8 Reales
Physical Object
1992.003.0076
Nuestra Señora de Atocha (1622)
A silver coin from the 1622 galleon Atocha is 4.0 centimeters in diameter and weighs 22.4 grams. The obverse bears a large Hapsburg shield. To the left of the shield is a “P” over a “Q.” The P is the mark of the mint at Potosí, the famed Andean silver mining city. The Q is the mark of the assayer, Agustín de la Quadra, the person who supervised the striking of the coin and certified its value. Quadra was the assayer at Potosí between 1613-1616. A partial legend of “RUM” represents the intended HISPANIARUM. No denomination mark is present, but the coin is of the size and weight of an 8 reales piece. On the reverse is a Greek cross, and each quarter it forms holds either a castle (representing Castile) or a lion (representing León). The cross is surrounded by a flower-like tressure and encircled with beading. Roughly one-fifth of this coin shows corrosion and thinning from its long immersion under the sea.