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These silver "Reales" are not only the first coins in Lima, but also in South America and their production began in September 1568. The coins had a so called "Pillar" design and no date was marked. The only way to tell their age was by recognizing the designers initials (in the case of these coins it was Alonso Rincón whose initial was a "R") and the mark of the mint, in this case a "P" marked above the slogan "PLVS VLTRA" (at this time the only Mint in Lima of the Vice-royalty).
This design was only used until November 1570 as in early 1571 the Lima Mint temporarily stopped its operations. Some of the coins had the name of the king imprinted on the border. The coins were irregularly shaped, had no security seal or "ridge" and were minted by anvil and hammer. This type of coins is also called "Cobs" or "Spanish Colonial Cobs".
