Michael,
    It may be of interest that we found a 1782 half peso (I am told it is also referred to as a half real) here at the Augusta Arsenal site.  Photographs of the coin are displayed at this address:

http://www.aug.edu/history_and_anthropology/Arch_Project_Identification.html

    As the photos show, our artifact was not pierced.  I hypothesized two possible origins for the coin.  One was the Mexican War souvenir hypothesis that you suggested.

    The other possibility was suggested by my historian colleagues (my department is History & Anthropology).  They pointed out that in the early republic period coinage was in short supply (at least in the South) and many kinds of coins circulated; I thought ours might be one of them.  This hypothesis might apply better to our historical context (1828 & after) than your later
one, but you might consider it.

    Chris Murphy
    Department of History & Anthropology
    Augusta State University
    Augusta, GA  30904
    Ph: (706) 737-1709


Michael LaRonge wrote:

> Fellow Histarchers,
>
> I have been working at the site of a post office that operated from about 1861 to 1879, and serviced a small German Catholic community.  Earlier this week we found a coin at the site that caused a bit of a stir.  The coin is a Spanish half real of Carolus III from 1781.  It has been pierced and was probably worn as a pendant or charm.
>
> Oddly, enough an Australian metal detector found a similar coin from 1773, although he is not online anymore his website is: (http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Rapids/5798/find5.html)  The coin he found is pierced in the same spot as the one we found.
>
> After that lengthy introduction on to the question.  Has anyone found and/or heard of other Spanish coins of that period treated in similar fashion?  We are thinking it may be a souvenir from the Mexican American War, and we are looking into the history of the residents to see if any family members were involved.  Any help with this would be appreciated and thanks in advance.
>
> Michael LaRonge
> Wisconsin Historical Society
> Museum Archaeology Program
> Coyier Lab
> 331 Coyier Lane
> Madison, WI 53713
> (608) 271-9097