YEMEN, circa mid 17h century. Cob 4 Reales (Silver, 29 mm, 12.90 g, 7 h), a contemporary imitation of a Spanish or Spanish colonial Cob 4 Reales. Uncertain local mint, no date. [...]AVH[...] Crowned coat of arms between numbers 9 and 8; pseudo mint mark Λ / V in left field; in right field, value IIII.
Rev. [...]ADEI[...] Coat of arms. Extremely rare and of great interest. Minor deposits and areas of weakness
, otherwise, extremely fine.
From a European collection, formed before 2005.
Among the highly intriguing Yemenite imitations, those modeled after the early Cob 8 Reales coins of King Felipe III stand out. The exact location in present-day Yemen where these pieces were minted remains unknown. Due to its strategic position at the Gulf of Aden, the region was in contact with the Cob coins of the Spanish Empire as early as the 16th century. Additionally, the Portuguese introduced European silver coins during their ultimately unsuccessful attempts at colonization. This piece was most likely minted under the Qâsimids, who, in 1635, overthrew Ottoman rule in the area that is now Yemen.
Unlike previously known Yemenite imitations, this 4 Reales piece features remnants of a carefully engraved pseudo-legend, a detail rarely seen on such issues. Furthermore, 4 Reales pieces are far rarer than their smaller 2 Reales counterparts, such as the example offered in our Web Auction 32 (2024), 3812. In addition to its rarity, the engraving on this specimen is notably more detailed, allowing for a much clearer interpretation of its features. The legends were meticulously engraved, a characteristic that sets this piece apart and underscores its numismatic significance.
This remarkable new discovery also displays the denomination ('IIII'), along with pseudo-assayer and mint marks ('Λ / V'). The visible numbers '9' and '8', positioned to the left and right of the crowned coat of arms on the obverse, could correspond to a date. Despite the relatively careful die engraving, the heraldic no-go of the lions on the reverse being rotated 90 degrees to the left unmistakably reveals this piece as an imitation.
For more details, see U.S. Mexican Numismatic Association Journal, March 2019, p. 24.
