Watch List notes:

BOLIVIA. Cob 4 Reales, ND (ca. 1577-78)-P C. Potosi Mint, Assayer Cristobal Ruiz Vizcaino (C). Philip II. PCGS AU-53.
KM-4.2; Cal-524; cf. CJ-2.5 (for over-Assayer's letter); cf. Sellschopp-140 (for 8 Reales with C below erased B). Weight: 13.48 gms. New period of Production. The single finest certified of this Assayer for any denomination on either the NGC or PCGS population reports. This beautifully preserved example exhibits a bold complete shield with clear mint mark, assayer's letter "C" and denomination with a decent amount of the legends, though most letters are partially off the broad flan. The reverse, though double struck with slightly shifted subsequent strikes, boasts a full complete cross with bold castles and lions, nearly complete octolobe and beaded border with only partials of letters in the legends. The surfaces are toned a pleasant light gray with areas of richer coloration and minor earthen deposits amongst the devices adding to its eye appeal, wholesomeness and originality. Missing from most advanced collections including the likes of Sellschopp and Ortiz. A real treat for the specialist of the series as this Assayer seldom appears on the market especially so in this high state of preservation and should be considered EXTREMELY RARE and desirable.

There has always been a certain mystery and speculation as far as Assayer C and L are concerned, only in recent years do we have a clearer understanding of who and when they were in office! Previously Sellschopp attributed Assayer C to La Plata Mint, but this has long since been disproven. Thanks to the extensive archival and academic research by Jorge Proctor, Glenn Murray and Daniel Oropeza Alba we can now assign Cristobal Ruiz Vizcaino as Assayer C and Alonso Lopez de Barriles as Assayer L to the Potosi Mint. From the information gathered both were in office around the same time, 1577-78. When comparing die characteristics, punch matching and the existence of amended Assayer's letters; the issues with Assayer C seem to overlap with both Assayer L (L over B) and Assayer B (C below erased B & B over C). Comparison of the present example, a 4 Reales, to the plated examples in the important work "8 Reales Cobs of Potosi" by Emilio Paoletti suggest that identical punches were used for the castles and lions on the cross side for all three Assayers (Paoletti-56 & page 61 fig. 3 - Assayer L/B and Paoletti-66 & page 68 Group B1 - Assayer B). Also mentioned by Paoletti is that in some past auction listings the minor denominations for Assayer C are listed as being a single unamended isolated letter by itself and goes on to state that this is in error and is always with another initial underneath. When examined under a microscope (10x lens with 3.5 zoom) it becomes abundantly clear that the C is not over another letter, nor does it appear to have been re-worked or altered in any way. The simple fact that the C is unaltered seems to correlate and corroborate the new information discovered for this previously unknown Assayer. To view all items from the Pat Johnson Collection, click here.

From the Pat Johnson Collection.

Estimate: $1000 - $1500