Bolivia 1/2, 1, 2, 4, and 8 Soles 1827 to 1846

Good coin catalogs often gives a bit of history when describing coins, and we try to do the same thing here on CoinQuest. According to the Standard Catalog of Wold Coins, Bolivia's independence from Spain was accomplished in 1825 under Simon Bolivar. Since then Bolivia has endured 16 constitutions, 78 presidents, 3 military juntas, and 160 revolutions. Whew.

Scott's coin is among the first of the non-Spanish issues. The denomination appears on the side with the llamas and tree, with 8S = 8 soles, 4S = 4 soles, etc. The mint mark is for the city of Potosi, which looks like the letters PTS all inscribed on top of each other.

The coin in our picture is an 8 soles. It was sold at auction in 2013 for 110 euros (about $140 US dollars), which gives a good indication of value. The auction house was Pecunem in Munich, Germany and CoinQuest thanks Pecunem for the use of their coin image.

The listings below give approximate catalog values.

1/2 SOLE (1827 to 1830, 16 mm diameter, about 0.035 troy ounces silver)
worn: $5 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $35
well preserved: $110
fully uncirculated: $220

1 SOLE (1827 to 1830, 20 mm diameter, about 0.075 ounces silver)
worn: $6 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $35
well preserved: $60
fully uncirculated: $100
1 sole coins dated 1828 and 1829 are worth about twice these values
1 sole coins dated 1827 are worth about four times these values

2 SOLES (1827 to 1830, 25 mm diameter, about 0.14 ounces silver)
worn: $10 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $50
well preserved: $100
fully uncirculated: $250
2 sole coins dated 1827 are worth about twice these values

4 SOLES (1827 to 1830, 30 mm diameter, about 0.35 ounces silver)
worn: $10 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $30
well preserved: $70
fully uncirculated: $150
4 sole coins dated before 1830 are worth about twice these values

8 SOLES (1827 to 1846, 30 mm diameter, 0.784 ounces silver)
worn: $30 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $50
well preserved: $150
fully uncirculated: $250
8 soles dated 1833 with initial 'L', not initials 'LM', are rare and catalog at $350 in average circulated condition

As always on CoinQuest, we report catalog values. Actual buy and sell values are different than catalog value, as described on our Important Terminology page.
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