1 Centésimo

Chile's centésimo was born from a 1960 redenomination that replaced the escudo's predecessor, the peso, at a rate of 100 pesos to 1 escudo — meaning this coin's face value represented what had recently been a full peso. The redenomination was a direct response to chronic inflation that had eroded the peso to near worthlessness over the preceding decade, with annual inflation rates that had exceeded 80% in some years during the 1950s.

Aluminium was chosen purely for cost: striking low-denomination coins in any heavier metal would have made their production cost exceed their face value almost immediately given ongoing inflationary pressure.