This coin is part of the recovered cargo from the wreck of the Spanish brigantine of war, El Cazador. The ship set sail from the port of Vera Cruz, Mexico, for New Orleans, carrying 450,000 pesos of minted silver coins. The vessel and her crew disappeared into the winter seas, sinking without a trace on January 11, 1784. The wreck site was accidentally discovered in August of 1993. The pesos were being sent by Carlos III, King of Spain (1759-1788) and intended to be used to redeem nearly worthless Spanish paper currency then in circulation in Spanish-owned Louisiana. After this loss, Spain traded/sold Louisiana to France, who in 1803 sold Louisiana to the United States for fifteen million dollars, about three cents per acre.
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All Silver Coins