Value of 1816 Piece of Eight

The Spanish piece of eight was equal to one Colonial dollar, or English pound.

Prior to 1865, money was printed in various denominations, all based on the Spanish silver real. Eight reales were equal to a dollar, and each minted piece was commonly known in circulation as a "piece of eight", "reales de ocho", or "peso". Outside of Colonial America, and Spanish colonies, the currency was known as the Spanish miller.

Appearance

Each silver piece was marked with the number 8 and weighed approximately an ounce. This made it the largest and heaviest of the silver coins then in circulation.

Comparison

The British shilling was comprised of 1/20 an ounce of silver, with 20 shillings making up a British pound. This was equal to one Colonial dollar, or a piece of eight.

Change of 1816

In 1816, the English adopted the Gold Standard, lowering the value of silver drastically. The Guinea was withdrawn from usage, and the world began to base its currency on the pound instead of the Spanish miller.

References

• Teach Me Finance: Monetary Events
• Manfield Numiscmatic Society: Merchant Script
• Pirate Money: Pieces of Eight