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The obverse features the crown's name followed by "D G HISPAN ET IND REX", meaning, "By the Grace of God, King of Spain and the Indies." The assayer's mark is on the left and the denomination on the right of a large Spanish shield which is adorned with a royal crown atop. Various florets, rosettes, stops, and other features are used to separate ...
The silver minted in America was now officially called plata nacional, but was also called plata vieja (old silver) or plata gruesa (heavy silver), and occasionally plata doble (double silver). The British East India Company had established a regular trade with China by 1720, paying for goods with Spanish silver.
For the English North American colonists, however, the Spanish peso or "piece of eight" has always held first place, and this coin was also called the "dollar" as early as 1581. After the Declaration of American Independence , the United States dollar was introduced in 1792 at par with this coin at 371.25 grains = 0.7735 troy ounces = 24.0566 g.
Spanish American gold coins were minted in one-half, one, two, four, and eight escudo denominations, with each escudo worth around two Spanish dollars or $2. The two-escudo (or $4 coin) was the "doubloon" or "pistole", and the large eight-escudo (or $16) was a "quadruple pistole".
In most of the Spanish States, the dinero was superseded by the maravedí and then the real as the unit of account. However, in Principality of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands, the currency system based on the dinero continued, with twelve dineros to the sou and six sous the peseta. Note that in modern Spanish, "dinero" means "money".
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The currency of the American colonies, 1700–1764: a study in colonial finance and imperial relations. Dissertations in American economic history. New York: Arno Press, 1975. ISBN 0-405-07257-0. Ernst, Joseph Albert. Money and politics in America, 1755–1775: a study in the Currency act of 1764 and the political economy of revolution. Chapel ...
Here's the real history behind America's biggest shopping holiday. Dillon Thompson. November 28, 2019 at 10:00 AM. Holiday names are usually pretty straightforward. New Year's, Thanksgiving and ...