We buy Mexican escudos and gold pesos.

Colonial escudos

The Mexico City mint struck its first gold in December 1679. The cobs, hand-struck with a cross on one side and the arms on the other, run to 1732, and most on the market come from the 1715 Fleet wrecked off Florida. A few Royal presentation strikes, perfectly round and carefully made, are known for about a dozen dates. Milled gold with the king's bust began in 1732 and ran through Philip V, Ferdinand VI, Charles III, Charles IV and Ferdinand VII to 1821, with the 8 escudos always at 27.07 grams.

During the War of Independence, Guadalajara struck the only gold made outside the capital, 8 escudos of 1812, 1813 and 1821 and a handful of 4 escudos. Then came Iturbide's empire, with his portrait on 8 escudos of 1822 and 1823 and a 4 escudos of 1823.

Republic escudos, 1823 to 1873

The republic's first 8 escudos, the 1823 Mexico City "hookneck" with a thin-necked eagle, is known from about two dozen coins. From 1824 the onza took the design shown here: the eagle on a cactus with REPUBLICA MEXICANA on one side, and on the other a hand holding a liberty cap on a staff over an open book reading LEY, with the legend LA LIBERTAD EN LA LEY. It is .875 gold, 21 karat, marked 21 Q, at 27.07 grams, and each coin carries its mint mark and assayer's initials, like C and CE on the Culiacán coin above.

• Mexico City, Mo, 1824 to 1869. Guadalajara, Ga, from the 1820s to the 1860s.
• Estado de México, EoMo, struck at Tlalpan in 1828 and 1829, the scarcest mint of all.
• Guanajuato, Go, 1828 to 1870. Durango, Do, 1832 to 1870. Chihuahua, Ca, from the early 1840s to 1871.
• Guadalupe y Calvo, GC, 1844 to 1852. Culiacán, C, 1846 to 1870.
• Zacatecas, Zs, from 1858, and Oaxaca, O, from about 1860. Hermosillo, Ho, 1863 to 1873. Álamos, A, from 1864.

The ½, 1, 2 and 4 escudos were struck alongside, mostly at Mexico City, Guadalajara, Durango, Guanajuato, Culiacán and Guadalupe y Calvo. Maximilian's empire interrupted in the 1860s with its own 20 pesos of 1866, the first Mexican gold denominated in pesos, while several mints loyal to the republic kept striking escudos.

Republic gold pesos, 1870 to 1905

In 1870 the republic's gold became decimal. The new coins keep the eagle and show, on the other side, a liberty cap in rays over a balance, a sword and a scroll reading LEY, still in .875 gold. For a few years the two systems overlapped: Guanajuato, Durango and Culiacán struck both escudos and pesos in 1870, and Hermosillo struck its last escudos in 1873. Some mint marks changed with the new coinage, C to Cn, A to As, O to Oa, and Chihuahua to Ca or CH.

• 20 pesos, 33.84 grams.
• 10 pesos, 16.92 grams, at ten mints, including Guadalajara and Oaxaca.
• 5 pesos, 8.46 grams. 2½ pesos, 4.23 grams, to 1893. 1 peso, 1.69 grams.

Mintages were often tiny, in the hundreds or only dozens for some dates and mints. The 20 pesos of Álamos, Oaxaca and Zacatecas are the most wanted.

After 1905

The monetary reform of 1905 brought .900 gold struck only at Mexico City: 2, 2½, 5 and 10 pesos, the 20 pesos with the Aztec calendar stone from 1917, and the 50 pesos Centenario from 1921. Millions were restruck later with frozen dates, 1945, 1947, 1955 and 1959, and those trade close to their gold value. Every other date is an original, and the 1920 10 pesos, the 1931 50 pesos, and the 1943 50 pesos without a denomination carry real premiums.

What affects the offer

• Mint, date and assayer. On the Republic escudos and pesos, the mint is most of the story: Estado de México, Guadalupe y Calvo, Álamos, Hermosillo, Culiacán and Oaxaca, and the first and last years at each mint, are worth far more than a common Mexico City or Guanajuato date.
• Grade and strike. Most Republic escudos survive Very Fine to About Uncirculated, and Mint State is scarce throughout. Weak strikes are normal at Oaxaca, Culiacán and Hermosillo and are priced in.
• Surfaces. Cleaning, removed mounts, holes and plugs, and filed edges are the usual problems. They lower the offer, but we still buy these coins.
• Copies of the 50 pesos and the small gold exist, and we check every piece. 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.