Owner Comments:
Ecuador - 1919 (Providence Mint) - 5 Centavos (4 Berries, loose) - (KM #63, EC #133)
Total Mintage: 12,000,000 (all varieties)
History
These coins were minted for the "Republica Del Ecuador" by the Providence Mint, a division of Gorham Manufacturing Company in Providence Rhode Island. Known primarily for producing high-quality sterling silverware and holloware, they also produced silver and base metal coins for several foreign countries including Ecuador, Serbia, and Cuba. The most notable of these are the several varieties of 1897 Cuban "Souvenir Pesos", and the 1898 Cuban Peso. It is interesting to note that the engravers at the Providence mint did the best job depicting the steamship
Guayas, the Guayas River and the snow capped Chimborazo volcano at the center of the coat of arms. They are probably the only engravers to correctly depict a Caduceus as the main mast of the ship.
Varieties
I became interested in this "one year type" in 2004, and I have acquired quite a few of these coins over the years since. Krause & Mishler identifiy three main varieties, but I have come to realize that there are many more significant die varieties than that. The ones that everyone knows are all linked to the configuration of berries directly to the left of the
C in
CENTAVOS on the reverse. They are as follows:
- 3 berries to left of C on reverse. Most common variety.
- 4 berries tightly grouped to left of C on reverse. (aka 4 Berries tight) Sub-varieties exist.
- 4 berries loosely grouped to left of C on reverse. (aka 4 Berries loose) This variety is extremely rare.
In addition to these, I have noticed that there are at least three sub-varieties of the grouping of the 4 berries tight variety. They exist in square and diamond configurations and there are two types of diamond patterns. The diamond pattern being much more common than the square pattern. Varieties also exist in the style and positioning of the letters in the word
CENTAVOS.
All of the focus has been on the varieties exhibited on the reverse, but there are very noticeable varieties on the obverse as well. The four main characteristics of the obverse that are easily identifiable are:
- The overall style of the design (Refined or Crude)
- The number and style of tail feathers on the condor perched atop the coat of arms.
- The size and position of the sun just below the condor.
- The presence or absence of the backstay on the mizzenmast of the ship.
Combine all of the obverse and reverse varieties, and one could define a collection similar to all of the varieties known for the 1878 8TF Morgan Dollar!
Based on the large number of die varieties and style of the design, I have come to the conclusion that there was probably no master hub used and that each die was very likely hand cut.
This coin
This particular coin is the only example I have ever seen of the extremely rare 4 Berries loose variety. Unfortunately, this coin has seen circulation and had some surface dirt issues. It originally received a grade of VF-Details from NGC, but after conservation by NCS it received a grade of AU50. It also took several years, but I was finally able to convince NGC to identify the "loose" 4 berry sub-type on the label, although it is not yet cataloged as a distinct variety.
Obverse characteristics are:
Overall design: ............Refined
Condor Tail Feathers: 3, even ends
Sun Size: ......................Large, high
Mizzenmast Backstay: No
Date acquired: 2/17/2007 (raw coin)
Date graded: 10/28/2015 (self submitted to NGC)
Date regraded: 9/25/2018 (resubmitted to MS at NGC for upgrade and proper designation as 4 Berry Loose variety)
References:
Seppa, Dale and Anderson, Michael,
the COINS of ECUADOR (second edition), Almanzar's Coins of the World, San Antonio, 1973.
Rev. 11/19/2018