My Pirate Coins…

Every Christmas brings its share of surprises—some wrapped in paper, some in sentiment. But in December 2024, I unwrapped something that felt like it had time-traveled straight from a Spanish galleon: two battered coins, gifted by my friend Wayne along with a certificate signed by an anthropologist named Frank Bergevin. The note was simple: “Authentic Spanish Cobs and Maravedis, circa 1600–1700 AD.” I blinked. Then I stared. Then I did what any curious collector would do—I started digging.