(C. 1784) Ephraim Brasher Regulated Mexican 1774 Mexico City Mint 8 Escudos ($15). 26.37 grams. AU-55 (NGC). Clipped, Countermarked EB.A stunning example of this sought-after type from the formative years of our nations economy. Struck in Mexico City, this 8 escudo coin was potentially just a decade old when Ephraim Brasher imparted his coveted countermark over 2000 miles away in New York City. Brasher worked as a gold and silversmith in New York following the evacuation of the British Army on November 25, 1783. A good friend and neighbor of then-General George Washington, he quickly gained the confidence of regional merchants and became perhaps the most prolific regulator of the era. His unmistakable EB touchmark is now associated with an exclusive and mythical realm of numismatics, and the present piece is among the most incredible representatives bearing the Brasher mark.This oval stamp is uniformly impressed just below center on the obverse, Brashers favored position for his mark. Minor traces of encrustation in the basin of the countermark match those seen throughout the date and legend in a testament of originality. The host coin provides an ideal canvas with a nicely centered strike and a vacancy of notable handling marks of any sort. The surfaces are dominated by golden yellow hues with amber tones in the peripheries, complementing the glimmers of prooflike reflectivity in the fields. Significant luster halos the devices and floods the intricacies of the countermark, suggesting only minimal circulation in the years following Brashers regulation. Two shallow clips to the right of the date, seemingly applied with an effort to maintain a gentle curvature of the coins edge, bring the weight down to 406.95 grains. This is just a single grain short of the 408 grain (17 dwt) standard set by the New York Chamber of Commerce in May 1784, the last grain probably lost to gentle wear. This clipping is nearly identical in fashion to that seen on the Chilean 1775-DA 8 escudos offered in the 2010 sale of the Roehrs Collection, corroborating this trimming style as a Brasher signature. A Spanish-American 8 escudos, or doubloon, with the Brasher countermark is a considerable rarity with appeal to both U.S. and world coin collectors, though in its regulated state, it is effectively an American coin. Worth $15 at the time of Brashers adjustment, these regulated doubloons were of the same value as his legendary 1787 New York doubloons struck from proprietary dies. Though elevated to the status of supreme rarities and worth millions of dollars, the New York doubloons are actually more common than regulated doubloons bearing his mark, with respective populations of seven and five examples known. Three examples of the regulated type employ Carlos III 8 Escudos as hosts, one each from Mexico City, Nuevo Reino (Columbia), and Santiago. Two of these are worn to Very Fine, one of which was in the aforementioned Roehrs Collection. The present coin is the finest of the three. The other two known are on Chilean 8 Escudos of Ferdinand VI, including the one offered above, bearing the John Burger monogram in addition to Brashers.The true rarity of the Brasher-regulated Spanish-American doubloon is best exemplified by its absence from the most significant cabinets of regulated gold ever assembled. The collections of Eliasberg, Garrett, Newcomer, Brand, and Ford were all lacking a sibling to the present piece, as was the Gold Rush Collection, which did include one of Brashers 1742 Lima and two of his 1787 New York doubloons. The eventual emergence of the VF example in the Roehrs sale caused a considerable frenzy among collectors, encouraging a price realized of $80,500 for that far inferior example.The exceptional preservation of the present piece makes it a particularly appealing example of this historic numismatic rarity. For connoisseurs of regulated gold, there is simply no finer Spanish-American doubloon bearing the countermark of Ephraim Brasher.
