Owner Comments:
Mexico - 1898Mo AM Restrike (1949) - reverse with 134 beads - Peso - (KM# 409.2) Mintage:2,000,000
Composition: .9027 silver, .0973 copper.
This is a very interesting coin for a variety of reasons. It was not struck in 1898, nor was it struck in Mexico City, nor was it struck for Mexico! It was actually struck by the US Mint in San Francisco in 1949 for Chiang Kai-Shek’s Nationalist Chinese government.
To quote Altz & Barton, "This 1949 coinage represents a restrike issue of a Peso originally struck at Mexico City in 1898. The coins bear the date 1898 and are identical with the 1898 issue in design and composition, with only one small difference. On the Pesos actually struck in 1898, there are 139 denticles in the border on the reverse while the 1949 restrikes have only 131 denticles. This is the only U.S.-struck coin of Mexico which can be identified without a doubt as originating in the United States. All others were also stuck at the Mexico City mint from identical dies."
The above quote is accurate with two exception. There are actually 134 denticles on the reverse (which, by the way is mounted as the obverse by NGC). Krause & Mishler designate the obverse as the side with the Eagle on it and the date side as the reverse, which is the same way Altz & Barton describe it. K&M also specify 134 denticles, and they are correct. I counted them. The other, much less tedious way to differentiate between the original and the restrike is by examining the Mexico City mint mark. The original coins have the tops of the mint mark (Mo) lined up, while the
o in
Mo is higher than the
M on the restrike.
According to an article in the September 5, 2016 issue of Coin World, this
1898 silver peso of Mexico was actually struck for Chiang Kai-Shek’s Nationalist Chinese government when they introduced a new silver based currency during the Chinese Civil War following World War II. American support for the Nationalists included several billion dollars’ worth of aid and military hardware, and even 55,000 U.S. troops for a short time. Inflation was rampant in areas still controlled by the Nationalists, and they were ultimately forced out of mainland China by Mao Tse-Tung’s Communists.
Date acquired: 6/4/2014 (Already graded by NGC)
Rev. 7/6/2019