El Cazador One-Reale Coin…
The Wreck that Changed the World
In January of 1784, the economy in Spain’s Louisiana colony (over 500 million acres stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border) was faltering due to paper money that was not backed by silver or gold. Carlos III, King of Spain, decided to replace the worthless currency with valuable Spanish silver coins. The ship El Cazador was carrying the precious coins when it encountered a violent storm just 50 miles from its destination and sank. Spain had to eventually give the territory to France in 1800. Three years later, the French sold it to the United States. That was the Louisiana Purchase! Would Spain have been able to retain the Louisiana Territory if the ship had arrived? It’s easy to see how the sinking of the El Cazador shaped the history of the United States and the World! These historic coins lay at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico for over 200 years until 1993, when a fisherman snagged his nets on something solid, maybe rocks? When he brought up his nets it was not rocks that fell from his nets onto the deck… it was dozens of silver coins from the El Cazador. Now while they last you can get your hands on genuine pillar reales from this historic wreck. Each coin has been authenticated by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) one of the leading third party grading and authentication services in the world and sealed in an archival holder.
(Limit: 5)
Actual size is approximately 21 mm
