We buy Chile escudos.

The series

The Santiago mint opened in 1749 and struck its first coin, a 4 escudos, that September. Its mark is So, an S with a small o above it, and it coined gold in 1, 2, 4 and 8 escudos through every period that follows. The 8 escudos, the onza, weighs 27 grams.

The colonial gold runs from Ferdinand VI, 1750 to 1760, through Charles III, Charles IV and Ferdinand VII, to 1817. Each king's coins come in more than one bust. Charles III's begin with the bust of his predecessor, pass through the so-called rat-nose portrait of 1764 to 1772, and settle into the familiar bust from 1772. Charles IV's first coins, 1789 to 1791, carry the bust of Charles III with the legend CAROL IIII. Ferdinand VII's have an admiral-style bust to 1811 and an imaginary military bust from 1811 to 1817. The reverse is the crowned arms in the collar of the Golden Fleece, with the mint mark, value and assayer initials in the legend. The assayers, in order, are J, then A, then DA for the long run from 1772 to 1800, AJ, JJ, and FJ from 1803 to 1817.

Independence brought the volcano type, struck from 1818 to 1834. One side shows the sun rising over the Andes between two erupting volcanoes inside a laurel wreath, with the legend EL ESTADO DE CHILE CONSTIT. INDEPENDIENTE and the date 1818. That 1818 is fixed on every coin of the type, since it marks the declaration of independence. The year the coin was actually struck sits on the other side, with the column of Liberty, a star, crossed flags, the motto POR LA RAZON O LA FUERZA, So, the value and the assayer: FD from 1818 to 1821, FI in 1822 and 1823, I from 1824 to 1834, and IJ in 1834. The 4, 2 and 1 escudos of this type exist only from 1824 to 1834, in tiny numbers.

The republican gold comes in three types. From 1835 to 1838 the plumed arms with REPUBLICA DE CHILE and a hand resting on the constitution under the sun's rays. From 1839 to 1845 a standing Liberty on a pedestal with IGUALDAD ANTE LA LEI, reeded edge to 1843 and then a lettered edge naming the month of issue. And from 1846 to 1851 Liberty with her hand on the constitution book, again with the month on the edge. Assayer IJ signed most of these, with JM in 1848, ML in 1849 and LA in 1850 and 1851. The decimal law of 1851 ended the escudo, and gold 5 and 10 pesos followed.

What affects the offer

• King, type, date and assayer. Every Ferdinand VI date is scarce, and the Mint State examples of 1750 and 1751 mostly come from the wreck of La Luz in 1752, with sea growth to match. The transitional busts of 1760 to 1763, the inverted A of 1767 and 1768, the CAROL IIII coins of 1789 to 1791, the 1797 with HSIP misspelled in the legend, and the 1811 and 1817 of Ferdinand VII are all sought after.
• Among the volcano onzas, 1818 is the first year, and the FI coins of 1822 and 1823 and the single-year IJ of 1834 are scarce. The 1826 and 1830 were recalled in 1836 after counterfeits appeared and many genuine pieces were overstruck, so survivors are scarcer than their mintages suggest. The 1836 IJ 8 escudos was struck over those recalled coins, and traces of the undertype are a feature, not a fault.
• In the republican series, 1837 has the lowest mintage of its type, 1843 exists with both edges, the lettered-edge coins of 1844 and 1845 are scarce, the 1848 JM and 1849 ML are one-year assayers, and 1851 is the last.
• Strike and planchet. Adjustment lines and laminations run through the volcano series, and planchet flaws draw details grades even on late pieces. Ferdinand VI coins are often weak at the center. All of this is normal for the mint and priced in.
• Surfaces. Cleaning, mount removal and repairs are common across every period. Each lowers the offer, but none of them stops us buying.
• Grade. Most survivors are Very Fine to About Uncirculated. Mint State is the exception in every type.
• Certification is welcome but not required. We buy raw coins and price them on what we see.

What to send

A clear photo of the front and back of each coin. A short video, turning the coin in the light, helps too. Phone photos are fine, and if a coin is in a holder, photograph it in the holder.