As a little kid, I gained an interest in coin collecting from my father, who has been collecting since he was a teenager.  One of my uncles has also had a big hand in this passion as he has also been collecting since he was a kid.  These days I mostly collect coins from countries I visit, which is harder with so many countries in Europe switching to the Euro.  This is why I was thrilled to realize that we have quite a nice collection of coins/medallions/etc. here.

These first two photos show an 1 Maravedis coin, ca 1558-1576, from Cuenca, Spain.  On one side is a crowned monogram for King Philip II.  On the other is the raised image of a castle  with towers and the letter “C”.  It looks like there might be a chalice to the left of the castle, but it is difficult to tell.   Read more