Philip II, of the House of Habsburg, is considered one of the greatest sovereigns in Spanish history in terms of global exploration and colonial expansion across the Atlantic and Pacific. He extended his empire across continents, creating one of the vastest empires ever known and reshaping the world's political map. With the discovery of incalculable riches in America, the Spanish and their powerful fleets of galleons became the primary suppliers of gold and silver coins to the world. During this era of adventure, vast amounts of Spanish treasure were inevitably lost on land and at sea to pirates, storms, and other unforeseen events.
The real was a monetary unit in Spain and its colonies for several centuries. With the discovery of new silver deposits in colonial territories, there was an urgent need to export it to Spain quickly. To achieve this, starting with the reign of Philip II, mints produced irregular coins known as "macuquinas" or cobs. A silver bar was cut into pieces of the appropriate weight. The intention of minting these crude but precisely weighted pieces was to create a product that was easily transportable to Spain. Once there, the cobs were often melted down to manufacture jewelry, coins, bullion, and other objects. Each coin has a unique shape and is an unrepeatable piece of history.
