MARTINIQUE. 22 Livres, ND (ca. 1802). 10.59 gms. KM-39;

MARTINIQUE. 22 Livres, ND (ca. 1802).
10.59 gms. KM-39; Gordon-Variety B; cf.Pridmore-29, group 5. Countermark: 22 above eagle on a 1746-R Brazil 6,400 Reis, KM-151. The attribution to Gordon Variety B is characterized by the die cracks going from the tip of the eagles right wing to the base of the second "2" and another at the eagles mid-section in an upward diagonal direction to the edge to the left. Martinique during the days of slavery was one of the sugar islands of the Caribbean producing enormous profits for largely absentee landlords in France. Despite or because of this, cash was always short there and various desperate expedients were devised to alleviate the situation, including legalizing the use of counterfeit and clipped coinage (good coin, of course, flowed back to Europe). We believe that the host coin is genuine, however we suspect the locals didn't much care so long as it was gold, even though it is clipped and only 10.59 gms instead of the original 14.34 gms. (The Island weight standard being 11.66 grams). PCGS couldn't tell either, which is why this example comes with a "Authenticity Unverifiable" tag. Survivors of this process are few today and this one has a story to tell. Some scratches and surface marks, clipped, holed and plugged. VERY FINE.

Estimate: $1500.00- $2000.00