PCGS Abroad: A Jamaican Mexican Coin

Collectors around the world strive to add great pieces to their collections. It is often thought that a collector from a certain region focuses their numismatic journey on their geographically germane area. After all, the vast majority of the coins from the United States are collected by collectors living in the U.S. Yet, there are many collectors pursuing intriguing, historical pieces from around the world for their collections. This is certainly true of a coin from Jamaica that was submitted to the PCGS office in Hong Kong.

The numismatic history of Jamaica is tied to the colonial history of the island nation, changing from Spanish rule to British to modern-day independence. However, Caribbean numismatics is not straightforward, and just keeping gold, silver, or even copper on the islands was difficult. Often, to retain coins on the island’s soil, Caribbean islands cut, counterstamped, and revalued coins to keep the arbitrage from taking the precious metal out of the Caribbean and sending it to other ports. For Jamaica, like so many other islands, Spanish colonial coinage was the preferred currency. Even after Jamaica became a British colony, Spanish colonial coinage continued to be used. It was in 1681 when legislation revalued Spanish coinage to British standards. Originally, the coinage from Mexico was valued at five shillings, and between 1707 and 1722, this increased to six shillings, three pence.

The Jamaican Currency Act of 1758 authorized 100,000 pounds of Spanish coins to serve as legal tender money in Jamaica, with a fixed value, distinguishing them with a counterstamp as the authorized coins for commerce. The counterstamp featured a “GR” element symbolizing the current English monarch “Georgius Rex,” or King George II. This act also increased the value of the eight reales coins to six shillings, eight pence. Spanish coins ranging from half-reales to eight reales, and even gold such as eight escudos, were counterstamped for commerce in Jamaica. However, this act did not last long. It was repealed a year later in 1759 by the English government, which censured the governor of Jamaica for exceeding his power by approving this act.

Today, counterstamped coins from Jamaica representing the 1758 Act are prized numismatic pieces. Some collectors aim to build a denomination set, while others collect by date and mint, aggressively competing for rarer host coins. While these pieces are often found in collections from collectors in Europe or America, they are not often seen in Asia. That is why when a nice original example came into the PCGS office in Hong Kong, it was well noticed. This example is on a host of a Mexico 1757 8 Reales, meaning it would have been counterstamped just one year after mintage. It was graded XF40 by PCGS, and the counterstamps received a Details grade of XF. This coin is an excellent example of understanding that numismatics is enjoyed globally, and rare pieces can turn up anywhere.