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1 Balboa
| Issuer | Republic of Panama |
|---|---|
| Year | 1931-1947 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Milled |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Armored bust of Vasco Núñez de Balboa facing left, rendered in high relief with detailed period armor, centered within the field. The denomination VN BALBOA arcs along the upper rim, flanked by raised dots, while a laurel wreath appears below the bust truncation. The overall design is spare and dignified, reflecting the neoclassical engraving style of the period. |
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| Edge | Reeded |
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| Additional information |
Panama's balboa was pegged at parity with the U.S. dollar from the currency's creation in 1904, a consequence of the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty and American insistence on monetary stability in the Canal Zone. The silver balboa never functioned as a true national currency in any practical sense — U.S. dollars circulated freely and were legally accepted everywhere, relegating Panamanian coins largely to small change and ceremony.
The 1931 issue marks the transition away from the earlier Vasco Núñez de Balboa portrait type introduced in 1904. KM#13 continued through 1947 with interrupted production; no pieces were struck in several intervening years, reflecting both the Depression's pressure on silver coinage budgets and wartime metal priorities.