Amadeo I of Savoy

Son of the Italian king Victor Emmanuel II, Amadeo I was proclaimed King of Spain on the 2nd of January, 1871. Hitherto, the influence exerted by the Spanish government sought to found a constitutional monarchy – hence they selected a foreign king and put in place a system of mandates, namely: the people for the king, through Parliament.
Amadeo I was the first king of Spain to be selected by Parliament. He was not recognised by certain parliamentarians, including; Carlists, Bourbons, the church and by the people; who judged him as being unpleasant and reticent towards learning the Spanish language.
Upon the death of General Prim, the political alliance which had placed Amadeo I on the throne began to dissolve little by little. The pressures brought by the federalist revolts, the loss of support from capitalists and the Carlists war pushed the Italian monarch to renounce the throne on the 11th of February, 1873.
From his 2 years of rule, hallmarks bearing his effigy were designed for the 5 Peseta coins as well as the 25 and 100 Peseta gold coins – some were struck as trials.
In 1868, a new parameter was integrated into the Spanish monetary system. Unique to the world, two dates were to be inscribed on the coins: the approval date of the coin type and when it was struck. Nevertheless, this initiative was not correctly followed between 1871 and 1875, partly covering the rule of Amadeo I. According to information collected in el Catálogo de la Peseta, it appears that the number of coins issued with the year (between the stars) 18-71 are more common than those of 18-73, those of 18-74 appear in only 20% of cases while those of 18-75 appear in only 10% of cases, approximately.
It was only during the 1st republic, i.e. not before the end of the year 1873 that the process of the two dates began to function better, inscribing the correct date between the stars of the coins.
But this accuracy of dating came at a time when the currency did not reflect reality since Amadeo I renounced the throne in February 1873. The republic followed and thereafter, in 1875, came the rule of Alfonso XII, although the currency with Amadeo I’s effigy continued to be struck until mid-1875.

Marks of guarantee of the Amadeo I coins

Five people were charged with assuming the guarantee of these coins. On the obverse side are affixed the first name and surname initials of the engraver – on the reverse, the surname initials of the two Testers and Beam Balancers:

Engraver: L.M.: Luis Marchionni

Testers and Beam Balancers:

SD M: Donato Álvarez Santullano, Eduardo Díaz Pimienta y Ángel Mendoza Ordóñez.

DE M: Eduardo Díaz Pimienta, Julio de Escosura Tablares y Ángel Mendoza Ordoñez.

25 Peseta gold coin

Amadeo I 25 Peseta coin

Characteristics:

Fineness: 900 Thousandths.

Diameter: 24mm.

Weight: 8.0645g.

Workshop: Madrid.

Edge of the first coins: Relief engraving of 27 six-ray stars, using the hoop system open to three points.

Edge of the coins struck later out of reddish gold: JUSTICIA Y LIBERTAD (JUSTICE AND FREEDOM) separated by three groups of two six-ray stars.

Obverse: AMADEO I REY DE ESPAÑA *1871* (AMADEO I KING Of SPAIN *1871*) - portrait of the king facing right.

Reverse: Ley 900 Milésimas (Title 900 thousandths) – 124 piezas in Kilog. (124 coins in Kilog.) SD 25 PESETAS M, around the Spanish armouries carrying the coat of arms of Savoy, surrounded by the coat and fleece.

Number of strikes: 1871 (75) SD M = 25

<The first strikes were made with an alloy containing 10% silver and conferred a bright yellow tone to the gold of these coins, which differentiates them from the other coins struck later, these latter ones displaying a more reddish tone of gold.

These coins, as well as the 100 Peseta coins of the same year were the first gold coins displaying a face value in Pesetas, emanating from the Reform of October 19^th 1868. Struck under the Order of the General Directorate of the Treasury of August 22^nd 1871, “as tests, and it is impossible to specify the quantity of coins manufactured in 71”>

(Information extracted from the Catálogo de la Peseta by J.Aledón & Modern World Gold Coins).

In general, the 25 Peseta coins began to be struck under the Royal Decree of March 15^th 1871. Previously, the reform of the Peseta did not integrate in the values struck out of gold the 25 Peseta coins, omitting the 8 gram model so well-known in Spain, Germany, Holland, etc…

Of these coins, only some were struck as tests. It is under the reign of Alfonso XII that they started to be manufactured in series.

100 Peseta gold coin

Amadeo I 100 Peseta coin

Characteristics:

Fineness: 900 Thousandths

Diameter: 35mm.

Weight: 32.25g.

Workshop: Madrid.

Edge: Relief engraving using the hoop system open to three points with the words JUSTICIA Y LIBERTAD (JUSTICE AND FREEDOM), separated by three groups of two six-ray stars.

Obverse: AMADEO I REY DE ESPAÑA *1871* (AMADEO I KING OF SPAIN *1871*) – portrait of the king facing right.

Reverse: Ley 900 Milésimas (Title 900 thousandths) – 31 piezas in Kilog. (31 coins in kilog.) SD 100 PESETAS M, around the Spanish armouries bearing the coat of arms of Savoy, surrounded by the coat and fleece.

Number of strikes in Yellow gold: 1871 (71) = 25

Number of strikes in Red gold: 1871 (71) = 50

> An auction was held in Madrid on March 16^th 1995, selling one of these coins at the starting price of 15 million pesetas (€ 90,151.82)

(Information extracted from Catálogo de la Peseta by J.Aledón & Modern World Gold Coins)

Re-striking of these coins

Unable to gain possession of the original specimens of the said coins, King Alfonso XIII commissioned the re-striking of specific ones in order to honour certain obligations. Thereafter, it was discovered that these coins appeared in 1963 coming from Switzerland.

The Decree of March 21^st 1871, which enacted the creation of the 25 Peseta gold coin, stipulated that it would contain any caption on the edge, and if possible that the smooth part of the corners would contain differences to distinguish these coins from those emanating from other countries.

But the coins re-struck out of reddish gold display on their edge: Justicia y Libertad (Justice and Freedom), separated by three groups of two six-ray stars, similar to the engraving on the edge of the 100 Peseta coins.

Thus, these two coins of reddish gold were a re-striking produced in an unofficial way with the original coins, and to purely profit-driven ends.

As these are very unusual and rare coins, to possess or decide to purchase some is a true luxury – a great treasure!

The crisis of the Euro is demonstrating a fundamental lack of credibility in the institutions of the European Union. Throughout, the European Commission has consistently taken a back seat, as if it really had no idea what was going on, let alone what to do about it.

All parties to the state of the single currency share this lack of credibility and not least because the euro was never credible anyway. Its launch was deferred for a year because the poorer member nations were nowhere near the narrow margin either side of parity with the Deutsche Mark which was the fundamental condition for entry into the new currency.

That fact alone shows what a queer creature the Euro is. The Maastricht Treaty created the European Union to give Europe a single market, a single currency – to become a single State. That there are rules as to who was in the single currency already beggars the question as to what forms a cohesive state.

The rules were for a time adhered to; a year on from the original date of the launch, though nothing had changed, political ambition got the upper hand and the Euro was born: the claim was made that delaying any longer would only call the project’s credibility into doubt.

What was done, however, was incredible: this attempt to unite anyway widely disparate economies by breaking the first rule of admission generated an educated scepticism on the part of several British economists, who outlined the demise of the Euro, down to the detail that Greece would collapse first.

A week after the summit which agreed new fiscal rules (the problem with the old ones, apart from the whole air of unreality investing the project, was that they were never adhered to, a fault it is hard to see the new ones mending), a leader in The Times of London (16 December 2011) pointed out that “Mr Sarkozy secured his goal of framing the new fiscal rules as an inter-governmental agreement rather than a treaty backed by the European Union’s institutions.”

Eurozone Union?

This is even more incredible: in order to commit to more binding state-like ties, in order to chase that ever-elusive credibility, the Euro currency nations are going their own way outside the boundaries of the European Union’s institutions – yet still blithely calling it “The European Union”. What, in this light, is one to make of the European Central Bank’s position? What is the status of the Commission? What does the old cry “further and deeper union” mean now?

The other side of this coin is that there can now be no question that what is driving all this is the national interests of the two most powerful states, which are determined to pull the poorer nations, whether or not it is in their interests, after them, and in doing so divide the Union.

As with all advanced democracies, and this is something the euro crisis has exposed mercilessly, there is a further division within the nations between the political class and the ordinary public: the politicians persist in their unreal aspirations, risking jobs and investments.

The People decide while Politics prevaricates?

A little item of Christmas realism? Vendors at a Christmas market in at least one German town are advertising their willingness to accept – Deutsche Marks! (Exchange rate €1 = 2 DM)

by Mark Rogers

A decision that Greece will regret

Without a doubt this line of action will never save the Greek economy or start to rebuild some confidence for a decent future. Greece will stay in Debt for generations. The Greek people will never accept this and their strong protests are understandable. Headlines talk of a possible Greek default – Why? Greece has been bankrupt for over a year, since it first asked for a “bailout”.

The only route to recovery is to restructure the debts or simply declare the country bankrupt. This would be the best solution for the Greeks but of course they’re in a weak position and all recent decisions, including the political waffle and rhetoric, have been taken to secure the European banks that are hugely exposed to the Greek debt. Be under no illusion that the only reason for this action is to appease the power brokers that support the European Governments. The politicians including the Greek government don’t care one iota for the regular people of Greece and why would they because they are all sufficiently immune to the deepening crisis because their deep pockets are lined with personal wealth that removes them from harm’s way and any sense of reality or empathy with those suffering the effects.

The people’s retribution

The one way Greek people have of preserving and protecting their personal wealth is to opt out of the normal system and there is evidence that they have started to empty their bank accounts (maybe à la Cantona – see Eric Cantona’s French Revolution).
Firstly they are taking retribution on the Banks by weakening them and also showing their distrust for reckless, uncaring institutions.
Secondly they are storing their wealth in something tangible and much more reliable than invented currency which could devalue or collapse anytime – they are buying gold coins as they did during the Second World War because they know that this will maintain real value and purchasing power through the difficulties ahead.
Here is some evidence provided recently in the Financial Times by Kerin Hope

ATHENS — Greek citizens are emptying savings accounts and buying gold as they brace themselves for the possibility of a sovereign default and a run on the banks.

Pledges by socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou that his government would “save the country” have been widely discounted by the public. However, parliament gave him a vote of confidence late on Tuesday night. The socialists have a six-seat majority in the 300-member house.

Sales of gold coins have soared as savers seek a safer and fungible source of value.

“When the global financial crisis started, our sales of coins to investors overtook bullion for the first time,” said Harry Krinakis, at Sepheriades, a Greek precious metals trader. “Now the sales ratio has reached five to one.”

Tomas, a computer technician, has exchanged his euro savings for gold coins: “I keep them at home just like my grandmother did in the Second World War.”
Monthly bank withdrawals were running at E1.5 billion-E2 billion in the first quarter. Last year, depositors withdrew E30 billion, equivalent to 12.3 per cent of total savings, according to the central bank. Greek deposits worth an estimated E8 billion were transferred to banks in Cyprus in 2010. But the flow has dried up this year amid fears that Cypriot banks could suffer contagion.

Andreas, a supermarket manager, transferred the family savings to Munich earlier this year. “The Swiss banks aren’t interested unless you’ve got several hundred thousand euros,” he said.

“We can’t trust the politicians to get us out of this mess [and] have to protect our families,” said Sakis, a garage owner, at an anti-austerity protest in Athens’ Syntagma Square. “A bank collapse has got to be in the cards.” He added he had withdrawn his savings and placed them in a bank safe deposit box “for security. Who cares about interest right now?”

Others put their savings into land when prices fell after Greece’s first European Union-led rescue last year. Angelos, a software specialist, bought a neighbour’s olive grove. “I grabbed the opportunity,” he said.
“A year ago I wouldn’t have considered making such an old-fashioned investment.”

It is no accident that other European countries, particularly Germany and France, have experienced dramatically increased investment in gold coins during the last three months. In France investors own more gold than the Bank of France and transactions in coins have increased by 35% (source AuCoffre.com) since January. These countries have aan historical reference to gold coin investments and their benefits so it is no surprise to witness such an increase during periods of crisis. In fact one can determine the “temperature” of concern from this rising activity and people are seriously concerned about an impending crash on the horizon that will have global significance.

Countries like the UK are rather slow on the uptake and the gold investment market tends to be reserved for the extremely well-off and well-connected. What a shame so many people are misled by false information to detract them from participating or they are just ignorant of the facts.

Anyway their loss is someone else’s gain and come the day they will be left holding bits of paper good for burning while their European neighbours use their gold coins to pay for provisions and ultimately survival!

Remember that the signs of crisis were ignored by myopian political rhetoric pre-2008 leaving millions of ordinary folk open to its consequences. The signs of crisis have been with us ever since and still they pretend all will be well and their policies are “working”.

2008 was just the prelude and the worst is yet to arrive.
Be warned and be prepared or once again you will be hung out to dry!

An investment in gold is a survival kit for your future.

So what sparked this crisis?

President Lukashenko had promised to raise public sector wages by a third during his election campaign, which he duly carried out. This was sustainable only because of the support Belarus received from Moscow in terms of loans. However, as fears grew about the country’s finances, support from Russia waned and even near neighbours from the EU didn’t fancy the risk thus sparking a sharp drop in confidence in the currency.
To exacerbate the problem there was a shortage of foreign exchange currencies, dollars or euros, in the country.

The consequences of a collapse

Shelves quickly emptied of food and any "tangible asset" that would hold value better than their currency

Wide spread panic broke out as the economy effectively became paralyzed and people suddenly realised their currency was of diminishing worth. Shops were quickly emptied of everything that could be bought. Everyday food was snapped up at “luxury” style prices as people thought of survival but also they also bought electric goods like toasters, microwaves, canned goods and virtually anything that was for sale as they rushed to convert their currency into “any tangible assets” that were not losing value as quickly as their roubles.
The empty shelves throughout the towns seemed eerily reminiscent of the Soviet controlled days.
Shoppers knew that anything they could purchase could be more useful as a form of barter than the diminishing currency in their purses and wallets.

The human cost was quickly evident from the stories of employees sent on unpaid leave as companies also struggled to cope and comprehend the impact. Andrei, a computer company employee explained how he queued for a week in Minsk trying to buy dollars but didn’t even get one. “In just one month, I have been made bankrupt, the entire country is bankrupt” he said, adding that “even during the Soviet collapse we never suffered such a nightmare”.

There are many more stories of hardship, families without food or the means to buy any, shops without stock for them to buy even if they had the means.

Dmitry who is a 48 year old factory worker explained how he closed his bank account to get out 5 Million roubles in cash so he “could buy something before my money turns to dust”.

Tensions are growing as many people blame the President for mismanaging the economy.
Staple food supplies are now hoarded but people feel anxious that unrest is starting that could spill over into conflict at any time.
Revolution is always more likely when the population are starving.

Which country is next?

This may all seem so far away from wherever you are reading this but the causes of currency collapse may be closer to your doorstep than you think.

How many countries are in deep debt and reliant on support loans and bailouts right now?
Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Japan, USA, Belarus and virtually all of Eastern Europe and the Euro zone (only they never put it in the headlines!)

What happens when the support cannot be maintained?
Currency Collapse.

It could be the US Dollar, the Euro, the Yen who knows?
But even if it isn’t your currency that collapses what will be the knock on effects in every developed country if one of these currencies collapses?
The same as in Belarus.

Globalisation has been the buzz word for expanding Capitalism but it also means that economies are now inextricably linked and inter-twined to such an extent that when one sneezes they all catch a cold!

Remember the level of Sovereign Debt is spiralling out of control in the US, Greece, Ireland, Portugal and others are close behind such as Spain and the UK. Austerity measures in all countries are hurting normal folk badly – they are losing their jobs, suffering pay freezes, inflation and pension erosion. Social unrest and industrial action looms large across Europe and this will itself impact the recovery and debt repayment. This has already started in Greece, Portugal, Ireland and large scale protests in the UK are gathering momentum with the Autumn likely to be the boiling point of anger.

The discontent and despair of regular folk is understandable as they are bearing the brunt of all the hardship and it just isn’t fair.
Politicians spout their practiced rhetoric about how to fix things but the reality is they just don’t care that much as they are not the ones affected. They have means to isolate them from the hardships and many of them are actually responsible for producing the mess. How can they care about regular people or preach what we need to give up when they don’t – ever met a poor politician? Enough said!

There is now even talk of a “sub-prime” type problem in China because of over-indulgence in property speculation, leaving huge swathes of developments empty or under-occupied and therefore leaking money and ready to default.

We need more than lip service!

Mainstream news outlets are all controlled by self-interest groups (private and Governments) and they never provide the whole story about global economic frailty as there would be worldwide panic if they told the truth. The situation right now is on a knife edge and the next Belarus is not far away. Politicians won’t admit it but then again they won’t suffer like the rest of us as they’re all rich enough and well connected to see out any storm. They care too much for their own popularity to be honest.
Posh boys and rich kids rule the world and their assets are well protected in advance.

Remember what happened when panic struck in Belarus, people bought any tangible asset they could because it would maintain value better than their currency.
This phenomenon is happening daily – your bank account is the best place to keep currency if you want it to devalue!

Currency is not a means of preserving wealth because it has no inherent value especially when confidence is lost – then it is just a piece of paper.

The only real money available is a tangible asset that maintains its value whatever happens to printed bits of paper currency – and that is gold!

A lesson on Money and currency

We need to understand the difference between money and currency as one is real and the other a promise. Money can be defined as a medium of exchange and a store of value and until fairly recent times was in fact coins made out of precious metal with an intrinsic value or for ease of use, notes backed by precious metal.
Money, when considered as the fruit of many years’ industry, as the reward of labor, sweat and toil, as the widow’s dowry and children’s portion, and as the means of procuring the necessaries and alleviating the afflictions of life, and making old age a scene of rest, has something in it sacred that is not to be sported with, or trusted to the airy bubble of paper currency. Thomas Paine (1737 – 1809)
Currency is still a medium of exchange but is not a store of value as it only derives its value by government degree or “fiat”. It’s value is based on the issuing the authority’s guarantee to pay the stated (face) amount on demand, and not on any intrinsic worth or extrinsic backing. All national currencies in circulation, issued and managed by the respective central banks, are fiat currencies.

A days wages in Germany 1923

The problem is that fiat currency runs the risk of central bankers printing too much and causing large inflation or worse. The more that is printed the more the currency is debased just as the Fed is doing now with the dollar. This has been going on for decades with central banks indiscriminately creating money to cover expenditure and ever increasing debt. There are examples throughout history and in the 20th Century most of us are aware that in Germany in 1923 it would take a barrow load of Deutschmarks to buy a loaf of bread but an ounce of gold could buy a reasonable house and one dollar was worth 4 trillion marks.

This irresponsible printing of money has eaten away at the value of the world’s reserve currency the USD dollar and dollar based assets, to such an extent that they have lost 82% of value since 1971, the year the US cut links with the gold standard. The GBP has fared even worse that the USD losing around 85% of value since 1971. There are many illustrations of then and now and how owning gold with intrinsic value would have more purchasing pro rata than currency. E.g the latest model Cadillac Eldorado would have taken 180 ounces of gold at $42.02 to pay the showroom price of $7,546. This same 180 ounces is now worth over $200k and would buy two Cadillac convertibles with enough left over to fuel to first service. In the UK an average family car cost £1000 around 60 oz of gold and now the same would cost £17000 around 23 oz of gold. The 60 ounces would have bought the same family car for you a sports car for your wife and a hatchback for your son or daughter. Gold retains its purchasing power year after year.

Not long ago the gold standard imposed monetary discipline on countries as they had to hold enough gold to cover the money in circulation but this all changed with the Jamaica agreement in 1971 when the decision was taken by President Nixon on the 15th August 1971 to suspend the direct convertibility of dollars into gold, the keystone of the financial system created in July 1944 (the Bretton Woods Agreement). On the 1st October 1971 the general assembly of the IMF asked the board of trustees to study and propose a comprehensive reform. This would be adopted by member States during a meeting held in Kingston (Jamaica) on the 7th and 8th January 1976, and included a set of provisions which put an end to the reign of gold. The US money supply in 1971 was $776 billion and quickly became an upward curve which rose dramatically over the last decade where the US money supply doubled from below $7 trillion to $14.3 trillion indicating that spending is out of control.

The US National debt is now greater than this!

The US though still likes to play the rich kid on the block and bizarrely gives aid to those supporting its debt as a report in the Daily Mail of London illustrates:
The U.S. is providing hundreds of millions of dollars of foreign aid to some of the world’s richest countries – while at the same time borrowing billions back, according to report seen by Congress.

The Congressional Research Service released the report last month which shows that in 2010 the U.S. handed out a total of $1.4bn to 16 foreign countries that held at least $10bn in Treasury securities.

Four countries in the world’s top 10 richest received foreign aid last year with China receiving $27.2m, India $126.6m, Brazil $25m, and Russia $71.5m. Mexico also received $316.7m and Egypt $255.7m.

And yet despite the massive outgoings in foreign aid, the receiving countries hold trillions of dollars in U.S. Treasury bonds.

China is the largest holder with $1.1trillion as of March, according to the Treasury Department.

Brazil held $193.5bn, Russia $127.8bn, India $39.8bn, Mexico $28.1bn and Egypt had $15.3bn.
Maybe it’s just additional interest on the debt to keep them sweet!

Greece figures predominantly in the spotlight and unrest is growing – will the Government have to mortgage the Acropolis and Parthenon or even sell them off to pay their debts?
Clearly they can never work their way out of this debt because they would have to increase GDP by 12% a year for 30 years in order to grow their way out of debt.
The Sovereign Debt crisis is well and truly out of control and the only solution will be to default on the debts and devalue currencies.

As discussed in the example of Belarus, chaos ensues when currencies collapse and regular folk suffer badly as they don’t see it coming or refuse to believe it could happen to them.

Be warned: A currency collapse is coming near you.
Be prepared: don’t put faith in bits of paper which have no inherent value.
Protect yourself: Invest in tangible assets that hold real value at all times, especially during a crisis.
Remember: Real money has inherent value, it is worth something because of what it is not because of what is written on it.
Now you know why people buy gold to protect themselves from crisis – it always holds value and is the only real money.

In summary:
• Currency is not money and its value can be changed by monetary policy makers
• Currency can be created and printed at will with no substance to support it
• Currency depreciation in value is accelerating with subsequent loss of purchasing power
• National debt is increasing to disastrous levels with threat of sovereign debt default
• Confidence in the USD is waning and its use as a reserve currency is under threat
• Countries and investors are shedding their dollar assets
• Central Banks are diversifying into gold and out of dollar assets
• Smart investors are diversifying their portfolios with a proportion of gold
• The value of gold has been consistent in retaining its purchasing power
• Gold is insurance for your wealth
• Gold is the only real money

I rest my case!

Alfonso XII 25 pesetas coins

Without doubt the Alfonso XII 25 pesetas coins are on the list of the most important coins in the history of Spain.
His life started with the coup d’etat on 3 December 1874 by General Pavía which brought about the end of the Republic and the establishment of the “Regency Ministry” by Antonio Cánovas, whose commitment was to re-establish the Bourbon monarchy.
All this effort culminated in the arrival in Spain of the son of Isabel II, who had ascended to the throne three years earlier while in exile.

25 Pesata coins

With the Bourbons again at the helm, a new period started to strengthen the pesetas after 10 years of being minted only in copper and silver. This in turn saw the rebirth of the process of manufacturing in gold thereby demonstrating the maturity and growth of the new monetary system which over this period exceeded some 30 million coins.
Design of the new gold coins to be put into circulation occurred three months after the arrival of Alfonso XII by means of a Royal Decree.

Seal of Guarantee for this Currency

There were very few people involved in the design of this coin which propelled the kingdom’s economy for more than a decade. In concrete terms, there were seven experts over this period who were tasked with guaranteeing the quality of the product. Their duties required the printing of their initials on each coin, thereby certifying the process, the exact weight and its authenticity.
The nominated engraver was Gregoria Sellán Gonzalez who saw his work live on in the design of the coins of Alfonso XII and in the first two struck by his son Alfonso XIII.

The seals on these coins are the following:
Engraver: G.S. Gregoria Sellán Gonzalez

Assayers and Weigh Masters:
DE M: Eduardo Diaz Pimienta, Julio Escosura Tablares and Ángel Mendoza Ordoñez
EM M: Julio Escosura Tablares, Mauricio Morejón Bueno and Ángel Mendoza Ordoñez
MS M: Mauricio Morejón Bueno, Pablo Salas Gabarrell and Ángel Mendoza Ordoñez
MP M: Mauricio Morejón Bueno, Félix Miguel Peiró Rodgrigo and Ángel Mendoza Ordoñez

Description and wording on the Alfonso XII 25 pesetas coins

Coins from 1876

ALFONSO XII (1874-1885)
Year: 1876
Gold: Ley 900 milesimas
Diameter: 24,09 mm
Weight: 8.08 gr.
Striated edge
Description
Obverse: ALFONSO XII – POR LA G. DE DIOS 1876/76 (between stars with six points). Head facing right. G.S. (Gregoria Sellán) shown at the bottom of the neck. Pointed fringe.
Reverse: REY CONSTL-DE ESPAÑA D.E. 25 PESETAS. Crowned, draped arms in the collar of the golden fleece and covered under the Royal cloak with the arms of Castilla, León, Aragón, Navarra and Granada; in the centre the Bourbon coat of arms. Pointed fringe. (Information extracted from Book: Gold Coins from the Collection of the Bank of Spain).

Coins from 1881

ALFONSO XII (1874-1885)
Year: 1881
Gold: Ley 900 milesimas
Diameter: 24.11 mm
Weight: 8.07 gr
Striated edge
Description
Obverse: ALFONSO XII – POR LA G. DE DIOS 1881/81 (between stars with six points. Head facing right. G.S. (Gregoria Sellán) shown at the bottom of the neck. Pointed fringe.
Reverse: REY CONSTL-DE ESPAÑA D.E. 25 PESETAS. Crowned, drapped arms in the collar of the golden fleece and covered under the Royal cloak with the arms of Castilla, León, Aragón, Navarra and Granada; in the centre the Bourbon coat of arms. Pointed fringe. (Information extracted from Book: Gold Coins from the Collection of the Bank of Spain).

The manufacturing of these coins started in 1876, with the King’s image being reversed in order to distinguish them from the copper and silver coins. In 1962 a special commission was made by an American company based in Switzerland who made a prepayment both for the stipulated costs and the profits. Original stamps were used with the print date of 1961 and 1962 appearing between the stars.
On the edge of the coins there is an engraving of 27 lily flowers comprised of three groups of nine each.
For the manufacturing proofs and quality check on the engravings, copper coins were used which were subsequently destroyed to avoid them being put into circulation after being gold plated.

In 1881, it was decreed that the king’s image be updated and the result of this shows a great difference compared to the initial one from 1876. Such differences were not so noticeable in the mints from 1876, 1877, 1878, 1879 and 1880 where only slight changes can be seen to the head and features of Alfonso XII.

After his death, all the coins (with the exception of the 2 pesetas) continued to be minted upon the order of his wife, Maria Cristina of Habsburg, until 1886 when his son Alfonse XIII was born and a year later Sellán made the first design with the image of the successor and thereby resumed the task of manufacturing the coins, a period which saw the issuing of the 20 and 100 pesetas coins.

Why do we consider that this is a good coin to buy?

The 25 pesetas coin is one of the most popular in the catalogue of gold coins which are currently in circulation in Spain, and which are also in demand from individuals from other countries who are interested in its historical and financial value. Given that it is one of the most known, its premium can increase considerably in times of crisis, thus acquiring values which are attractive and well-positioned in the world of offer and supply, which happened with the Napoleon in France, for example, and which can reach a premium of 100% during times of crisis.

We should recall that the premium is the difference between the price of the precious metal from which the coin is made and its market price, and that its value depends on many factors which we have explained in our article: “The Premium on Gold Coins”.
It is a type of coin destined to be saved in the future given its good condition and quality.

Translated from an original article by Lizette Paternina

There are no fewer than 12 other States which are pushing for a return to gold currency by introducing bills before the Legislature in the form of the ”Constitutional Tender Act”.
The 12 States are:
Colorado
Idaho
Indiana
Montana
Missouri
New Hampshire
North Carolina
South Carolina
Tennessee
Vermont
Virginia
Washington

The “Constitutional Tender Act”

The United States Constitution declares, in Article I, Section 10,
“No State shall… make any thing but gold and silver coin a Tender in Payment of Debts”. This means that no State can make something a “tender in payment” (which means they cannot “make something an offer as payment”) for any debts, which would include debts owed by and to the State.
However, EVERY State in the United States of America HAS made some other “Thing” an offer as payment – they have by law declared that they will accept, and pay out, Federal Reserve Notes for any debts owed by or to them.
Therefore, every State is in violation of Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution.
Thus the need for the “Constitutional Tender Act” — a bill template that can be introduced in every State legislature in the nation, returning each of them to adherence to the United States Constitution’s actual legal tender provisions.

Most importantly the bills are aimed at protecting the people from the continued devaluation of the dollar and almost certain hyperinflation which is due in the future.
It is also seen as a way for States to insulate themselves from the policies and practices of the Federal Reserve which seems to be pursuing the inflationary practice of monetizing the national debt to address the consequences of runaway federal spending.

The Privately Owned Central Bank

Did you know that the Federal Reserve is a private institution with link shareholders? Most folk believe it is a federal agency.

Fed shareholders earn 6% interest “by law” and as for reserves, well they have none. The only thing the Fed does is create paper and charge the government interest for doing so. It also has licence to print “paper money” that is not backed by assets. The more it produces the more the value of the dollar is diluted. The $800 Billion it has printed for QE2 are merely bits of paper with ink on them that eventually some average Joe will be charged interest for using or borrowing. In reality the money doesn’t exist just the debt it creates.

Individual states have not issued legal tender for over a hundred years so why now?

Because the weakening of the dollar by the Fed to essentially reduce the size of the national debt has also eroded the savings of citizens, the price of their houses, the worth of their pay cheques and eroded their purchasing power at a time when inflation is rising but wages are stagnant. Enough is enough.
History is on the side of the people here. In the original drafting of the Constitution the Founders disliked “paper” money so much they provided specific wording against it.
The transcript of the debates in the original Constitutional Convention shows the attitude of the Founders toward paper money was one of disgust. In debate one delegate, Roger Sherman, called for the insertion of an absolute prohibition against states issuing their own paper money.

Mr. Wilson and Mr. Sherman moved to insert after the words ‘coin money’ the words ‘nor emit bills of credit, nor make any thing but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts’ making these prohibitions absolute…

Mr. Sherman thought this a “favourable” crisis for crushing paper money.

The Founders voted to adopt Sherman’s “crushing” of state-based paper money.

As for the federal government, the original draft of the Constitution included language permitting the federal government to issue unbacked paper money. The Founders objected strongly to this power. The objections were summed up by delegate Oliver Ellsworth:

Mr. Elsesworth thought this a favourable moment to shut and bar the door against paper money. The mischiefs of the various experiments which had been made, were now fresh in the public mind and had excited the disgust of all the respectable part of America. By witholding the power from the new Governt. more friends of influence would be gained to it than by almost any thing else. Paper money can in no case be necessary. Give the Government credit, and other resources will offer. The power may do harm, never good.

Those who wrote the Constitution decisively stripped the federal government of the power to issue inconvertible paper money. And stripped it stayed… until, temporarily, during the Civil War. Saving the Union was of transcendent importance.
For most of American history dollars were convertible into gold or sometimes silver.
It is a 20th century innovation to have unconvertible money

On April 19 1933 Franklin D Roosevelt took the US off the Gold Standard and Americans had to exchange their gold for paper dollars at $20.67 an ounce (so a dollar was approximately equal to 1/20th of an ounce of gold). This was the start of the Great Confiscation which lasted until 1975.
In 1945 The Bretton Woods Agreement created a “Gold exchange standard” whereby the US promised to fix the price of gold to $35 an ounce (the dollar therefore was worth 1/35th of an ounce). The dollar therefore became the world’s reserve currency and was used for international trading and commerce, notably for the quotations of oil. Therefore all other currencies were effectively pegged to the dollar and therefore gold. At this point “paper” money had a reference value and theoretically could be exchanged as originally intended for a specific weight in gold.

However, in 1971 Richard Nixon suspended the convertibility of the dollar into gold because of the huge US debts following the Vietnam War. This was another nail in the dollars coffin. The gold price was approximately $41 an ounce ( so a dollar was worth 1/41th of an ounce). This also effectively unhinged all the other currencies from a gold standard as they had all been pegged to the dollar. The Demonetization of gold was completed by the Jamaica Agreement. This meant currencies could freely float in value up and down which they did. It marked the first time in history that only Fiat currencies existed (i.e. unbacked currency).
President Nixon announced this as a temporary suspension.

Nixon Lies again and again

President Nixon made certain promises to America when he suspended convertibility of the dollar. August 15, 1971:

“I have directed Secretary Connally to suspend temporarily the convertibility of the dollar into gold ….

Now, what is this action–which is very technical–what does it mean for you?

Let me lay to rest the bugaboo of what is called devaluation.

If you want to buy a foreign car or take a trip abroad, market conditions may cause your dollar to buy slightly less. But if you are among the overwhelming majority of Americans who buy American-made products in America, your dollar will be worth just as much tomorrow as it is today.”
The dollar has actually lost 3848% of its value when measured against Gold since Nixon declared this.
An ounce of gold is today quoted at $1420 (rounded up) which means that a dollar is technically only worth 1/1420th of an ounce compared to 1/41th of an ounce when Nixon made his declaration.
This steady erosion of the worth of a Dollar is exactly why there are calls for a return to gold currency or gold-backed currency in 13 States with others already contemplating the same.
One can understand the concerns and the choice between paper dollars or a piece of gold to preserve your wealth seems self-evident.
Just in case let’s check the value of the Dollar expressed in Gold.

From Confiscation until Bretton Woods 12 years later the Dollar lost 175% of its value against gold (an average of 14.58% per annum).
From Bretton Woods created the standard until Nixon removed it 26 years later the Dollar lost 117% of its value against gold (an average of 4.5% per annum).
In the last 40 years since Nixon unhinged the Gold Standard, the US Dollar has lost 3484% of its value against gold (an average of 87.1% per annum).
In a total of 78 years since confiscation in 1933 the US Dollar has lost over 7142% of its value against Gold (an average of 91.56% per annum).

So the period of greatest stability for the Dollar was with a Gold Standard and Confiscation still in place.
The most unstable period for the Dollar was when neither of these was in place as is the case today.

If the Dollar continues to falls by at least the average for the last forty years, bearing in mind that current world events could add to its woes, then it would be worth 0.00009 ounces of gold or 1/11111th of an ounce within a year – that gives a gold price of $11,111 an ounce.

It is especially pertinent when one considers the strength of an investment over time – Gold is anti-inflation and anti-crisis. It will always maintain real value, worth and purchasing power which can be traded and wilfully accepted in exchange for the necessities of life. This cannot be said for paper money which as history has proved time and again eventually becomes a worthless piece of paper whose only real value is its calorific heat value for burning!
This illustrates exactly why the peoples of Thirteen States are leading the charge to convert to a gold currency that maintains real value rather than be chained to the US Dollar which will only be of value for fire-lighting very soon.
It is inevitable that currency must be established against a fixed reference for it to have any real value and this road will always lead back to Gold as history has proved.
If you’ve never bought Gold before then maybe now is a good time before your savings literally go up in flames.

20 PESOS OBVERSE

Description of the gold pesos coins.

The 2, 2.5, 5 and 10 pesos coins all bear the same inscriptions and engravings:
-  The obverse of the coin has the inscription “ESTADOS UNIDOS MEXICANOS” (United States of Mexico) which straddles an eagle that is standing and grasping a serpent in its mouth. The eagle is standing on a crown made from an oak branch and an olive branch. The eagle is the National symbol of Mexico: for Mexicans it is the representation of the duality between the earth and the sky. It also symbolises the conflict that delivers Good over Evil. There is a legend which surrounds this eagle: the old city of Tenochtitlan, today Mexico City, was built in the place where the Aztecs once saw an eagle flying off carrying a serpent in its beak.

20 PESOS REVERSE

- the reverse of the coin shows the value of the coin and the year in which it was minted. The coin is the effigy of Michel Hidalgo, a revolutionary and abolitionist. Michel Hidalgo is an emblematic figure of Mexico: a priest, a rebel and a revolutionary whose insurrection triggered the country’s process of independence. He first proclaimed independence on 16 September 1810 and then abolished slavery on 6 December. On 30 July 1811 the Inquisition had him shot for his crimes.

The 20 pesos coin

The obverse of the coin has a motif which represents the eagle striking down the serpent. The reverse of the coin shows a representation of the Aztec calendar from the Tiahuanaco Sun Gate. The Sun Gate is one of the vestiges of the Aztec civilization and is considered by several researchers as a astronomic sign.

Date on the gold pesos coins

• Note on the 10 pesos coin: From 1961 to 1972, 954,983 coins were re-minted with essentially the year 1959. In 1996 , matt remints were created.

What is the interest in Mexican gold pesos coins?

Above all the interest in these coins is numismatic. But there is only a small step from numismatic to profitable investment! Why? Because these coins are ever more rare and their value can never fall below that of gold itself under any circumstances. To be clear: buying Mexican pesos in an opportunity to combine asset protection with pleasure.

The bill sets out a framework for the Legislature to explore the possibility of an alternative legal tender system being created but the use of a gold currency would remain voluntary. The timing stipulated is for conclusions to be submitted for the 2012 session.
The “Utah Sound Money Act” was drafted by local attorney Larry Hilton who said that “un-backed money created by the Federal Reserve to stimulate the economy, is hanging over us like the sword of Damocles waiting to just come down in an avalanche and destroy the value of our currency.”

In short it represents the frustration of ordinary people who feel that the “paper dollar” no longer serves their needs. They have simply lost faith in a devalued currency which has eroded their wealth, their incomes and their purchasing power.

A Symbolic Act that brings back the Gold Standard?

Further comments came from Jeffrey Bell who is Policy Director for the American Principles Project based in Washington D.C. He explained that this bill would be viewed as a “symbolic act”. He added “But it sends a signal to Washington that political elites who want to leave the value and staying power of our currency uncertain, indefinite, so that they can at will intervene to do what they think would ameliorate the situation facing the U.S. economy.
The last time we had the system that we are recommending — the  International Gold Standard — it set a record for least inflation”.

It is interesting to note that the US Dollar is under pressure from all sides and its role as a “Global positioning Currency” is severely under threat as is its very existence.
We have previously discussed the possible role of Gold as a future money in Gold Money, a currency of the past…. and the future? And the demise of the Dollar in Financial Armageddon from worthless Paper Money.

Word is not only spreading but people are taking action against worthless fiat currencies and you too can do something now by taking out insurance against a fiat currency collapse – buy gold and gold coins. Remember it is always prudent and advisable to have insurance before the event – in this case an Economic crisis that could happen any time soon.

Think back to January 2007. All the elements of the crisis were already in place but the prophets were rapidly called “doom-mongerers”, stupid pessimists who were incapable of imagining the power of interventions made by the monetary authorities and the central banks. Countries had relatively little debt. Sovereign debts were therefore on assets held as a priority.

Certainty is illustrated by the expression “Fly to quality”. Each stock market shock leads to massive arbitrage away from equity markets to bonds which are considered to be “invulnerable”.

We were in the first stage which was described by Schopenhauer. The one during which we ridicule those casting doubt on the soundness and financial sustainability of large states.

Then came the great crisis of 2008. The one needing billions of Euros and Dollars of stimulus, monetary creation and social expenditure.

Deficits were dug out quickly and in a way never imagined by all the economic commentators. Caught in the cross fire of sagging tax revenue and massive spending support, the hole could only become quite cavernous. By the end of 2010, the idea of the widespread failure of Western States is now only encountering soft opposition. “No, come off it, a Country does not really go bankrupt; anyway, growth is starting in the United States which is, after all, the World’s largest economy”.

Exactly. Remember the figure of 2.9% which was the growth rate for the U.S. economy in 2010. Remember it well, we’ll come back to it.

Growth does not cure the crisis

Despite this 2.9% (which needs to be borne in mind), unemployment did not fall at all. Some kill-joys who were looking at the real unemployment rate in the United States (the one published by the FED and which also records those looking for work but receiving no benefits) even dared to say that this figure had reached more than 17.4%.

Despite this 2.9% (growth), approximately 43 Americans eat every day thanks to “Food Stamps” which are handed out to the poorest of society to enable them to go stores and buy basic items of food. It is a modern version of the soup kitchen that avoids shocking images of queues of the miserable and hungry unemployed. In short “food stamps” are a cross between ration books and restaurant vouchers.

Let’s turn now to the kingdom of perfidious Albion. Our English friends had the brilliant idea of electing a new “Conservative” Prime Minister, Mr Cameron. He argued that “If you do not deal with the the debt, you will never grow”. His main opponent the “Labour” Ed Miliband replied: “If you do not grow, you will never get out of the debt.”

That’s a neat debate. How can we get out of this crisis? How do we get back to growth? By spending more in stimulus measures to stimulate the economy as argued by our Labour friend? Why not…but with 11% deficit it is difficult to spend more without going immediately bankrupt.

So, the Conservative Prime Minister is exploring the only path which theoretically still holds out some hope…..the one of austerity. We cut all spending. Not a little but very much. Civil Servants are laid off (490 000 less up to 2015). Tuition fees? Tripled, quadrupled or quintupled. Teachers? Laid off. Parents will have to organise themselves to provide teaching for their children. Judging by how things are going over there, there will be no shortage of available parents in the coming months.

Heavy debt + recession = insolvency

Is this good or bad? This is not important in terms of ethics (although the debate is fascinating). But will this work in economic terms? Will the treatment of austerity lead to “healthy” growth?

The answer at this time is clear and unequivocal. No. The United Kingdom has double-dipped back into recession. Not officially, because there needs to be three months of negative growth, as Mrs. Largarde calls it, for an economy to be officially considered to be in recession. We are only talking about one quarter at the moment. The first one. However, a recession also means a fall in tax revenue which, given that this revenue is to be used to pay the debts which have already reached monstrous levels, is not the best of news. In summary therefore heavy debts + recession = insolvency.

Yes, but look! Going back to the United States of America. Remember our figure of 2.9% growth (the one that you must not forget!)? This is indeed a reason for hope. The Americans have decided, unlike the British, to let deficits “spin” in order to stimulate growth. And it works, 2.9% growth! Well, at the risk of shattering a few wonderful hopes, it does not work. Why?

Three figures:
The 2.9% growth represents a total increase in GDP of 541 billion U.S. dollars.
To create these 541 billion dollars of new wealth, the political and monetary authorities have created … 1,700 billion in new debt. To be clear, for every dollar of growth, you need 3.14 dollars of new debt.

Therefore, we can make two observations:
- The debt is growing faster than the wealth created with these new debts.
- The global economy is no longer able to create growth without debt.

Is the “stimulus” the last hope of humanity?

In 2011-2012, we return to the last stage of the truth according to Arthur Schopenhauer. The bankruptcy of countries will be “deemed to have been obvious.” The world will acknowledge the widespread insolvency of the Western nations. This will occur either because the stimulus will have created a debt which is too large … or because austerity measures will have created excessive debt; the end result caused by the austerity plans is essentially the same when adjusted for social and human damage.

Both routes lead us straight into insolvency. The only advantage of austerity measures is that they enable you to save time.

Everyone could see that the stimulus led to disaster. The austerity measures still have another 12 to 24 months to go before they either convince or else show that they will not work any better ….
There is always the French way of course; the one espoused by Mrs. Lagarde.
The path of the “Stimulus”.
Half austerity – half stimulus; half angel, half demon.
The stimulus is the last hope of humanity. A bit thin isn’t it?

Translation of an article by
Charles SANNAT
Chargé d’affaires BNP Paribas

The remarks did not reflect the opinion of BNP Paribas and in no case constitute an incitement to invest.

I’m sure that when we place our blind faith in the banks for loans, mortgages and everyday banking we trust that they will do their best for us and operate with upstanding principles to protect our assets.

I’m sure that those of us living in a free democracy believe our liberty and rights are being controlled by fairly elected governments representative of the people.

I’m sure that as you watch the daily news about unrest around the world you begin to sympathise with the poor oppressed peoples and hoping that soon they can have the same safe system bestowed upon them that we all apparently enjoy.

I’m sure that you would be horrified to learn that the controlling influence on the largest economy in the world and therefore an influence that stretches right around the world does not actually belong to the US government at all.

Despite its self-appointed name, the US Federal Reserve which controls Quantitative Easing, the printing of the US Dollar and US Economic Policy is actually a private company steeped in mystery with a special status completely outside the control of law.

You don’t believe it? Well just take a few minutes and watch the video for a quick insight into the real world of money laundering and absolute control.

Remaining ignorant could be bliss but then again if your livelihood and survival depends on it sometimes it’s better to be informed.

Disclose.tv – “the american dream” Video

You may now understand why your continued use and enslavement in paper assets is important to those who would seek to control.

When a crisis hits or the bubble bursts you will be left with nothing and no way of reclaiming a cent or a penny of your hard earned cash.

Do you think the politicians, bankers and enormous fortunes of the world will really care?

After all when was the last time you saw a poor politician or a poor banker?

When crisis strikes they remain the great untouched because they have the personal means and wealth to survive wars or economic disaster. They won’t feel hardship or hunger but you will.

During World War II many ordinary French families managed to survive the occupation because they had stashed a few gold Napoleon coins away which they could use to buy food. This is fact and is borne out by many a testimony from the time.

If the monetary system imploded or crashed and your Dollars, Euros, pounds or whatever became worthless, how would you survive?

Gold ownership is like a fire insurance for your personal wealth and is an investment in a physical entity that you own. When a crisis hits it has always proved to be vessel of value irrespective of the currency or era.

The logic for fire insurance is quite simple – should you buy it before or after the event?

Gold investment for the masses has never been encouraged because the Banks prefer you to believe in paper money which they can print, lend to you and make huge profits for themselves in the process.

It has never been in their interest to tempt you or advertise its qualities because they have been “stealing your gold” since money was invented.

In the Age of Austerity we find ourselves, not knowing whether currencies or countries may collapse at any time, what have you done to protect yourself from destitution and desolation?

Maybe you like taking chances and are hoping for the best but that may not be enough to survive and feed yourself.

Maybe you could plan ahead and maybe you should start now?

Remember, after the fire it is too late to buy insurance!