Mexico 1/2, 1, 2, and 4 Reales 1824 to 1870

It was the old Spanish and Mexican silver reales coins that lead to our modern American denominations:

Mexico 1/2R real (US nickel): 16 mm, 0.049 ASW
Mexico 1R real (US dime): 20 mm, 0.098 ASW
Mexico 2R reales (US quarter): 26 mm, 0.196 ASW
Mexico 4R reales (US half): 33 mm, 0.393 ASW
Mexico 8R reales (US dollar): 39 mm, 0.786 ASW

In the list above the 'R' annotation appears on the coin explicitly as the denomination (e.g., 2R = 2 reales), the 'mm' value is the diameter in millimeters, and 'ASW' means 'actual silver weight' in troy ounces.

This page applies to the 1/2R, 1R, 2R, and 4R denominations. If you have an 8 reales (the old 'pieces of 8' in Americana literature), our appraisal page appears at this link.

CoinQuest thanks respected eBay seller MrPotatoHeadd for use of their coin image.

Here are the approximate catalog stats for just about every coin in this series, except the *better date* coins called out below. The *common dates* evaluate as follows:

1/2 REAL
worn: $10 US dollars catalog value
average circulated: $20
well preserved: $50

1 REAL
worn: $10 US dollars catalog value
average circulated: $25
well preserved: $60

2 REALES
worn: $15 US dollars catalog value
average circulated: $45
well preserved: $80

4 REALES
worn: $20 US dollars catalog value
average circulated: $70
well preserved: $150

See our Terminology page to understand how these catalog values relate to actual buy and sell values.

There is an elaborate system of mint marks and initials that make some of these coins better than other when it comes to value. Coins worth $100 or more in worn condition are shown in the list below. Some of these are quite valuable, tipping the scales over $1000 when in uncirculated condition. Worn coins do not reach this high.

1/2 REAL
1826 mint mark Go initials MJ
1829 mint mark EoMo initials LF
1845 mint mark Pi initials AM
1861 mint mark D, Do initials CP

1 REAL
1828 mint mark EoMo initials LF
1830, 31, 32 mint mark Ga initials FS
1837 mint mark pi initials JS
1844, 45, 55 mint mark Ca initials RG
1848 mint mark Ga intials JG

2 REALES
1824 mint makr D, Do initials RL
1828 mint mark EoMo initials LF
1840 mint mark Mo initials ML
1851, 57 mint mark Ga initials JG
1855, 56 mint amrk Do initials CP
1863 mint mark Ce initials ML

4 REALES
1839 mint mark Zs initials OM
1844 thru 50 mint mark GC initials MP (very valuable)
1846, 52, 58 mint mark C initials CE
1858, 1860, 1863 mint makr Ga initials JG
1854, 55, 56, 58 mint mark Pi initials MC
1860 mint mark Pi intials PS
1861 mint mark O initials FR
1863 mint mark Ce initials ML
1864 mint mark Pi initials RO (very valuable)
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