The English called them "pieces of eight" and gold "doubloons" and to this day these coins remain the archetype for treasure. 
Vast discoveries of gold and silver by Spanish conquistadors lead to the creation of convoys of galleons to transport the treasure from the New World to Spain. Many of these overloaded ships sank in storms and it is estimated at 20% of all gold mined was lost to shipwrecks. Since the late 1960’s a number of these have been located and salvaged. Sunken treasure coins are collected by numismatists and historians and many are made into fashionable jewelry.
New World Mints
There were a number of New World mints.- Mexico City: (OM) 1536-1821.
- Potosi: (P) 1574-1773.
- Lima: (L) 1568-89; 1684-1822.
- Cartagena: (NR) 1625-27; (C) 1627-55.
- Nuevo Reino / Santa Fe de Bogota: (NR) 1622-27: (RN) 1627-1756.
- Santo Domingo: (SP) 1542-64; 1573-78.
- Guatemala: (G)(GN) 1733-1821.
- Santiago: (Sº) 1750-1817.
- Popayan: (P) 1758-1822.
- Cuzco: (C) 1698; (C) 1824.
Maravedis, Reales, and Escudos
Whether envisioned as pirate gold or sunken treasure, these coins were the basis for a world monetary systemthat has survived to the modern era. The Spanish was a base-eight monetary system was based on the relative values for copper, silver, and gold. Copper coins were called maravedis, silver coins were reale, and gold were escudos. Sixteen maravedis equaled one real and sixteen reale were worth one escudo.
Copper maravedí were struck in denominations of 1, 2, 4, and 8. Silver coins were alloyed .931 fine and were called real (1), reale (2-8), and reales (more than one coin). From 1536 to 1542 reales were minted in denominations of 1/4, 1/2, 1, 2, and 3; after 1542 they were generally produced as 1/2, 1, 2, and 4-real coins. The famous 8 reale was first minted in the New World in 1572 and was commonly known as a “piece of eight” or a “Spanish dollar.” Smaller denominations were called “bitts” after the practice of cutting 8-reale coins into sections to make change. The 1/2-real coin was commonly called a “picayune” and the 1/4 real as a “cuartillos.”
By royal decree, the 8 reale was to weigh (the equivalent of) 27.3 grams or .96 troy ounces. Lesser denominations were subdivisions of this weight -1 real being 3.412 grams / .12 ounce. In practice coins were usually a little “light.”
Gold coins were alloyed .903 fine (22K). They were produced in denominations of 1/3, 1/2, 1, 2, 4, and 8. The 8 escudo was called a “doubloon.
On cob coins the hammer marks from the forged bars are often quite visible, as are short, straight edges where the planchets were clipped. Because the circular dies were designed larger than necessary to facilitate placement of the odd-shaped planchets, only part of the design is visible on the coins. Special presentation coins were sometimes made by carefully making a circular disk to fit the dies: these were called “royals,” because they were only made for nobility and dignitaries.
The design on the obverse of these coins changed over time. The earliest “Carlos & Johanna” reales showed two columns representing the Pillars of Hercules, later the Hapsburg Shield would become the central design. The mint mark, assayer’s initials, and date appear on the obverse, but in different places for different designs and different mints. The “Pillar” and “Portrait” dollars would later appear on round, reed-edged “milled” coins.
Cob Coins
Prior to the introduction of mechanical minting equipment in Mexico in 1733, coins were made by hand. The ingots or sand-cast fingers of metal were then forged into long, thin bars of metal. The bars were cut in sizes appropriate for different denominations and then individually weighed and pieces clipped so each planchet of metal was an exact weight. These planchets were then placed in oversized copper dies that had been hand engraved by the assayer of the mint. The dies were hand struck using large hammers or mallets. These irregular-shaped coins are known as “cobs” after cabo de barra (cut from bars).On cob coins the hammer marks from the forged bars are often quite visible, as are short, straight edges where the planchets were clipped. Because the circular dies were designed larger than necessary to facilitate placement of the odd-shaped planchets, only part of the design is visible on the coins. Special presentation coins were sometimes made by carefully making a circular disk to fit the dies: these were called “royals,” because they were only made for nobility and dignitaries.
Coin Designs
The Spanish Hapsburg kings also held the title of “Holy Roman Emperor” and therefore the reverse of most cob coins minted after 1572 bear a cross as the central image of the reverse side. Most of these were augmented with the lion for the province of Leon and a castle tower for that of Castile within the arms of the cross. Coins minted in the New World had the legend HISPANIARVM : ET : INDIARVM: REX (King of Spain and the Indies) and the date. The design of the cross often differed from one mint to another, especially those from Potosi, Mexico City, and Lima.The design on the obverse of these coins changed over time. The earliest “Carlos & Johanna” reales showed two columns representing the Pillars of Hercules, later the Hapsburg Shield would become the central design. The mint mark, assayer’s initials, and date appear on the obverse, but in different places for different designs and different mints. The “Pillar” and “Portrait” dollars would later appear on round, reed-edged “milled” coins.
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