Expert: Dmitry Livshits - 6/14/2010

Question
My father has about 7 coins that he came across and I was trying to find some info on

There are 3 large coins that I have been able to find are 8 reales. 1 is in very good shape, the other 2 have been worn by being in the ocean and stuck to other coins. the date is 1783, on the front it has Carolus III - Dei Gratia. On the back it has Hispan - Et Ind - Rex - M with a circle on it - 8R - F - F

1787 1 reale same thing on the front and same on the back but instead of 8r it has 1r

1783 coin that has a lot of the same as the 1787 1 reale, but is smaller then the 1 reale, maybe the size of a penny

1769 spanish coin it is faded some on the front but it looks like it has 2 columns on teh front with a crown above it, and on the back it says CarIII -d-g-hisp-et ind-r and in the middle it has a crest with a crown R on one side of the crest and either an I or L or 1 on the other

And a very small coin from 1753 maybe the size of a dime, on the front it has a crest with a crown and a pillar on each size starting with the date and going clockwise it has m with a circle above - vtra - que - vnum - m. on the back it has a crest with a crown and what looks to be a star on each side of the crest it has frd VI - d - g - hisp - etind - r. I have been able to find almost nothing on this. Any help on value and info would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

Chris

Answer
Hi Chris,
All of these coins except the 1769 are from the Mexico City mint, which is actually one of the more common mints to find.
The 8 reales - the one in nice shape would be right around $100. A typical auction estimate is $75 to $125. Please keep in mind that "very good shape" is a relative term. These coins are usually crude right from the start, so the grading on them is pretty liberal. Your coin may actually be in better shape than you think.
The other two are shipwreck coins. Many colonial reales coins are found on the ocean bottom, usually in clumps like you have. They are then separated, cleaned and sold off individually. As a clump the value would be $50 to $75 for each coin in the clump. If the clump were certified by a grading company as being from a particular shipwreck, it will increase the value depending on which wreck it is. This process will cost around $100.
The 1787 1r in decent shape is worth $15 to $25. In very nice shape it would be $50 and up. Sometimes the 1 and 2 on these coins look similar. The 1 real is around the size of a penny, just like the 1783 coin you have. If this 1787 coin is around the size of a quarter then it's a 2 reales. For a 2 reales the values will be around the same as the 1 real.
The 1753 coin is an old "pillar and globe type" half real. In good condition without any damage or cleaning it's worth $30 to $50 and can go up significantly from there for a really nice coin.
The 1769 coin is a 1 real from the Madrid mint in Spain. This is also a fairly common mint and the values are roughly the same as for the Mexico City 1 real that you have.
Please note that if any of the coins were cleaned rubbed with a cloth the value would be significantly lower.
Thanks for the question! =)