10 000 Córdobas Discovery of Nicaragua

Issued in 1989 by the Sandinista government's central bank, this coin commemorates the 500th anniversary run-up to Columbus's contact with the Nicaraguan coast — the same political moment that prompted commemorative programs across Latin America, most of them controversial. Nicaragua's version appeared while the country was still under U.S. trade embargo and fighting a grinding contra war, making hard-currency commemorative silver an odd fiscal priority.