Engraved Coins, Love Tokens, and Coin Jewelry

Engraved Naval Shipwreck-Related Piece Fashioned out of an 1830s Philippines Countermarked Peruvian 8 Reales.

The reverse of the host coin has been smoothed down and a pictorial of a ship at anchor in a harbor with mountains in the background has been engraved with the following engraved above BEFORE THE WRECK / F.W. LERF / NOV. 12, 1900 and U.S.S YOSEMITE / GUAM / L.I engraved below. An ornate hanger has been added to the top for suspension. On the obverse of the coin is a Crowned Y.II countermark (KM-138.2. type VI), an 1830s Philippine revaluation mark. The USS Yosemite was originally a ship named EL SUD that was purchased by the Navy in April, 1898 and refitted as a fighting ship during the Spanish-American War era, her crew chiefly composed of members of the Michigan Naval Bridge, a volunteer auxiliary force. While serving as a station ship at Guam, a tremendous typhoon hit on November 13, 1900, blowing the ship off her moorings and causing enough damage that it was decided to scuttle the ship out at sea. F.W. Lerf was evidently one of the sailors aboard the Yosemite when she was wrecked. The consignor reports seeing one other similar example, possibly pointing to a production of multiples for members of the crew. The choice of host is fascinating a Peruvian 8 reales that was countermarked in the 1830s for use in the Philippines—this coin must still have been in circulation nearly 7 decades later in the Pacific islands! A fantastically historical piece on an equally fantastic host!

From the Steve M. Tompkins Collection.

Estimate: $ 500