We
gave J.K. Lilly some books on the subject of Spanish American Coins we had, and the one of most importance at the time was the book compiled and written by Wayte Raymond
called" Gold Coins of Central and South America." This book proved to
be invaluable to anyone who needed
information about coins issued from each country in the Spanish Colonial era. It had a detailed
tabulated listing of all the known denominations and dates, from the 8 Escudos (doubloon) down to the 1
Escudo. Mr. Lilly, after scanning the book, was amazed how many different pieces were made, as well as how skillfully
they were produced. He thanked us for our help and information as well as the
coins we found for him, and told us we would hear further from him after he reviewed his purchases and studied the
information in the books.
Within
a few weeks after his initial visit, we received a phone call from Mr. Lilly. He expressed his appreciation for the time and assistance we
offered during his visit, and for the books and literature we provided. He let
us know he was fascinated by the coins and asked us to find more for him. He wanted to expand his
Doubloon collection with different dates and mintmarks, and see how many more
we could assemble for him.
Mr.
Lilly concluded, after reviewing the Raymond reference text and tabulation,
that there were close to 500 different dates and mints originally
struck, and that he would be willing to expand his collection by another 75 or 100 pieces. He asked if we could do it.
We, of course, said we would do our best, and also try to keep the prices
within an acceptable range. He
thanked us and let us know that he would be back in New York in the fall on his
way to Palm Beach. Our response was to assure him that as a valued customer we
would work diligently on his project to find the coins he wished to add to his
collection.
The
task was before us, and we enjoyed the challenge,
(To
be continued)
