large 1 & 2nd 8/7 OverDate
Our next unpublished variety is a C 1851 CE with the 1/0 for which I have recorded four sales. However, I currently cannot fully confirm this coin because I haven’t had a single study coin of this extreme rarity.
No Scans Available
FoxLair# Cn-1851-1101: 1/0 OverDate
Our third unpublished Culiacan 1 Escudo is a C 1854 CE that uses the Sonora Style Dies. While some may not really consider this coin to be an unpublished variety, most catalogs do not note that it is made with Sonora Style Dies. I believe the attached scans of this coin are first publicly published pictures of this extreme rarity.
FoxLair# Cn-1854-1101: Normal Date & Assayer
Most current catalogers list two varieties for the C 1856 CE 1 Escudo, which I find to be very unusual because of its overall rarity. I have personally found only three public sales records (none with photographs) for this extreme rarity and all three have different attributions. Without having any study coins or clear photographs I can’t tell which attribution is correct, or if there are more than one variety.
No Scans Available
There are two confirmed varieties for the C 1857 CE 1 Escudo, but current catalogers do not properly attribute either one in my opinion. The first variety we have scans for, but the second one I saw before I had a digital camera or scanner so we are missing scans of this variety.
FoxLair# Cn-1857-1101: C/G Over Mintmark- Possible 7/1 OverDate
No Scans Available
FoxLair# Cn-1857-2101: C/GC Over Mintmark *Error “I” in place of “1” in 1E* and “1857” Normal Date
Our next unpublished Durango 1 Escudo, Do 1836 RL, is another unpublished DAM with the error Assayer RL. I have recorded one public sale of this extreme rarity and no public or private sales of the regularly listed Do 1836 RM 1 Escudo. Therefore, one may assume that the coin normally seen in the catalogs may not exist at all. But if it does exist, it is a rarity of the highest order.
No Scans Available
FoxLair# Do-1836-2101: Normal Date & Normal Error RL Assayer
While many may think our next unpublished variety is sorta nitpicking, I still find it interesting. First the Do 1838 RM 1 Escudo is horribly rare (I have recorded only one public sale and one private sale) and I have had a single study coin. It has a Blundered “E” in “1E”, a Normal Date and a M/L OverAssayer.
FoxLair# Do-1838-1101: Blundered “E” in “1E”, Normal Date & M/L OverAssayer
Our next unpublished Durango 1 Escudo, Do 1848 RM, is another unpublished DAM for which I’ve recorded one public sale in 1930. This single sale occurred in the Max Mehl/Anderson Auction as Lot#1255. At first I was skeptical about this listing, thinking it was a typo, then an advanced 1 Escudo collector told me he had owned a high-grade one at one time. Today it is impossible for me say this DAM truly exists, but my source has been correct in the past.
No Scans Available
FoxLair# Do-1848-1101: Normal Date & Normal Assayer
The Do 1850 JMR 1 Escudo appears to be the most common Durango 1 Escudo and there are several unpublished varieties for this DAM. In fact the HoB die with the Repunched “2” in Fineness 1/4-5/?-0/9 OverDate & JMR/?? OverAssayer has two different varieties that use two different Eagles; (1) uses the Paris Style Type C Bald Eagle (2) the other one has a new Paris Style Type D Eagle. This seems to prove that a great number of this DAM were minted.
No Scans Available
FoxLair# Do-1850-1101: 5/4 OverDate & JMR/CP OverAssayer
FoxLair# Do-1850-1102: Repunched “2” in Fineness 1/4-5/?-0/9 OverDate & JMR/?? OverAssayer
No Scans Available
FoxLair# Do-1850-1104: 50/46 OverDate & JMR/RM OverAssayer
Again in 1851 we find two more unpublished varieties of the Durango 1 Escudos. Today’s catalogs list only a Normal Date and a Normal Assayer, but all of the sales I have recorded, both public and private, have some OverDate and OverAssayer listed. At this moment I can verify only the 5/7 OverDate & J/? OverAssayer as both of my study coins were of this variety.
FoxLair# Do-1851-1101: 5/7 OverDate & J/? OverAssayer
No Scans Available
Our next unpublished variety occurs on the Do 1853 CP Durango 1 Escudo. It is a 5/?, where the 3 has been Reworked and the 7/? OverDate with a C/J OverAssayer variety. I find this to be a hideously rare 1 Escudo because I have recorded only one private treaty sale and I believe it to be a Hidden Rarity today.
We find the next unpublished Durango 1 Escudo variety on the Do 1855 CP. This a Do/Do Over Mintmark 8/8- 2nd 5/4 OverDate & C/J OverAssayer variety.
FoxLair# Do-1855-1101: Do/Do Over Mintmark 8/8- 2nd 5/4 OverDate & C/J OverAssayer
The Do 1859 CP has a drastic change to a more traditional Mexican Style Dies that is unnoted in all current catalogs. All previous Durango 1 Escudos have used the Paris Style Dies. Therefore, I have elected to scan both sides of this DAM so you may see the difference. Note how much smaller the Eagle is on the Durango Mexican Style Dies than on any other 1 Escudo so far seen in our study.
FoxLair# Do-1859-1101: New Mexican Style Dies
This concludes our first look at a few unpublished varieties of the Mexican Republic 1 Escudos. I hope I haven’t bored you to tears? If you have any of the varieties listed in this article where we don’t have scans, I would love to hear from you. And if you enjoy this type of article, please let us know and we will continue them.