Darkside Private Gold

Regulated

Silvereagle82

Verrry Interesting

1jester

I'd even say, reeeeally interesting!

IlikeZARcoins

That'd do it.

1jester

I just LOVE the toning on that token. Is it pure gold?? I'd assume so, but then there are people who claim that pure gold can't tone.

Rickc300

I like it a lot! Now that I have seen it can you give me a little history on it?
TIA,
Rick

theboz11

Never seen one, that one is really sharp

Stork

What's the story behind it?


Cathy

bonkrood

African Popper ?

Lynch

<< <i>African Popper ? >>



Julio Popper. Extremely rare El Paramo, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina private gold issue, unpriced in Janson.

Regulated

The piece is an excessively rare 5-Gramo, struck in El Paramo, Tierra del Fuego by Julius Popper, a Romanian born adventurer. Popper and a band of mercenaries established themselves in Patagonia as the Lavaderos de Oro del Sud (gold washers of the South), and issued their own coins and stamps. They also carried out their own brutal form of martial law, essentially warring with anyone that encroached upon their gold-panning operations.

This is one of only three reported examples of Popper's 5-Gramo struck at El Paramo. Of the other two, one is apparently lost, and the other is permanently impounded in an Argentine museum's collection.

The toning on this piece is the result of a relatively high concentration of silver and copper in the unrefined gold that Popper used in the pieces. You find similar toning on California Fractional pieces that were struck from raw gold (refined from gold dust).

Refrema

The story behind this piece makes it very interesting.

Are there other denominations, and do you know how this piece survived?

Bob

Regulated

Popper also struck Gramo pieces and issued Gramos and 5-Gramos in Buenos Aires. The Buenos Aires pieces were struck using modern equipment and lack the crude charm of the El Paramo issues.

I'm unsure as to how this piece managed to survive, although I suspect it may have been part of a group that was sent to a member of the Argentine military in 1889 - that would explain the fact that the piece is essentially as made.

HenriIII

Learn something new her every day. Great history lesson.

Refrema

Thanks for the additional information about this piece.

It is learning the history associated with coins like this that make Numismatics so interesting.

Bob