Expert: Brad Swain - 3/15/2010

Question
We purchased a small brooch in Venezuela in the mid-60s.  It's a small coin with the front inscription : Caciques de Venezuela, it has the imprint of male God named Arichuna
The back inscrition is : Caciques de Venezuela Steri (?) XVI
Ley 900 44 (?)
Interchange Bank of Venezuela
The coin is set is K18 rays pattern
Would appreciate comments.

Robert

Answer
Hi Robert, these 90% gold coins were issued as unofficial pieces in a series featuring 16th century native Indian leaders. The small 14 millimeters piece contains about .0434 of an ounce of gold. It may be worth a little over the gold value depending on amount of wear and collector demand.
Current gold and silver values: http://www.kitco.com/market/ .
If a coin has been damaged by becoming part of the jewelry or cannot be separated from the jewelry without damage then its value lies in the piece of jewelry and not as a coin.
You might try Ebay.com for similar pieces for comparison.
You might also try a library for a copy of Unusual World Coins for pictures, values and lots more interesting info.
Brad