Description
Mexico (colonial), Philip V (1700-1746), silver 8 Reales, Mexico City mint, 1739 Mo MF, crowned coat of arms. Rev. Crowned hemispheres between Pillars of Hercules, 26.02g (Cal. 1456; KM 103).
Very Fine with some seawater damage, edge dents.
We believe these coins to be from the Dutch East India ship Hollandia, since they were originally bought in the 1970s from an auction house in Cornwall, without the official certificates. Hollandia sunk off the Isles of Scilly on her maiden voyage from Amsterdam to Batavia in July 1743. On 3 June 1743 she left Texel as part of a Batavia-bound fleet carrying a large amount of trade coins and several important passengers. On 13 July 1743 she became separated from the fleet and struck Gunner Rock near Annet, Isles of Scilly in the early hours of the morning, sinking nearby. The wreck was discovered in 1971 by Rex Cowan, a London attorney.
