Catalog
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| Issuer | Republic of Guatemala |
|---|---|
| Year | 1960-1964 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | Central device features a tall, intricately carved Maya stela — the Monolith of Quirigua — rising prominently from the center of the field, its surface adorned with detailed hieroglyphic reliefs and a human face in low relief at mid-height. Tropical vegetation, including a palm tree to the left and foliage to the right, frames the base of the stela. The denomination '10 CENTAVOS' is inscribed to the right of the monument in two lines. The legend 'MONOLITO DE QUIRIGUA' curves along the lower rim in bold incuse lettering. |
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| Additional information |
Guatemala's silver fractional coinage of this period survived well into circulation despite the country's chronic monetary instability through the late 1950s and early 1960s, a stretch marked by the political fallout following the 1954 CIA-backed coup that ousted Jacobo Árbenz. The quetzal held its dollar parity on paper, but hoarding of silver coins was common whenever confidence in the government wavered.
The .720 fineness used here matches the reduced silver standard Guatemala adopted in the postwar years, consistent with regional trends as most Central American republics quietly trimmed silver content rather than abandon metallic coinage altogether.