Description:
This rare 16th century two reales silver coin was minted in Granada, Spain during the reign of King Philip II. The obverse side features a Greek cross with lions and castles in the quarters, all within an octolobe. The reverse shows the Philip II crowned coat of arms with assayer “M” and Granada “G” mintmarks. From the House of Habsburg, Philip ruled during the "Golden Age of Spain", with territories and colonies in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Oceana. Under the Spanish Habsburgs rule in the 16th & 17th centuries, Spain reached the peak of its political and economic strength when their empire became the foremost global power.
With the discovery of untold riches that were mined in the Americas, the Spanish and their mighty galleon fleets were the premier supplier of gold and silver coins for the world. This vastly increased the shipping trade and made many merchants wealthy, both in Spain and in the colonies. However, during this adventurous age, it was inevitable that large amounts of Spanish treasure would be lost on land and at sea due to pirates, storms and other unforeseen misfortunes.
Spanish coins, known as "cobs", that circulated in this epic era were hand struck from dies and cut to weight. Minted in five denominations in silver, the largest was the eight reales, famous in the colonies and among pirates as a “Piece of Eight.” The other denominations were four reales, two reales, one real and one-half real. Cob coinage with their unusual shapes are all unique and each is a one-of-a-kind piece of history.
