July’s Treasure of the Month is a companion to our featured treasure from June. Last month, we presented three gold coins, which were recovered in May 2025 by Captain Mike Perna and his crew of the MV Mighty Mo. This month, we have two more coins recently found by Mike and his crew, just within the last two weeks.
First, we have 1714 eight escudos bearing a strong 1714 date, nearly full shield and a good part of the crown. However, notice the cracks around the rim of the coin. It is highly unusual for coins struck at the Mexico City mint to exhibit these cracks in this fashion. The consensus is that these are “stress cracks”, the result of the coin being struck on a cold planchet.
In comparison, the other coin found (the GRAT) exhibits no such cracks. This is representative of nearly all gold coins from the Mexico City mint. The term “GRAT” refers to the letters GRAT that are located on the obverse (shield) side of the coin. It is a different die variety than most 1714 gold coins struck at the Mexico City mint. Whereas the majority of 1714 eight escudos from Mexico have a date located at the 10 o’clock position on the obverse, the GRAT variety has no such date. Instead, the initials GRAT are located on the obverse at the 10 o’clock position where the date is usually positioned. Unlike any other Mexico die varieties, the date on a GRAT coin is located on the reverse at the 12 o’clock position. A very faint date at that location can be seen on our featured coin.
We say “Good Luck” to Mike and his crew and our best wishes for continued success in the 2025 dive season.
Special thanks to Sal Guttuso, Director of Operations for 1715 Fleet-Queens Jewels, LLC, and Mike Perna and his crew for providing the images used in this post. Also, special thanks to Fleet Society Vice President Phil Flemming for supplying information used in this text.
