Watch List notes:

Potosi, Bolivia, cob 8 reales, early 1640s design, fraudulently altered (ca. 1649) with new assayer O engraved on shield side and counterfeit crowned-L countermark on cross (unique). KM-19a. 25.78 grams. Bold P-O and countermark (complete) belied by lions and castles from early 1640s; closer inspection reveals that the assayer was re-engraved and the countermark is fake (minor differences from the norm), with lightly corroded surfaces but also likely underweight and debased to begin with, quite a fascinating piece as a contemporary "triple fraud." From the Maravillas Research Collection of Countermarked Potosi Cobs, with Marex certificate and tag #0451. Recovered from: Maravillas, sunk in 1656 off Grand Bahama Island ($500-1000)