JAA USA/Philippines Complete Collection
Peso 1904-S

Owner Comments:

Mintage: 6,600,000
Catalog: KM-168
Composition: Silver
Fineness: 0.9000
Weight: 26.9568g
ASW: 0.7800oz

Without a doubt the Large Peso is the "King" of the USA/Philippines Type Set. At a weight of 26.95 Grams of .900 Silver the Large Peso, minted from 1903 through 1906 had a silver content equal to the U.S. Morgan Dollar. With an official exchange rate of two Philippine Pesos to one U.S. dollar it was not long before the value of the silver content in the Large Peso exceeded its face value and many were melted during the great silver melts of the period. In 1906 the Silver Pesos held in reserve by the Treasury to back the Philippine paper money then in circulation were exported to the U.S. for re-coinage into the reduced size and weight pieces which followed in 1907. Lyman Allen estimates that less than 20% of all 1903-1906 silver coinages exist today in any grade. The weight and size of this coin made it particularly prone to bag marks so Choice BU and GEM BU specimens are a chalange to collect. According to Lyman Allen the combined total of all Large Pesos, from all dates and mints, graded by the three main grading services (NGC, PCGS and ANACS) in MS-63 is only 146 coins with less than 100 coins graded higher. The NGC population on the 1904 S Peso in MS-63 is 30 coins with only three specimens graded higher. This coin is a beautiful fully brilliant well struck example of the Large Peso.