10 Centavos

Nicaragua's 1987 aluminum coinage was produced during the Sandinista government's desperate effort to maintain a functioning money supply as the economy collapsed under the combined pressure of the US trade embargo and the contra war. Inflation was accelerating toward hyperinflationary levels — the córdoba lost most of its practical value within months of these coins entering circulation. Aluminum was chosen not for durability but because it was the cheapest viable option available to a government nearly out of hard currency reserves.